10 Moving Tips to Make your Life Easier

Summer is the season for outdoor adventure, travel, festivals, great road trips and it also happens to be the most popular date to move. The weather is ideal, the kids are out of school, and it's the best time to do home repairs and to organize your belongings before the cold and unpredictable weather sets in.

Moving can seem like an arduous and overwhelming task, especially if you have a hectic work schedule or you are moving into your first home. As insurance brokers, we have seen a lot of do's and don'ts over the years and decided to share this with you by compiling our Top Ten Tips to save you time and to help reduce stress during your move this summer.  

Top Ten Moving Tips:

1.      Plan ahead- Try to schedule your moving truck, book your movers, and secure your boxes well in advance before everything is booked up or taken. Since it is the busiest season for moving, many of these things may not be available at the times you require them, so you may have to be flexible with your time. 

2.      Get estimates on movers- Depending on the moving company, prices may vary quite a bit. As a rule of thumb, it’s a good idea to get three estimates. Try to avoid choosing your movers based on price alone. Look up reviews online or ask friends for referrals.

3.      Insurance- Remember to check with your insurance company to see if your items in storage are covered under your policy. Most often than not, it isn’t, and you may have to purchase additional coverage through the storage company. Ask your broker about damage to your contents while they’re being transported. For example,  if professional movers damage your property, this coverage would typically come from their commercial policy, and not your own insurance policy.

4.      Move your own valuables- Transport all of your  fragile or high valued smaller items such as jewelry and special collections yourself to avoid any lost or damaged items.

5.      Clean out your house before you move- Try to go through all of your unused items with your spouse or family before you make the move. It is much easier to move without the extra weight and items.  Hold a garage sale or donate your excess items to charity. A lot of non-profit organizations offer free pick up services for donations.

6.      Personal luggage- Put all of the essential items you will need for the next couple of days such as toiletries, clothes, toys for the kids, pajamas, etc., in accessible luggage, to avoid going through mountains of boxes.

7.      Make an inventory list- This may seem like a lot of work, but it will end up saving you time and hassle. There are many online moving inventory lists that you can print and use as a guide.

8.      Pick the right moving truck- You can use the size of your current home as a guide when choosing your truck size. The last thing you want to do is make several trips across town because your truck is too small. For example a 15-ft moving truck is perfect for 2 bedroom apartments, while a 24-ft moving truck is great for 3-4 bedroom houses.

9.      Colour code your boxes- Save time unpacking by colour coordinating boxes to each room in your house. You can do this by box colour or by putting coloured stickers on boxes to denote which box is designated for which room.

10.   Don’t forget to transfer your information- Remember to send notice of your new address to the correct parties. Register your new address with Canada post, and remember to transfer over your utilities as well as your cable and internet.

 

Need insurance on your new place? Contact us and we will be happy to provide you with five different quotes from the leading insurance companies in Canada.