First Night in Your New Home Checklist

The first night in your new home can be exciting, but it also can be stressful if you aren't prepared with all the things you need to get settled in before you completely unpack or your moving truck arrives with all of your things. A good idea is to have a checklist of the items you will need that first night of living in your home, and use that checklist to make sure you have all the necessities to have a wonderful first night!

You can print off a checklist such as the one mentioned from many sites on the Internet. Do a major search engine search for this topic and see what sites are available for printing a checklist such as this. A checklist for first night success should be divided into several sub-topics, including: Food/kitchen supplies, toiletries, medication, tools, clothing, children and pet items if necessary. After printing the list, go over it and determine what you will need from that checklist for your first night. As you pack those items into a suitcase or box, check the item off the list so that you know it is there. This suitcase or box travels with you to your new home; do not pack it in the moving truck.

Being prepared for that first night in your new home is key to having a smooth transition into your new home.

Moving Day Tips

On your actual moving day you will want to keep the following moving tips in mind to help that specific day go smooth.

Moving Tip #1: Make sure all of your beds are free from sheets and comforters. You don't want the beds loaded into the truck with your bedding on it- they could get damaged and very dirty.

Moving Tip #2: Be there when the movers arrive. If you are doing a self-move, make sure you have plenty of people to help you. One way to get people to help you in a self-move- FOOD. Offering food to friends and family in return for helping you move is a great incentive. If you are moving with a moving company, make sure you are present the day of the move and ask questions if you have any. Go over all paperwork with the moving company and confirm estimated dates of delivery, as well as the condition all of your items are in the day of moving. You can even take digital photos of everything right before loading- this is an added insurance to you. You can use those pictures to prove the item's condition should something be damaged in the move.

Moving Tip #3: Stay at your old home until every last item is loaded onto the truck. You need to make sure nothing is missed.

Moving Tip #4: Clean your home when everything is out of it. It is just common courtesy to leave your home in good condition for the person who is buying it or renting it from you.

Staying Sane on Moving Day

You may feel stressed out about your upcoming move and when moving day arrives your stress level may go through the roof. There are ways to make your moving day a bit less stressful so you don't lose your mind and your patience with those assisting you.

Make sure you eat on moving day. Sounds strange, but being hungry can make you cranky, being cranky makes those around you cranky, which can add to your stress level. So, make sure you eat throughout the day of your move; it will help keep you calm.

Be prepared for unexpected things. You need to prepare yourself that something will go wrong, that way if something does go wrong, you aren't unprepared for it. Simply take a deep breath and tell yourself that you are completely prepared for anything that comes your way and take it as it comes.

Give yourself plenty of time on moving day. Get a good night of sleep the night before and be ready in the morning bright and early to put in a long day. Make sure if you are moving yourself that you have people there with plenty of time to help load your truck. It isn't realistic to think you can move an entire house in two hours, so make sure to plan your day appropriately. Giving yourself an entire day to load the truck will help you not to feel rushed, which will keep your stress level down.

Which Type of Move is Right for You?

There are two main ways to make a move, whichever type of move you decide to make, make sure you get plenty of moving quotes before deciding on one specific company to assist you. Which type of move is right for you?

Move yourself: Moving yourself is cheaper than hiring a full-service moving company, but it relies on a lot of manpower and sweat on your part. You will want friends and family to assist you, or you can pay an additional fee to hire local movers to help you load and unload. You would rent a moving truck or van and load and unload it in this type of move. Another type of move yourself move is a you pack and load a truck, but a moving company drives your belongings for you to your destination. This type of move costs a bit more than loading and driving a truck yourself, but it saves you the hassle of driving your belongings a long distance.

Hire a full-service mover: Make sure when hiring a full-serve mover that you get many moving quotes from various companies before deciding on which one you will use. A full-service moving company will pack your belongings, load them on the truck, drive them to your new home and unload your belongings as well. Be prepared to pay quite a bit more for a full-service moving company than you would a self-mover. It is quite expensive to move in this manner, but many people find it the best way to go, your work is done for you.

