Home Realtor Tips - Making Moving Simple

A home purchase is quite the achievement, especially when buying your first home. The experience can leave some home owners feeling like they have been breaking blocks with their head. With all the headaches from negotiating and closing the deal it's hard enough but then on top of it you still have to pack. Not everyone wants or can afford a moving company, if you are one that is going without you have a big job ahead of you.

It's no shame to be lousy at packing, not everyone can roll the score board on Tetris while trying to squeeze all their knick knacks into small cardboard cubes. If you are one of the unfortunate souls that packs the fire place irons in the same box with a wine carafe here are some tips to help you on your move.

Packing Tips from Realtors #1 - Start Early

Never leave all of your packing for the last minute. You'll wind up packing the garbage, stuffing boxes, miss marking packages and forgetting where items got put because of the rush. Many of your things will need to be cleaned and sorted before you pack them and there's just no way to sort, organize, clean and pack everything in your home when you do it all at once with no time to do it in.

Packing Tips from Realtors #2 - Stay Organized

When it comes time to pack make sure you are labeling every box on the top and sides. You want to mark the boxes with their contents, the room they came from and where they're going as well as whether or not they're fragile. When you start loading everything up this will make for far less confusion and reduce the chances of lost or broken items.

Optional : Keep the boxes unsealed until it is time to move. If you must seal them, just make certain that you won't need anything before you get settled into the new home you purchased with your Realtor

Packing Tips from Realtors #3 - Use Good Materials

It is rather common for people to try cutting corners using old, used boxes or boxes not designed for moving. When you use an old or improperly designed box you are risking damage to your belongings. It is very important to use new boxes designed specifically for the loads that you will be packing in them. An old box has significantly reduced crush and shift protection

Another thing to do is to use filler material such as Styrofoam or bubble wrap to fill the spaces and protect fragile items from banging together. If you can't muster up the funds to purchase professional filler you can use things like seasonal clothes or linen to pack around the items.

Packing Tips from Realtors #4 - Packing Heavy Items

When packing you may find the weight soon gets rather "pressing" when you start stacking electronics, books and various knick knacks together in boxes. If you fail to use strong packing materials you run the risk of severe damage to your belongings. Even with proper boxes and quality tape you don't want to pack boxes any heavier than 50lbs. Even though most moving boxes can easily support that weight, it can significantly increase the chances of injury. Keep your boxes light and use more boxes if you have to.

Packing Tips from Realtors #5 - Fragile Items

The most important thing to remember with items like china, silverware and stemware or decorative fragile items in the home is that they have to be packed properly with a lot of protective wrapping. There could potentially be shifting and jarring movement during the ride to the new home and the vibration combined with the items rattling against one another can lead to a lot of broken glass and shattered china. Spend the money to wrap your goods properly and pad/stuff the boxes so that items can't move or bang against one another.

Packing for a big move can be overwhelming and a little stressful - made worse by broken goods or difficult unpacking. Following these tips from your realtor can help simplify the process and ensure that you're ready to run out the door with boxes in hand once you close on your home.

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