2. Inventory your home
Take full inventory of your possessions, especially if you’re hiring movers. A complete record of your household items will help you decide what to take and what to leave behind.
Also, the detailed inventory list will be super useful if something goes missing during the move.
3. Declutter your home like crazy
Get rid of old, broken, unwanted, or useless things to make packing and moving easy and reduce transportation costs.
If you haven’t used any items for over a year, it’s time to discard them.
4. Sell items you’ll never use again
Make moving easier by pocketing some much-needed cash prior to Moving day. Earn money by selling all the things you will no longer need: organize a garage sale or sell stuff online.
5. Start packing ASAP
Still wondering how to make moving home easy?
This one is easy: start packing up your things as soon as the house move becomes only a matter of time. Packing for a move takes forever, so give yourself a great head start.
6. Follow a packing timeline
Packing up your things is the toughest task you’ll have to complete when moving out and failure to organize your packing time can easily end in disaster.
Ensure an easy move by creating and following a packing calendar where each packing job is prioritized and personalized.
7. Pack the toughest rooms first
Packing the most difficult rooms first won’t be easy… but as you get more and more tired and your energy and motivation start to wane, packing will get easier.
To make moving easy on yourself, initiate the packing task with the storage areas in your home.
8. Pack in logical stages
One way to make moving easier and less stressful is to break the packing task into mini-tasks.
You can’t pack up your home in one attempt, so pack one room and one mini-packing project at a time to speed up packing.
9. Don’t pay for moving boxes
It’s always easier to move house when you don’t have to worry about money. However, when moving on a budget, you should make an effort to save money on packing supplies.
Get free moving boxes from friends, local businesses, or specialized websites.
10. Use small boxes for heavy stuff
Packing and moving made easy?
Distribute your heavy items into several smaller boxes to keep things safe. Would you rather carry 5 smaller and lighter boxes or one insanely heavy box that could break under its own weight?
Don’t risk causing property damage or inflicting personal injury.
11. Use suitcases to move heavy items
Carrying super heavy boxes is never fun, and it could be dangerous too.
Use all suitcases you own to pack and move heavy items, especially books. The handles and wheels will make moving easy.
12. Always line your boxes
Good packing tips will make moving easier… and safer too!
Remember to place clean sheets of paper or sheets of bubble wrap on the bottom of each cardboard box before packing it with various items.
13. Cut out box handles
Cardboard boxes can be tricky to move around, especially when those containers are heavy and inconvenient to lift and carry.
Use a box cutter to cut rectangular-shaped handles into the sides of your cardboard boxes for easier and safer lifting and carrying.
14. Keep your packing station clear
Create a packing station – a large table, for example – that will be the hub of all your packing activities.
That way, packing will be a lot easier as long as you keep that station tidy and clear, with no random and useless packing materials around it.
15. Use plenty of Bubble wrap
Don’t skimp on Bubble wrap – the best protective material when packing things for a move.
The air bubbles create an outstanding level of protection for fragile items (china, stemware) that can easily break during the move.
16. Pack clothes in garbage bags
Packing clothes for a move doesn’t get any easier than that: pull a clean garbage bag over your hanging clothes to pack them directly off the wardrobe or closet.
Unpacking your bagged clothes will be a breeze too.
17. Use wardrobe boxes
Packing hanging clothes in garbage bags is super easy but it’s not a good way to move your expensive clothes.
Pack and transport your designer clothes in special wardrobe boxes that will provide the best protection for your valuable garments.
18. Pre-pack clothes and shoes
Save plenty of time by pre-packing winter clothes when moving in the summer and boxing early summer clothes during a winter move.
The same packing principle is valid when packing shoes as well.
19. Nestle items like Russian Dolls
Make packing easier by using proven packing tricks and hacks!
Don’t just move empty containers – instead, nestle smaller items into larger ones, just like Matryoshka dolls, to save space and cut packing time at the same time.
20. Pack dishes vertically
Kitchen plates are one of the most fragile items to pack. Make your move easier and safer by placing paper plates or Styrofoam plates between the china ones to eliminate any possible contact.
Also, pack your dishes vertically into the box so that they don’t break.
21. Guard your valuables
What’s next on this easy-to-follow moving checklist? Protect your high-value articles!
Pack up safely your smaller valuables – jewelry, collectors’ items, important documents, electronic gadgets, etc.
Don’t let movers handle your valuable items but do it entirely on your own.
22. Pack books properly
Packing books for a move is easy as long as you remember two basic rules:
- always arrange books in boxes with their spines facing the bottom and their open parts facing you, and
- pack books in small boxes.
23. Pack essentials boxes
You will surely need a box of absolute essentials that should help you survive the period of time until you get reunited with your everyday belongings.
Packing an essentials box will not only make moving easier, but more manageable too.
24. Do NOT pack hazardous items
Make packing easier by not wasting any precious packing time. Do not pack any items that are dangerous to be transported due to their flammable, corrosive and explosive nature.
Instead, dispose of such hazardous materials in an environmentally friendly way.
25. Fill all empty spaces in boxes
A good tip for making moving easier is to fill all empty spaces inside the boxes.
Use crumpled paper or bubble wrap to ensure nothing inside will shift, or use clothing or towels to save valuable space.
26. Plastic wrap your drawers
Looking for quick and easy packing tips?
Check this out: pull out a desk drawer, the way it is full of whatnot, and plastic wrap it well to keep its contents intact during the move.
This packing hack alone can save you up to an hour.
27. Label your boxes
Making moving easier and more efficient is all about the little things, like using a permanent marker to label your boxes after packing them.
For easier identification, label the boxes – destination room, contents, and handling instructions – on the side, not on the top.
28. Purge your medicine cabinet
Make sure important medications stay with you at all times.
