Moving From A Larger Home To A Smaller One
As the marketing coordinator of Hughes Relocation Services
, Inc., an Ocala, Florida moving company offering everything from professional packing services to secure storage facilities, Bobby Hughes has helped numerous clients deal with the difficulties involved in downsizing. Here, he talks about how to prepare for a move when youre downsizing.
Downsizing actually makes a lot of sense in certain situations. For starters, the smaller your living space is, the easier your new home should be to maintain. Trading a larger home for a smaller one should also result in lower utility bills as well. After all, the less space you have to cool and heat, the less money youll have to fork over each month to cover your energy costs.
On the other hand, the act of downsizing can pose quite the challenge from a moving perspective, particularly when it comes to packing. Unless youre willing to load up your new living space with stacked furniture and mounds of boxes, youre going to need to come up with a system for where to physically put your stuff. I suggest that anyone faced with this very prospect do the following to make the process much easier:
1.Figuring Out What You Really Need: Moving from a larger space to a smaller one is all about prioritizing. If youre going from a four bedroom, two-story house to a one-bedroom condo, then clearly some of your belongings and furniture items just arent going to fit. Therefore, its important to take inventory of what you have in order to figure out which items you truly need and want in your new abode. You may start out thinking that you just cant part with your handcrafted living room side tables, but after taking inventory, you may come to realize that if given the choice between those tables and your wine fridge, youd much rather opt for the latter.
2.Taking Measurements of Your Furniture: If youre moving from a larger home to one that is more compact, then youre likely to find that some of the individual rooms in your new place are also going to be smaller. As such, you may not be able to fit some of your oversized furniture pieces in your new space. Rather than run into a problem on the day of your move, take measurements beforehand and make sure that any item youre planning to transport will actually fit through the doors and into the area designated for it.
3.Donating or Selling Some Items: Moving from a larger home to a smaller one can be a great way to save money, so why not continue this trend by selling some of the items that arent high on your list of priorities? If you dont have the time to market your belongings, then consider donating them to charity, especially if they are in decent condition youll be helping the less fortunate while making your move a lot quicker and easier.
4.Storing Some of Your Belongings: As you take stock of the possessions youve accumulated over the years, youre likely to come across items that you cant necessarily fit into your new home, but that you dont actually want to throw out or give away. If this becomes the case, then youll need to look into temporary storage options until youre able to come up with a more permanent plan for your prized yet superfluous belongings. If your moving company offers storage facilities for situations such as these, then that may be wise option. Most storage units are climate-controlled and monitored for security purposes, so if you decide to go this route, then youll be able to rest assured that your property will be safe until you figure out what to do with it for the long haul. Another option is to ask a friend or family member with a basement to house some of your belongings until you come up with a better solution.
5.Throwing Some Things Out: Sometimes, the only solution to having too much stuff for a downsizing move is to toss out the items that wont fit in your new place but arent worth selling, donating, or storing. Its natural to feel sad or uneasy about the notion of throwing out things that you otherwise may have opted to keep, but chances are that once youre settled into your new home, you wont even notice that theyre gone.
No matter what your reason for downsizing might be, its not unusual to move from a larger place of residence to one that is smaller. By planning properly and choosing wisely, you can make the process of moving and settling in as smooth as can be.
by: Bobby Hughes
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