Pro Tips for Packing & Unpacking
Spring and Summer are the most popular months for home sales, which means lots of people are moving. Whether you’re moving down the street or across the country, there are things you can do to make the process more efficient and less stressful.
Love it or Leave it. There is no better time to declutter then when you are preparing for a move. If you are unsure of what items to keep, before packing them, ask yourself, “When is the last time I used this?”, “What would be the worst thing that would happen if I got rid of this?” and “Why am I keeping it?” Anything that you no longer want to keep should be donated, sold, or trashed depending on the condition and the value. By taking the time to pack only what you need and use, you’ll save time when it comes time to unpack. Frequently we are contacted by people who moved into their home years ago and still have boxes that are not unpacked. If you are taking only what you need and use, you won’t have to worry about stacks of unopened boxes. This is the perfect time to sell or donate all of those wedding gifts you never used, but felt you should hold onto!
Purposeful Packing. Put like-items together and label boxes clearly with the contents. It will save you time when unpacking to label boxes Kitchen, Garage, etc. For those items you’ll need right away, write OPEN FIRST on the boxes. Too often when we unpack clients we see lots of things haphazardly thrown into boxes either by the client or the movers. You would be shocked at how many times we’ve opened boxes that are filled with trash. We are also frequently contacted by people who moved into their homes years ago and still have stacks of boxes in their garage that have yet to be unpacked; when we do finally unpack them are almost always filled with items that the client no longer wants.
Tools of the Trade. To be most efficient you’ll need the right packing tools.
-Durable packing boxes
-Quality packing tape
-Sharpies
-Packing Paper
-Color Coded Labels
At Reclaim we’re busy working with clients to help them pack and unpack. We are currently working with two families, one packing and one unpacking. The family that we are packing is moving into temporary housing before their new home is ready. We are decluttering room by room and then packing items into two separate categories–storage and apartment. This will make it easy for the movers to know what goes where. In one three-hour appointment we decluttered and packed two rooms. With a trunk full of donations, a handful of items to sell and five bags of trash, we’re off to a good start!
We are also working with a family to unpack and set up systems in their new home. This is another situation where a family was in temporary housing. When we arrived the bonus room was filled with boxes from storage. The contents were unknown, so we dug right in. In just two hours we went through all of the boxes and put the items in their appropriate places. 75% of the items were trash. The client also found several items she had been searching for for the past three months. We are now going room-by-room, perfecting each space so that everything has a home.
Are you moving or still have boxes that have yet to be unpacked from a past move? We can help!
