Cross-country moving can be a stressful and exhausting process, and relocating at the last minute is even more stressful. But there are ways you can avoid losing your mind while doing it. With a couple of packing tips for moving in a hurry, you will be able to perform a move like you have all the time in the world.
With a couple of easy packing tips for moving professionals your move can be performed with ease
No matter if you are relocating to a warmer climate or just decided to move to a small town, one thing is for sure with these tips and tricks, your fear of relocating will disappear. Even if you’re just helping a friend to move and you stumble upon this article, these pieces of advice will come in helpful not for this occasion but for many more in life.
Star to Pack as Soon as You Can
Okay, this may sound a little obvious, considering that you’re last-minute relocating, but people start to panic and that’s when things go downhill. Now it is not time to ask questions like how many days in advance should you start packing to move? Or How do I slow start packing for a move? Because you do not have that luxury.
Take a deep breath, do not overthink it, and just start with preparations. If you haven’t already booked a cross-country moving company for long-distance moving services, now is time to make a call. Look around your house and make a list (at least in your head) and see what your priorities are.
Which belongings can you box up immediately? For example, if you’re relocating in summer, your winter clothing can be stored right away. Furthermore, pots and pans you do not use that often or special occasion silverware you can put aside.
Don’t Hesitate to Ask Your Friends for Help
How do I pack and move in 2 days? Or What is the fastest way to pack for a move? The answer is to ask others for help. On average, people need four to five days for a three-bedroom home. However, if you are in a rush you do not have that time. So throw a party (a packing one) and invite friends and family to come and help you. The process will be much faster, and best of all, you can donate unwanted items to them as well. Also, you will get a chance to spend more quality moments with your loved ones and go through memories while boxing up the stuff.
…Or Book a Long Distance Movers As Many Homeowners Do
On the other hand, if you are on a tight schedule and do not have time to throw a party or to do everything alone, your best option is to hire cross-country movers for packing service. Counting on professional cross-country moving services can relieve your anxiety about relocating, especially if everything should be done on short notice.
No matter if anything unpredictable happens (and many things can happen), you can count on them to step in. For example, if the new home is not ready yet, you can store the belongings in their storage units and get them shipped once everything is ready. Best of all, with professionals on your side, you do not have to bother with questions like how to pack a house to move in a week or how to pack a house quickly? Because movers can finish everything in a couple of hours.
If you hire professionals you will leave all worries behind
Packing Tips for Moving in a Hurry That Will Make Everything Easier
One of the best tips for packing to move quickly is to do one room at a time. But even if you are relocating in a rush, you need to follow some rules, especially when it comes to delicate belongings. After all, the goal is to transport your belongings to a new home intact. So don’t skip the following steps whether you are dealing with fragile items or with other belongings:
- Step 1 – reinforce the bottom of your boxes with duct tape
- Step 2 – put some cushioning layer on the bottom of the boxes. You can use cushioning foam or towels and paper.
- Step 3 – Wrap each piece with paper or bubble wrap.
- Step 4 – Fill the boxes with wrapped belongings but put a cushioning between each layer of belongings. It is important not to leave any hollow space inside the container.
- Step 5 – Put another layer of cushioning and close the container and reinforce the top with duct tape.
Bonus tips: do not put plates horizontally, and do not stuff glasses one into the other.
How to Deal With Big Items
When it comes to relocating your furniture and other bulky stuff, most of the work will be handled by professionals, but you can do things to speed up the process. For example, vacuum everything, especially if you are relocating with a dog. Nobody wants to inhale a dog’s hair while doing the heavy lifting. Another thing you can do is to empty everything from your cabinets and desks, so you do not do this once movers arrive.
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Take Photos of Things While Packing
Making an inventory list at the last minute will probably be hard, so take a picture of all things you packed instead of doing that. This will be handy in case something goes missing or is damaged. But for your unpacking as well. You will know what pieces are in which container so you can easily find them once in a new home.
Also, take a picture of belongings before you put them away, so you know how to rearrange them later on. For example, take pictures of your library before you put away the books, so you know in winch order to unpack them. The same goes for cables and electric devices, take a picture while everything is plugged in, so you know which cable goes where.