Which type of move is right for you? It all depends on your financial situation and what your needs are for your move.

Moving Into Your New Place

As you settle into your new home there are things you will want to take care of those first couple of weeks.

Put all of your mortgage papers in a safe spot for future reference. You don't want to lose these important papers; you will need them at some point during your time in your new home.

Make sure you have a detailed list of all of your moving expenses, there are times when moving expenses can be deducted from your taxes, so hold on to those receipts!

If you have moved to a new city or state, visit your driver's license station to get a current license with your new address information on it. Many people forget to change over their license, try to take care of it sooner rather than later.

Begin looking for new medical care, both health and dental. You will want to have a new doctor and dentist available should you need one, especially if you have young children.

One Week Before Your Move

The week before you move will be a busy one. Knowing some important things that you should be doing can help you feel more prepared for what is to come.

Remind friends and family of the date of your upcoming move. If they are helping you load a truck, you will want to remind them of the time they are to be at your home to help out on moving day. If you are traveling a great distance for your move or if your move has you staying in a hotel for one night or several, you will want to confirm all reservations. Double check your travel route by having it all mapped out well ahead of time so that you are prepared to travel after your belongings are loaded onto a truck. If you are renting a truck to load yourself, double check with the rental company the dates and the rental amount, if you are hiring a moving company, do the same with them.

Begin throwing things out of your refrigerator that you know you won't pack in a cooler and take with you. If you are sure you won't eat something in your fridge, begin throwing things out about a week ahead of time. Another good idea is to pack up the things you will need for that first night or few days in your new home and to double check your first night survival guide checklist to make sure you have everything.

After Your Move is Over

Once you have arrived at your new home you will want to check on a few things. First, make sure the utilities are all transferred from the old owner or renter's name to yours. If not, make sure to take care of this first thing. If you don't have phone service yet, make sure to contact the phone company to set this up, or double check on any phone service that isn't operational after you move in.

If you have pets, make sure to keep them in another room during the unloading of your items. Once your move is complete, let your pets roam around your new place to get acclimated to their new environment. Take them outside to run as well, especially if your pet has been in a car for a long period of time during travel. Pets and children need to run off energy after a move.

Many moving experts recommend not immediately plugging in your appliances and electronics, such as your television or your microwave as you unload. It is better to give them about one day to adjust to the temperature in your home compared to the moving truck they were just removed from.

Just because your items are unloaded and unpacked, doesn't mean your move is over yet. There are many things you need to do after the move is complete in order to really feel settled in your new home!

Earth Friendly Moving

One moving solution to make moving and packing more earth friendly? First, consider using recycled boxes, ones that have been used before by someone else. Boxes if treated properly should be able to be used and reused time and again.

Another earth friendly moving solution is to rent recycled containers to use for your move and then give them back to the place you rented the boxes from. You can find earth friendly moving companies on the Internet by doing a search engine search. The concept is this, you simply pay a set rental fee per container and each container and the packing supplies with it are made from recycled materials and are then given back to the rental company. When you contact the company a representative will determine how many earth friendly containers you will need for your move. The packing containers are delivered to your door in a truck powered by vegetable oil or bio diesel fuel about a week before your move and will be picked up at your new location when your move is complete.

If you are worried about stuffing our landfills full of waste from your next move, you may want to consider an earth friendly moving solution.

Letting Others Know You are Moving

A unique way to remind people you are moving is to send a moving e-card to friends and family. Online companies such as Upack.com offer free moving e-cards that will be sent to remind people of your move and let them know your new address and phone number.

Simply log onto a website such as the one above and search for the moving e-cards. Once you have done this you can pick from a wide variety of moving e-cards from a traditional e-card to a fun one, you will have many to choose from. Moving e-cards are easy to send as well. You simply put in your email information and the emails of people you wish to send the card to and type any message you want in your card and then send. It's as easy as that. Sending a moving e-card is an easy and fast way to let friends and family know you are moving and what your new contact information will be.