How to Pack Up a House: Expert Tips

According to American Community Survey (ACS), about 40 million Americans move each year.

However, despite how common moving is, moving your entire life from one home to another can be a stressful experience. For this reason, you should know how to pack up a house properly.

Whether you’re moving across town or halfway across the world, how you pack up your house will affect how stress-free the process is. To ensure that moving goes smoothly, you should follow these steps:

 

Make a Plan and Set Goals

As soon as you know that you’ll be moving into a new home, sit down with your family members to discuss how everyone envisions the move.

If you’re not planning on hiring professionals for some parts of the process (like packing up everything), make sure every member knows how they should go about their tasks.

Try breaking this step into smaller steps like: how will we pack our books? How will we pack dirty laundry? This way, everyone is aware of how they need to proceed during each part of the moving process.

Once all members have decided what they want out of this significant change and how to approach it, you can move on to the next step.

 

 

Get Organized

The best way to make a move go smoothly is by being organized.

Start with how you’ll pack up each room in the house, and then start tackling how to label each box once it’s packed up. This way, when moving day comes around, everyone knows what they need to do.

Try using a moving checklist and a moving timeline to ensure that all members are on track and that everything is packed up how it should be.

This list will ensure that everyone knows what they need and when to pack. It will also make sure nothing gets forgotten in the process.

Purchase the Right Packing Supplies

When it comes to packing up your house, the right supplies are everything.

First, start with how you’re packing up each room in the house and then work your way out from there.

For example: what boxes should be used for books? What kinds of materials will keep dishes safe during the move? How can we adequately protect our lampshades during this move?

These questions all need answers before you even begin thinking about how to pack a single box.

From boxes and tape to bubble wrap and markers, having all supplies on hand will ensure that moving day goes as smoothly as possible. Having the right supplies will not only make packing up your house effortless, but it’ll also ensure that nothing gets broken or lost either during or after moving day.

Decide on the Moving Boxes You Need

As you pack up each room, decide how many boxes will be necessary for the task.

This way, by moving day, when it comes time to load everything in the truck or van, no one is left wondering how they should proceed.

To make things easier on everyone involved with your move, have a chat about how big of a package you’ll need for each item before beginning to pack up the house.

For example: how big of a box will be needed for books? How about lamps or kitchen utensils? How many should you pack in each package?

Having these measurements on hand before packing up your home will make sure no one has to spend time wondering how they’ll fit everything into boxes. And if everyone knows what size packages are necessary beforehand, moving day will go much smoother than expected.

Identify What Not to Pack

Sometimes, how you pack up a house can be just as important as how you’re packing things. It’s best to identify what not to pack before getting started to ensure nothing gets broken or ruined during the moving process.

For example: don’t mix fragile dishes with heavy books in boxes. Instead, use designated boxes for heavier objects and more delicate ones separately.

Or another example: don’t pack your china and crystal with other dishes in the same box. Instead, how about using a designated dish package to ensure that even expensive pieces make it safely from one home to another?

Only by knowing what not to put into boxes will you be able to ensure everything gets packed the right way without any mishaps along the way.

Get Rid of Clutter

Clutter is the number one reason house packing can go wrong.

When packing up each room, don’t forget how much clutter exists in your home already. If possible, try getting rid of as much clutter before packing anything else up because it’ll only make things easier if there’s less stuff to move around.

For example: how many personal items are sitting on dressers or desks? How long has that box of old clothes been sitting by the door? Why do we still have all these decorations hanging from our walls when none of them bring us joy anymore?

By identifying what doesn’t belong and then donating or selling whatever isn’t necessary any longer will ensure that you’re not wasting time moving something you don’t need in your new home.

Hire Professionals

While the above steps will help you pack your house and move successfully, hiring professional movers is always a good idea.

Suppose this is your first time moving or if there are just too many fragile items in your home already. Hiring professionals can be a fantastic way to ensure that everything arrives at its new location in good shape.

Hiring professional movers not only ensures that nothing gets broken along the way but also saves you the moving stress of having to do all of these things yourself.

Professional movers know how to pack up a house without breaking or ruining any of your valuable items. So, hire professionals instead of worrying about all the details involved in packing up everything.

How to Pack Up a House Properly

Moving can be incredibly stressful. However, by knowing how to pack up a house and what not to put into boxes, you’ll be able to make the entire process much easier and stress-free.

The moving tips above are just a few of the many ways to ensure your move goes successfully. Keep following our blog for more informative tips and tricks.