A 12-Item Checklist To Prepare For Your Interstate Move
Moving can be a stressful activity. Even if you’re switching houses within the same state, the process involves several tasks that can be time and energy-consuming!
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You must look for a suitable neighborhood, a good home, and the right school if you’ll be living further from your kids’ current learning institution. In addition, you must also pack, look for movers, and carry out several other activities to ensure the relocation is successful.
Steps For A Seamless Interstate Move
While migrating to another home within the same state can be stressful, switching to an entirely new region or state can be even more tedious. Since you’ll be relocating a greater distance from your old home, you’ve got to ensure no item is left behind and all errands are attended to.
There’s a lot to take care of in an interstate move. If you’ve done this before, the process may be a little easier for you. However, if this is your first time, you might feel overwhelmed by the magnitude of the tasks ahead of you. For this reason, you must have a plan. A checklist can be quite helpful here.
With a checklist, you can outline everything you need to do. This could help ensure you don’t leave anything behind or forget any errands. However, to ensure its effectiveness, you must prioritize the most crucial tasks—have a deadline for all activities, and make sure you don’t miss any timelines.
In truth, even those with an interstate move experience also need a checklist. With all the activities involved in the process, it’s easy for anyone to forget some things. So, if you’re looking to migrate to another state, below is a checklist that could help ensure a seamless move into your new location. Here’s what you need to do from the preparation stage out of your current area, all the way to settling in your new state:
Visit The State You’re Moving To
The first thing you should do before your interstate move is to visit the region you’re about to move to. This way, you’ll get a good look at the place and be more familiar with the community. Some cities or towns have a visitor information center, so try to go to one if you can.
There, you might find essential data about the area. You might discover its history and places of interest. In addition, you might also get maps, brochures, hotel recommendations, and other essential information that could be helpful when you finally move in.
If the city doesn’t have a visitor information center, then you can use the internet to find relevant information about the place. You might discover travel sites that could be helpful. In addition, some states have a website where tourists can find data about the region. Therefore, review different web pages to ensure you get sufficient information about the area.
Find A Good House
Finding a home on the internet may be easier. However, you and your family members may not like the neighborhood. Therefore, when you’re physically visiting the area, you can look for suitable places or check out the neighborhood if you already have a prospective home in mind.
After assessing the new region, it might be hard to find a suitable place for your family. For this reason, consider hiring a local real estate agent to help you choose a good neighborhood and home. Since they have adequate knowledge of the place, they’ll help you identify an ideal home based on your needs.
In addition, they could also negotiate with sellers on your behalf and help you score a good deal. Besides that, the agent could also help you handle all the necessary paperwork, making your move much easier.
Find A School For Your Kids
If you’ve got kids and you’d like them to study in the new state, you can also look for a good school before you leave. Therefore, if you’ve found a suitable house to move into, locate nearby academic institutions and find out more about them. Before choosing one, talk to principals, ask about their curriculum and programs, and then take a tour around the classes. Also, consider talking to teachers and various staff members to understand the school’s culture as well.
If you identify a suitable institution, ask the head about the necessary documents you have to comply with for successful admission. However, if you haven’t found a good learning institution by the time you’re leaving that state, the internet could help. There are school rating sites you could use to find a suitable place for your kids.
Look For A Moving Company
Once you’ve found a good neighborhood, house, and school, the next step is to look for a moving company. When doing this, consider those from your local area or those based in the state you’re moving to. For instance, if you’re relocating to Idaho, click here to find a company you could work with. Alternatively, conduct online research to find a good firm within your area.
Most companies have websites today. Therefore, you can easily identify a reliable one by checking customer reviews. Also, there are sites that rate movers. From there, you could also find client comments about their experience with different firms. In addition, you could also see complaints filed about certain firms to authorities such as the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) or others.
After conducting your research, you might identify two or three companies you could work with. Therefore, get their contact details and schedule some time to call each of them. Compare the firms’ prices, experience, and professionalism. Also, ask about licenses and insurance. If you still aren’t sure about the best company to hire, ask friends and relatives for referrals.
Pack
After finding a good enterprise that suits your needs, the next step is to pack. If you don’t have moving supplies, you’ll need boxes, tapes, foam pouches, tubs, and bubble rolls. When loading your belongings, consider having each room’s items put together. This way, it’ll be easier to unpack and organize your house once you arrive in your new home.
