Benefits of Decluttering Home Before the Move

You’re about to move and are very excited about a new start in your life? We got you, but there’s one more thing you could be excited as well. This is a perfect chance for you to finally declutter your home and get rid of all the things you no longer need (or you might have never needed in the first place). Isn’t that great? We admit it, the process itself is not fun, but the end result is worth it. Let’s take a look at some benefits of decluttering home before the move.

It saves money

You might hesitate to get rid of some items thinking you could still use them later on. But when you think of it, how often does it happen? And in the meantime, all those things keep piling up and taking up your space. And when it’s time to move, they require packing, transportation and unpacking. Why would you do all of that with the things you don’t need at all?

This is how decluttering saves you money – if you need to transport fewer belongings, you pay less. This is especially true if you’re moving somewhere far away, to a different state or a different country. Are you starting to feel interested in decluttering home before the move now?

It saves time

It’s not only about money, it’s about your time as well. Even a tiny little thing takes time to be packed and unpacked. And now imagine having to pack a lot of things like that. That’s pretty much time consuming, isn’t it? Get rid of those things once and for all to avoid wasting time down the road.

You get more space (and might even save some more money)

The things you no longer need or use don’t just magically disappear, ready to pop up only when you need them. They take up some space at your home – and you could have put that space to a much better use.

If you’re big on keeping and tend to even keep some huge stuff such as furniture, it can take up so much of your space, up to the point that you could possibly rent a bit smaller apartment or a house. If you get determined and ruthlessly get rid of all the things you don’t really need, you might end up discovering you actually need a bit less space than you thought. So many reasons to think about decluttering home before the move, don’t you think?

Decluttering improves your lifestyle

How do you feel when you stay at some nice hotel? Staying in a spacious and nicely furnished room feels great, isn’t it so? Do you feel the same when staying at home? If not, why not do something about it? The first step is to declutter your home. A place that is overcrowded is not a place you could fully enjoy staying at. And how much do you spend at your own home? Pretty much, isn’t it? Then make sure it’s a time well spent.

A decluttered home is good for your health

Believe it or not, decluttering may even enhance your health. It’s easier to clean a decluttered home and not only that – a nice environment makes you feel better. Feeling good is very important health-wise, so the more good vibes you have in your life, the healthier you’re likely to be overall. This one should also be the biggest and the most important reason to opt for decluttering home before the move.

You can sell stuff

When you put together all the positives money-wise, you might end up with a nice sum of money on your hands if you only decide to part your way with the things you don’t even need any longer. If you decide to sell some stuff you no longer use, it will just add up some more money on top of your savings.

You can help others

Donating is a great way to help people in need. But, you may be wondering what and where to donate unwanted items before long-distance relocation? You can donate various things – clothes, shoes, books, etc. Just make sure whatever you’re donating is in good condition so someone could really benefit from it. No point in donating stuff that no one could actually use.

Help a friend or a family member while decluttering home before the move

Maybe a family member or a friend could use that particular thing that you don’t need at all? Why wouldn’t you pass it on to them instead of just keeping it with you with no real use?

Still could not make it? Try some Marie Condo books

As you can see, the list of benefits is quite long. But what if you just can’t make yourself part with some or most of the things you once used? Marie Condo can probably help with that. Her books will help you discover a whole new world or we should rather say a new approach to tidying up and decluttering. Here’s what to look for:

• The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing
• Spark Joy: An Illustrated Master Class on the Art of Organizing and Tidying Up (The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up)
• The Life-Changing Manga of Tidying Up: A Magical Story

You can find all of the books listed above on Amazon. As you can see, they are all about the famous Japanese art of decluttering and organizing, so the advice in there must be worth sharing. We all know that Japanese places are all well organized, minimalistic and decluttered. So learn from Marie Condo how you could do it too.

Try some other authors as well

If you’d rather read from some other authors as well, here’s another brief list for you:

• A Year to Clear: A Daily Guide to Creating Spaciousness In Your Home and Heart by Stephanie Bennett Vogt
• Your Spacious Self: Clear the Clutter and Discover Who You Are by Stephanie Bennett Vogt
• Breathing Room: Open Your Heart by Decluttering Your Home by Melva Green
• Decluttering at the Speed of Life: Winning Your Never-Ending Battle with Stuff by Dana K. White
• Lagom: Not Too Little, Not Too Much: The Swedish Art of Living a Balanced, Happy Life by Niki Brandmark.

