Top Mistakes to Avoid When Moving To NSW
Moving is regarded as one of the most stressful events in a person’s life. Not only is the act of moving physically taxing, but it also involves continuous coordination with multiple people and utility providers.
The challenge that comes with moving can be further compounded if you’re approaching the task inefficiently. For instance, failing to pack ahead or forgetting about hidden costs can be a huge blow to the smoothness of the relocation.
As such, preparedness is key to enjoying a stress-free and easy move. In particular, knowing what to avoid can help you prevent costly and time-consuming mistakes that can compromise your move’s timeliness.
With that said, this begs the question: what mistakes should you avoid when moving locally or interstate?
In this article, we’ll break down some of the most common mistakes many people may face during the moving process, and ways to ensure that you don’t entrap yourself in the pitfall that is moving inefficiently.
Let’s jump straight into it.
Not Being Thorough When Hiring Removalists
While your best mates can definitely lend a hand when moving day rolls around, hiring licensed removalists is the best way to ensure that your upcoming move is structured and professionally handled.
There are heaps of urban removalists like Sydney removalists that you can contact to get your moving needs done. Many of them have been in the business for decades or more, so you can rest easy knowing that your contact knows their way around the entire moving process.
That said, it’s important to be aware that these removalists aren’t always available on-call. You have to book them weeks in advance to ensure that they will show up on moving day. This is especially crucial if you’re moving during peak times, like the summer season or end-of-lease periods.
When choosing a removalist partner, it’s important to research the company beforehand. Look up testimonials and reviews of the company and compare quotes from other providers. Consider their additional services when assessing their quotation as well. This way, you can have peace of mind knowing that you’re picking the best removalist for the job.
Bringing Too Many Items With You
Another mistake that people tend to fall for before moving is bringing the entirety of their old home with them. A move signals a time to start anew and refresh your abode. You don’t need to dig up dusty items from a bygone era that don’t hold sentimental meaning to you anymore.
Instead of hoarding your items, take some time to sort your household items. Categorise them based on these categories: to keep, to sell, to donate, and to bin.
Get these boxes ready and go room through room. Assess the items and figure out what category they fall under. If you haven’t used the item in the past year, then it’s probably time to sell it online or in a garage sale or donate it to a charity or a loved one. If the item has no value at all, then you can dispose of it accordingly.
By downsizing the things you’ll bring to your new home, you’ll manage clutter more effectively and keep your new home in a clean, pristine, and livable state. You’ll also make it much easier (and more affordable) for removalists to transport your items.
That said, be sure to start donating and selling your old items sooner rather than later. It takes time to give used items a new home; ideally, putting them up for sale or donation is ideal three months before the scheduled moving date.
Underestimating Packing Time
Packing is arguably the most physically demanding task when planning a move-out. It’s not something you should save for the very last minute, as this can cause you to pack haphazardly, misplace belongings, or potentially break items.
A good time to pack is about two months before you’re expected moving date. Start by clearing out non-essential items and putting them in labelled boxes. Categorising them by room is a good strategy to keep track of where your items are when you start unpacking.
You can use cardboard boxes, luggage, and foldable bags to store these items. As moving day approaches, continue packing your essential items until your room is fully cleared out. Be sure to gently handle fragile items to ensure that they don’t break during transit—wrapping them with towels and crumpled paper can work.
As for bulky and heavy-set furniture, you can rely on professional removalists to handle the job for you. By packing your items as early as possible, you’ll have fewer things to worry about during moving day—which can save you from a lot of stress and frustration.
Leaving Utility Reconnections for Later
Moving to a new home in a new city is a big life milestone. But you have to ensure that your utilities are all taken care of because if you’re not careful, you could be opening doors to a place without water, electricity, or Internet on day one.
Utility providers can take weeks to install a connection to your home. If you leave this task to the very end, you could be looking at your first few days without the necessary amenities to get you by—surely a bad impression of your new space.
To ensure that you’re moving into a livable space, then you should contact the new place’s utility providers and have them set up your electricity, water, gas, and Internet by the time you arrive. At the very least, contact them and get an estimated date of when to expect these utilities to work in your new place—this way, you won’t encounter any surprises during moving day.
Of course, you should also focus on disconnecting power and water in your old place if you own it. Contact the utility providers there, give them the moving date, and turn off the electrical power source the day you leave your place. This is to avoid extra charges.
Not Packing a “Day One” Bag
As soon as you step foot at your new home, you’ll probably feel a mix of relief and exhaustion. As satisfying as it is to be done with much of the hard work, it’ll likely take a large toll on your body.
The night after the big move, you probably want nothing more than to rest and plop down in bed. But if you fail to adequately prepare a day bag, you may have to scramble for clothing, hygiene products, and your medications across different boxes—which can be stressful, time-consuming, and plain frustrating to deal with.
An essentials kit or day bag is a crucial kit to prepare before moving homes. This kit’s purpose is to ensure that all the necessities are accessible immediately after your move. You can prepare up to a week’s worth of items in that bag to help you settle into your new home gradually and less stressfully.
A day one bag should include the following items: toiletries, medications, chargers, sets of clothes, important documents, and basic kitchenware. They should also always be with your person and not in the transit truck.
If you have family or housemates tagging along, then encourage them to prepare a day bag for themselves, too. This way, settling into the new home will be a comfortable process.
We hope these tips will help you plan your move more smoothly. All the best!
Forgetting About Insurance
Moving furniture and fragile items with a removalist company is among the safest ways to initiate and plan out a move. That said, this method is not completely devoid of risk. Accidents may occur during transit, causing your furniture and belongings to shift or dislodge from their original position.
In the event that one or more of your items get damaged during transit, having an active insurance policy to cover for damages can be a great way to protect yourself from lost value.
Many removalist companies offer an insurance policy called goods-in-transit (GIT) insurance as an add-on to their services, but if yours doesn’t, be sure to ask them and request for one to ensure maximum safety. If you’re traveling interstate and across long distance, you should also get an insurance policy that covers the entire range of the transit.
Furthermore, you can also request insurance companies for third-party insurance coverage for maximum protection. Third-party insurance can help you in the event that your items are mishandled, stolen, or broken because of poor weathe conditions.
While insurance policies may seem like an unecessary cost, they’re invaluable in safeguarding your financial security in the event that something unexpected occurs.
The last thing you’d want is for your belongings to be damaged during transit and you moving to a new home without a set of furniture to your name. As such, tread on the safe side and secure an insurance policy that covers your move.