Moving to a new house is perhaps one of the most tiring experiences that you’ll ever encounter in your lifetime. Not only do you have to prepare the things that you need to bring with you from your old house, you also have to prepare how to move these things and how to slowly settle and arrange your stuff once you’ve arrived in your new home. And since we’re in the Philippines, certain conditions make it even worse. Heavy traffic in urban areas, the safety and security with the stuff that you are hauling, and getting hired help are some of the most common headaches that you have to deal with.
Good thing that the Internet is here to provide people with much needed answers!
Okay, so if you want to make the whole transfer not too painful for your mind, body and wallet, here are some of the best practices we’ve collected from people who are used to moving from one apartment or house to the next:
1. Always prepare your stuff a week before moving day: Some people even start packing as early as one month before they move! The rationale for this is that once moving day comes, you won’t be rushing all over the place to get your items ready. Besides, if you do it a week before, you can delegate an hour or two for packing all your stuff daily. You can stop packing and then continue on the next day.
If you’re moving for the first time and you simply have no idea what stuff you’re supposed to prepare for, here’s a list of moving essentials:
2. Cardboard Boxes: It doesn’t matter how many; just get as many cardboard boxes as you can just to be ready. Whenever we go out for grocery shopping, we don’t throw away the big boxes that were used for our groceries. The same goes with boxes that come with big home appliances, like your washing machine, your computer printer, and others. If you’ve managed to throw all of those away, then you can go to a grocery store and kindly ask or buy cardboard boxes from them (if they have any available).
Don’t know how to make cardboard boxes? Then you might want to watch this:
3. Packing Tape: Buy the thick, brown one, not the clear ones. The clear packing tapes are not suited for sealing cardboard boxes. The brown packing tape are usually the ones used by freight companies because they’re thicker and they stick longer. You can easily buy it at a nearby school and office supplies store.
4. Plastic Bags: These are for clothes and other items that can’t be fit inside the cardboard boxes because they are too full.
5. Markers: For marking your cardboard boxes and plastic bags with labels, so you know which is which when its time to start unpacking your stuff at your new home.
6. Plastic Envelopes: For all important papers and documents at home, you can store them in plastic envelopes. Always get the big ones so you can put a lot of important documents in it.
7. Mini deposit boxes: You can find these in malls and shops all over town. These are important for storing valuable items, like your jewelry items. You can buy those that come with a lock and key or with a combination lock.
Once you have everything ready, always make it a point to clean your old home before transferring. This is very important, especially if you’ve been renting in your old home or apartment. Your old landlord/landlady will definitely appreciate this gesture.
And before transferring to your new home, also make sure that its clean and free from dust or from the smell of paint. Do an inspection of your new house a week or two before transferring so you can do some general cleaning and to make sure that the paint dries in time when you move in.
8. Get a professional mover: The Internet provides a rich source of information when it comes to professional movers. If you don’t have Internet connection, you can still find one from newspapers. However, don’t always assume that all of them are legitimate; there are isolated cases where movers are actually criminals in disguise. You can easily pick apart the legitimate one from the dubious ones by asking for their business permit.
9. Check Google Maps for alternate routes to your new house: Once everything is ready for transporting, always prepare an alternate route for you and the movers. Big cities like Manila and Cebu are notorious for heavy traffic, so check Google Maps for an alternate route in case there’s heavy traffic in the usual route.
10. Move when it’s quiet and there’s less traffic: Some people even move their stuff as late as twelve midnight. It makes sense to do this because streets are no longer congested in the big cities. Also, moving at this hour is not as stressful when the sun is out.
These tips are simple but effective. However, if you really don’t like moving from one apartment to the rest, try to buy one that you’ll keep for a lifetime. And we can definitely help you out with that!