How To Prepare for Movers and Have a Stress-Free Experience
Moves are stressful, even if you hire professionals to help. You can’t control the weather or traffic, but you can control how ready your home is before moving day. That preparation can save time, reduce stress, and help keep your relocation on schedule. Learning how to prepare for movers and packers is fully within your control. This moving day checklist covers everything you need to do in the weeks before the big day up until the first truck arrives.
What To Do Before Movers Arrive
Once the crew arrives, stopping to sort out a junk drawer or take apart your bed frame only adds time to the move. These six tips on how to prepare for moving day ahead of time will keep everything on track.
1. Declutter and Sort Your Belongings
A local move is typically billed hourly, and a lighter load means fewer hours on the clock you have to pay for. Long-distance moves are often priced by weight, so bringing fewer items can help lower costs. Go room by room and create three piles: keep, donate, and toss. Those unused dumbbells may not be worth bringing to your new home. Do this step a few weeks out, while making arrangements is still easy.
Are you too busy to dispose of everything yourself? College HUNKS Hauling Junk & Moving will haul off the items you no longer need or want and drop usable pieces at a local charity.
2. Pack With a Plan
Break your packing into manageable chunks. For example, you can divide a large bedroom into the closet, drawers and dressers, and bedding. Finish one space before starting the next. Label every box on the top and two sides as you work through the room, and keep track of them. A simple inventory list makes unpacking much easier once you arrive at your new home.
A few packing habits can help protect your belongings:
- Use small boxes for heavy items like books.
- Reserve larger boxes for pillows and comforters.
- Stand plates on their sides instead of stacking them flat.
- Wrap glassware with towels or packing supplies, like packing paper.
- Set aside a first-night box with essentials like toiletries, chargers, medications, clothes, and toilet paper.
3. Handle Specialty and High-Value Items
Several items shouldn’t travel on the moving truck. Some of the items you should take with you in car include:
- Precious jewelry
- Cash
- Passports
- Medication
- Work laptops
- Important documents
If you have large but fragile, expensive items that must go on the truck, alert your moving crew at least a few days before they arrive. They may have specialty packing supplies to keep that antique mirror or your grandmother’s china collection safe.
If you decide to book full-service movers, set the breakables and specialty items aside where the packers will see them and label them.
4. Prepare and Protect Your Home
Moving large furniture without preparing the space can increase the risk of scuffs and bumps. Floors, walls, and door frames are especially vulnerable during a move. Measure your largest items and check whether they can fit through all the necessary doorways, stairwells, and corners early. If an item is too big, disassemble it ahead of time.
Then, clear the path to the truck: Roll up rugs, coil loose cords, and move breakables out of the way. If you live in an apartment complex, claim the parking spot closest to the door so the walk stays short and quick.
5. Handle Logistics and Notifications
Few people like handling admin work, but sometimes it’s necessary for a smooth and successful move. File your change of address with USPS, then update your bank, employer, insurance agencies, or anyone else who needs to send you mail. Give notice to your current utilities companies and set up gas, electric, and water at your new place to switch, so you’re not dehydrated and wandering around in the dark unpacking boxes.
A few days out, call the moving company to confirm the date, address, and arrival window. Now’s a good time to ask any questions you may have.
6. Map Out Your New Place Beforehand
Give your movers as much info about your new place ahead of time. Take one more set of measurements to make sure everything fits through the doors and hallways. If you can, sketch a rough floor plan and decide where everything goes before the moving truck arrives.
How To Get Ready for Movers on Moving Day
Most of the planning should be done before the crew arrives, but a few tasks deserve your attention on moving day.
1. Walk the Crew Through the Home
When the movers arrive, walk them through the house. Show them what’s going on the truck and what stays, and label the “Do not load” pile so no one makes a mistake. Don’t forget to show them the fragile and heavy pieces, and the rooms you’d like emptied first. The few minutes this task takes can spare you an incorrectly packed truck or a missing box.
2. Keep Kids and Pets Out of the Way
Moving day is chaotic enough without adding a pet or small child into the mix. If you can’t find a babysitter or pet sitter, consider settling the kids or animals in a secure room with snacks and an activity to keep them occupied.
3. Do a Final Walkthrough Before the Truck Leaves
Once the truck is packed, walk through the house one final time before the movers leave. Open the closets, cabinets, and drawers, and check those often-forgotten spots: the attic, the garage, the basement, behind doors, and the top shelf in the bathroom. Once you’re satisfied everything is packed, give the crew the go-ahead.
Make Moving Day Easier With College HUNKS
Moving day doesn’t have to feel overwhelming. A little preparation beforehand can help everything stay organized and reduce last-minute stress.
If you’d rather leave the heavy lifting to the professionals, College HUNKS offers local and long-distance moving services tailored to your needs. If you have questions about your upcoming move or would like a free personalized estimate, the team is ready and happy to help.
FAQ
How Far in Advance Should I Start Preparing for Movers?
Start preparing for movers four to eight weeks in advance. That should give you enough time to declutter, pack each room, and figure out logistics. Hire the moving company at least two to four weeks out. If you’re moving during the summer or at the end of a month, give yourself an extra week or two to book your crew.
What Should I Not Let Movers Pack?
Movers typically won’t load hazardous materials, so you may need to find ways to handle propane tanks, aerosols, fertilizer, ammunition, and anything flammable. Check with your movers beforehand.
You’ll also want to pack perishable food and live plants with you in the car. Some states won’t allow plants across their borders, so check local government regulations first.
And always keep personal valuables with you, including cash, jewelry, keys, documents, and medications.
What Should I Do if Something Gets Damaged During the Move?
For interstate moves, federal regulations require movers to offer two coverage options. Released Value Protection comes at no additional cost but limits reimbursement to $0.60 per pound per item. Full Value Protection costs extra and provides more comprehensive coverage for repair, replacement, or reimbursement, depending on the circumstances.