You Do Not Need to Sort Now… Just Pack
How to pack and move quickly, and how to organize a move on short notice? Well, the answer is not to go into detail. If you are thinking about sorting anything now just skip this step and start placing belongings in a container. So if you have a bunch of important documents you haven’t sorted in a while, pack everything, do not try to throw away anything in a rush. You may end up throwing something important. The same is when dealing with cables, USB, old phones, or memory cards. You wouldn’t be able to go through each and every piece, so just put them all in one zip lock bag and container and sort them later.
Deal with memory cards and other trinkets later
Don’t Bring Everything – Declutter While Packing
Contrary to the advice we talked about above, you still do not have to bring everything with you, downsize your move a bit, it will be much easier. Some belongings you can donate to friends, but some stuff are simply for the trash. Like a bunch of plastic containers, jars, and other unintentionally collected items in your house. Now it’s time to embrace the true benefit of relocation, and that is you can finally throw away those mugs you don’t like or decorations you hate. This part will be much easier because you already know what you want to get rid of, and there is no need for categorization on second thought.
You can finally get rid of stuff you do not like
Use Your Suitcases for Books
Relocating to a new state demands a lot of preparation, and not only when it comes to boxing up, but you will also have to ship your car, find a place to live, a school for your kids, and many more things. One of the things that can give you comfort is the fact that you’ll have your books with you.
Here are some easy packing tips for relocating books. Take suitcases that have wheels on them. Stuck suitcases with books all the way to the top. Remember, suitcases are great because many books can fit in them, and transportation will not be difficult because they have wheels.
The easiest and fastest way to transport books is with a suitcase
Vacuum Bags Are Great for Puffy Items
Go to the store and buy some vacuum bags. These are excellent for storing puffy stuff, like pillows, bedding, and jackets. And best of all, a lot can fit inside them, probably most of your beddings will end up in two to three bags. You can also use garbage bags or even better contractor bags (you can find them in any Home Depot store or order them online).
All of these bags can carry a lot of weight, so you do not have to worry about the bag tearing apart. You can put inside them things like shoes, purses and children’s toys. When it comes to packing your clothes like shirts and dresses, you can just leave them on hangers. Put them with hangers inside the garbage bags and bind the bag on the top. Just leave the hooks outside.
Put your shoes in a garbage bag and you are good to go
Don’t Forget Your Essentials
Long-distance moving will take some time. Just transportation of the belongings from one side of the country to another can last for several days. This is why it is important to have the relocation essentials with you.
Even if you are concentrating on how to pack fast for a move you must remember to bring essentials as well. So do this simultaneously. Bring pack up stuff like you are going on a short vacation. Here are some of the things you must not forget:
- Clothes
- Underwear
- Hygiene products
- Towles
- Bedding
- Keys
- Cash
- Important documents
- Valuables
- Phone, tablets, and laptops
Finish the Kitchen and Bathroom Last Day
Even if you have a couple of days to relocate, you will still have to shower and eat, so leave the most important things in your kitchen for the last day and do the same with bathroom items. When dealing with the kitchen, bear in mind that food is not allowed on a truck, so make arrangements to donate any food that has been left behind.
Furthermore, when it comes to the bathroom, only bring the products that are not expired and not all used up. Half-open bottles should be used until the last day, and then thrown away.
Check this video for more tricks for relocating kitchen items:
How to Find Long-Distance Movers Near Me on Short Notice?
This can be a tricky but yet not impossible task. You will just have to make decisions faster but yet to be informed. First, search online for the companies near you, and narrow down your choice to three companies. Check if each one has a USDOT number to avoid scammers.
The next step is to ask for a free quote for your move from the legit companies. Choose the one that can give you all the services for the best price. Do not hire a company that gives prices way below the market. They are probably scammers.
Last but not least, once you have picked the best company to arrange with them an in-home estimation of your move. Nowadays, most companies can give you this estimation through a video survey because of the Coronavirus pandemic. So if you’re in a hurry, you can ask them to do an in-home estimation this way. When that is done, focus on finishing up the other tasks and enjoy your speedy move!