When packing, this is an excellent time to declutter. If you’ve got items you’ve not used in a long time, you can donate them or have a yard sale and make some money. Also, since you already have an idea of the size of your new house, you can downsize if the space isn’t as big as your current home. Therefore, if there are any pieces of furniture, large appliances, or items you don’t use, consider selling or donating them too.
Also, if you’ve got a storage unit, pack all things in there too. Take the boxes to your house so that they’re together with the rest. Also, cancel this unit with your company and ensure you leave it in good condition.
Arrange For Travelling
By now, you and your family may have already set an ideal moving date. Therefore, it’s now an excellent time to make travel arrangements. So, you can book a flight, train ticket, or car rental, depending on your preference.
Most movers take days to deliver all items. Therefore, make sure you also book a hotel for the family. Alternatively, if you’ve got relatives or a friend living in the state you’re moving to, ask them to host you. This way, you’ll enjoy time together with loved ones and also save some money.
Sort Memberships, Utilities, And The Mail
Since you’re relocating to a new state, your address has to change. Aside from that, you also need to get gas, water, electricity, and internet service providers. However, if your existing suppliers have branches in the area you’re relocating to, you can just give them your new address.
Also, you might have a gym membership, mail service, or community newsletter subscription in your current location. In this case, make sure to cancel or unsubscribe to all these. However, if any of these service providers have branches in your new state, make sure you transfer your details before the moving date.
Gather All Necessary Records
As discussed earlier, the new school your children will be moving to may require some essential documents during admission. Therefore, in this step, you’ll be collecting their records from their current or old school. In most cases, a new school may require a transfer or recommendation letter, your kids’ immunization cards, and medical records. So, ensure you have all these before your moving date.
You will also need to see a new healthcare provider as well. Therefore, collect copies of your medical records and those of your family from your current doctor. After settling in your new state, you can find a suitable physician for your household.
Notify All Necessary Parties Of Your Move
A few days before you leave, let your neighbors, relatives, and friends know you’re relocating. Also, notify your landlord and ensure you finalize things with them if you live in a rental. However, if you’re selling your old property, now may be a good time to look for a realtor. In this step also, confirm your relocation date with the moving company you choose to work with.
Make sure you complete all these tasks at least a week before you migrate. This way, you’ll have enough time to wish your loved ones goodbye and to have everything in order with your landlord. In addition, you’ll also ensure the moving company prepares themselves adequately.
Arrange For Cleaning
It would also help if you have the old house cleaned after moving. Also, make sure you repaint it and finish any necessary repairs before relocating. Most landlords might require you to do this. However, if it’s your property and you plan to sell it, making these improvements could help increase your home’s value.
It might also be less stressful if your new home is cleaned before you move into it. Therefore, look for reputable companies within your new area and notify them of your relocation date. Ensure you connect the firm’s manager to the real estate agent in your new state. This way, they can collect the keys to your house and ensure it’s clean before you move into it.
Move
If your old home was a rental, give your keys back to the building manager or landlord on your moving day. However, if it was your property, make sure you leave a copy to the realtor helping you sell it.
If you relocated with a few household items, it might take the moving company a day or two to bring all things into your new house and arrange them for you. This way, it’ll take you lesser time to settle in the new environment.
However, if you’ve got several belongings, it might take the movers even a week to have all things in order. In this case, ensure you’re always in contact with the company to check if everything is going smoothly. This way, you’ll have an idea of when they might be done and when you can move into your new house.
Settle Into Your New Home
Once you’re in your new home, it might take a while to settle in fully. Therefore, you can begin with the simpler things, and in good time, everything will be in order. You can start by enrolling your kids into their new school, beautify the house, visit a new physician or veterinarian if you have a pet. Most of all, try to meet new people around the neighborhood!
Closing Thoughts
Moving into a new state can be a hectic process, even for an experienced person. There are many things you must have in order and it’s easy to forget some. To ensure no household item is left behind and you complete all errands in time, proper planning will help.
The best way to prepare for your interstate move is to make a checklist. For this reason, this article provides all the steps necessary for a successful relocation to make your work easier. These include visiting the state you’re moving to, looking for a house, and finding a school for your kids.
After that, hire a moving company, pack your items, and arrange for travel. Once you’ve done all that, sort memberships, utilities, gather all necessary records and notify all concerned parties about your move. After that, arrange for cleaning, move, and lastly, settle into your new home.