Decluttering home before the move improves your life on so many levels. If nothing else works, ask a friend or family member for help. Get it done and enjoy your new decluttered home soon.

When is the right time to start decluttering?

Speaking of moving, decluttering is the right thing to do. Perhaps the best time to start the decluttering process is as soon as you can. Right after you decide on moving, you should start thinking about sorting out your mess. That doesn’t mean that you have to do actual physical riddance of your unwanted stuff right away. To start, making a plan of action is enough. The easiest way is to create a list of all the things you won’t be using anymore.

The decluttering list

The list should contain three columns. List all the things you will surely get rid of in column one. Column two should contain the things you consider keeping. At last, list all the things you will surely keep in column three. This way, you will have a clear situation regarding decluttering. The best is that you’ll be able to revise the list anytime. This approach will save you considerable time so you can focus on the rest of the moving process.

How to decide what to get rid of?

We know it’s not easy to throw away your belongings, but sometimes it’s for the best. As we said earlier, decluttering will help you lower the moving costs and save time. You will have fewer items to pack and move, which means more money in your pocket. An important note when thinking about throwing away is – don’t lie to yourself. Go through your things and sort them into the following categories:

• Broken items – these you should throw away without too much thinking. In case you have a friend who needs them for spare parts, you can give them away.
• Items beyond repair – get rid of all the items which require repairs that are beyond reason. If the chair has been lying in a garage for two years and you still haven’t fixed it, throw it away.
• Unused items – Collect all the things scattered around your house that you have never used before. Ask yourself why you haven’t used them so far? Perhaps you don’t need them? If you dig through them, we are sure you can get rid of at least 80% of them. If you do this, it would be a great space and money saver.
• Duplicates – Identify all the things you have in more copies than you really need. Pack the item you need and decide what to do with the duplicates. You can either toss them or give them to someone who needs them. Either way, you’ll be decluttering, which is the point here.
• Things you don’t like – let’s say you have been using certain items but never really liked them. Here is your chance to finally get rid of all this stuff and replace them with the ones you like after moving.
• Items that are too expensive to move – Double check your belongings and see if there is something that requires a specific packing and moving protocol that would be too expensive. When you gather all the info, think about it. Try to sell those items and considering the saved money on not moving them, you can buy new ones. This applies only to those items you are positive you can reacquire for the same money you got by selling the old ones and not paying the moving expenses.

Hire professional movers

After you have finished decluttering your home, it’s time to continue your moving process. There is still a lot of work to do. Your next step is to pack your belongings and book your movers.

Hiring movers is the best way to ensure the safety of your belongings during relocation. Hiring movers vs DIY local move is always a popular question. Although no one’s arguing that you can try to perform a DIY move, we strongly advise against it. Speaking from experience, DIY moving can be an OK choice when you can pack all your things only in a backpack and bag. For anything more demanding than that, moving can be a challenging task. So, hiring professional movers is the best option you got.

Deal only with reputable movers

Depending on your needs, you’ll hire local or long-distance movers. But, before you hire them, do thorough research on moving companies Brooklyn. Search the web, and compare several movers. Read what people say in reviews about them. But be aware that, due to their reasons, people might be exaggerating in reviews, making them too personal and judgemental. So, the best is to combine online reviews with a personal experience. Ask people you trust for recommendations if they moved recently. Maybe they can recommend a perfect moving company for your needs.

Anyhow, make sure you ask for more than one moving quote so you can compare them. Prices may vary depending on the season and time of the month.

Moving insurance

One of the most important things when moving is getting moving insurance. This is crucial for long-distance moves since it covers you in the case of damage. After all, the safety of your belongings should always be your primary concern.

Ask questions is important

These were only some general rules of thumb for choosing your movers. For making the final decision, contacting your movers in person is mandatory. Of course, you can do it over the phone. Ask them a few questions about the transport, packing supplies, payment options, quotes, and delivery. Pay attention to their attitude when speaking to them. It’ll tell you a lot about whether they are in a business just to make money or provide the best service they can.

 

As we were saying, choosing the right movers is crucial for a successful relocation. Whenever you need experienced movers, who know what they are doing, feel free to contact us. Here, at Dorothy and Martha Moving, we provide a range of local and long-distance moving services. Additionally, we offer affordable storage options for any need and budget. All you have to do is to pick up the phone and get free moving quotes Brooklyn for your upcoming move. The rest is our concern.