Make your move an easier one by not packing medical products you don’t need.
Go through all medications in your medicine cabinet, one by one, and check their expiration dates and usefulness.
29. Keep bathroom items from spilling
One problem when moving bathroom items is the risk of spills and leaks during transit.
The solution is simple: place a piece of wrap over the opening of a bottle with liquid inside it, then screw on the cap.
30. Keep documents in a binder
All your important documents must stay with you throughout the move, so the best way is to keep them all in one place.
Make moving easier and less stressful by creating a folder and keeping there your personal documents, including the generated moving documentation.
31. Photograph your electronics
One of the best hacks to make moving easier is to take a photo of the way your electronic devices are wired up.
Then, when the move is complete, use that same photo to hook up your electronics quickly and hassle-free.
32. Backup your electronic data
When moving a desktop computer or a laptop, backup the important data on them because anything can happen on the road.
Transfer important files to an external hard drive, or a flash drive, or use an online cloud storage service.
33. Organize your cords with paper rolls
Another packing hack from this moving checklist is to keep all your cables neatly organized by wrapping up each cord and inserting it inside an empty roll of toilet paper or kitchen paper.
It’s fast, easy, and won’t cost you a cent.
34. Disassemble furniture
Make moving furniture easy by choosing to disassemble large furniture, whenever possible, to their basic structural elements.
That way, the separate pieces will be better protected and you will be able to pack, move, and load them for an easier and safer move.
35. Keep small elements in Ziploc bags
Sealable plastic bags are excellent for keeping small parts from getting lost or misplaced during a house move.
Place nuts, bolts, screws, washers, and other tiny fastening elements in Ziploc bags and keep them together with their furniture piece.
36. Lift heavy items safely
Accident and injury are not words you’d want to hear during your house move.
Make moving easier and safer by using the proper lifting techniques when moving heavy items out of the old home and into the new one.
37. Use furniture sliders
Make moving furniture easy by using furniture sliders.
Just place a specialized slider, made of plastic and hard rubber, under each leg of a furniture piece and push that big and heavy item effortlessly across the room.
Zero chance of floor damage too!
38. Rent a moving dolly
When it comes to tools to make moving easier, nothing beats the functionality, convenience, and safety of a moving dolly.
If you plan to move by yourself, you must rent or purchase an appliance dolly with soft rubber tires from a local moving company.
39. Stop buying groceries
Make sure you don’t throw away any good food prior to the move: stop buying groceries roughly a week before you move out so that you have time to consume the current food supplies.
Donate any food that’s left over: Food for Hunger
40. Defrost your refrigerator
Remember to defrost your fridge at least 24 hours prior to Moving day.
If you’re in a real hurry, you may use a hair dryer to melt the ice much faster. Trust us, moving a fridge that’s leaking water is no fun.
41. Reach out to your pals EARLY
How to make moving house easy?
Moving house is not a job for one person. Make moving easy on yourself: ask your trusted friends to give you a hand when packing and moving your stuff.
Do it plenty in advance to avoid disrupting their plans.
42. Arrange a pet sitter
Make moving easier on pets by making sure your animal friend is safe and stress-free.
Arrange somebody to look after your cat, dog, bird, or another pet animal you may have. When moving long distances, arrange your pet’s safe transition to the new home.
43. Fill all nail holes
Your landlord may get upset over nothing just to keep the deposit to themselves.
Don’t let that happen!
Fill in any tiny nail holes in the walls with a bar of white soap or toothpaste – it’s easy, quick, and can save you problems.
44. Change your address in advance
Change your address with the USPS at least two weeks prior to your move-out date.
Choose one of 4 change-of-address methods
- online,
- in person,
- over the phone, or
- by mail
to complete this must-do task in advance, and thus lighten your post-move checklist.
45. Wear appropriate clothes on Moving day
Make moving easier by making it safer!
Be mindful of what you wear on Moving day: opt for comfortable clothes that give you freedom of movement and select a closed pair of shoes with excellent traction (non-slip soles) and ankle protection.
46. Prepare a snack bag
Your moving day will require plenty of physical and mental effort from you.
Keep your energy levels elevated throughout the move by preparing a snack bag (snack bin) full of protein bars, chocolate bars, cookies, and other types of snacks.
Bottled water too.
47. Obtain a parking permit
When renting a moving van as a result of your decision to move without movers, remember to reserve a parking space for the moving vehicle at both the origin and destination.
Obtaining a parking permit is especially important when moving from or to big cities.
48. Do not make costly mistakes
Easier said than done!
Of all the tips for an easy move you’ll find here, this piece of advice is both the best and the vaguest one.
Avoid making any major moving mistakes as they will only complicate your move, often forcing you to lose more time, money, and energy.
49. Take advantage of the hi-tech era
Let modern technology help you move faster and easier than ever before!
MoveAdvisor is a cutting-edge mobile app with amazing built-in features (Moving timeline, Home Inventory, Moving Company Locator) that will make your move a breeze from start to finish.
MoveAdvisor is 100% free to download and use, available for Android-running smartphones (Google Play Store), as well as for iPhones and iPads (Apple Store).
50. Hire full-service movers
That is correct – the easiest way to move to a new home is to hire the services of a reputable full-service moving company.
Full-service movers will do it all – cost estimation, packing, custom crating – if necessary, furniture disassembly and re-assembly, heavy lifting, loading, and unloading of your items.
Ultimately, you won’t have a lift a finger as experienced professionals take care of the toughest aspects of your house move.
The best part? The best full-service movers may not be as expensive as you think.
Request cost estimates from several top-rated full-service moving companies to start your relocation journey.
Follow this easy moving checklist with 50 tips for an easy move and your next move should be your easiest move yet!
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Steve
Great article! Easy to follow and well-written. When reading something as good as this, it seems so easy!:)