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Packing Tips for Your Move

Tips & Trends

From Rory S. Coakley on some of the latest real estate news and happenings.

Whether you’re a first-time homebuyer working with us to find your perfect dream home or you’re putting your home up for sale in search of a new place, we understand that sometimes packing things up can cause a lot of stress. That’s why the experienced real estate agents at Coakley Realty have compiled a list of the most popular and helpful packing tips for moving we’ve come across in our time helping homeowners buy and sell houses.

Supplies, supplies, supplies – If you think you have enough tape, boxes and protective padding like bubble wrap or newspaper for your move, you’re probably wrong—you’d be surprised by the amount of supplies you’ll need for moving, and it’s definitely better to err on the side of too much instead of not enough.

Label your boxes – When you’re labeling your boxes, make sure you label not only the top, but all four sides as well—you don’t want to be stuck shifting around heavy boxes just to find out where the one on the bottom is supposed to go. If you want to make moving into your new home even easier, there are a couple things you can do when labeling:

• Attach a label to every door in your new home that corresponds with a box
• Color-coordinate your boxes, in addition to labels—all the blue labels to the office, all the red to the master bedroom, etc.
• Number your boxes—this can work like color-coordinating and also help you ensure you have all of your boxes
• Put arrows on all four sides of your boxes that indicate which way is up
• Print out your color-coordinated, numbered and appropriately identified labels from your computer—this can save you a lot of time

Pack in advance – Anything you’re not using—out-of-season clothing, guest bedroom linens, items stored in the basement—pack in advance! Not only does this help speed up the packing process, it can also help make your home more presentable and appealing when you’re trying to sell.

Keep things together – When it comes to making your move easier, this is one of the more important packing tips. Be sure you pack similar items in the same box—don’t mix kitchen utensils with office supplies or living room knickknacks with bedroom belongings—it will make unpacking everything at your new place that much more confusing and time-consuming.

Make priority boxes – These boxes should include priority items you’re going to need to unpack first—toiletries, phone, sheets, towels, etc. Even if you think you’re going to remember kitchen box number 4 is the one holding the paper plates, it’s just going to be easier to slap a “priority” label on it.

Don’t lose track of small items – There are a lot of things in your home that have small parts that need to stay together, from picture frame hangers to furniture casters and everything in between. Go ahead and remove these pieces before you start packing and store them in plastic baggies. You can either label them and store them all together in one place or tape each baggie to the item it belongs with so you can ensure you don’t lose anything along the way.

Label cords, cables and plugs – Much like keeping all your small items together, it’s important to label cords, cables and plugs. All those TV cords and video game system plugs are going to look pretty much the same when you open that box at your new home—it’ll make your life a lot easier to simply wrap a little masking tape or another label around the cord that says where it goes.

Keep important papers with you – This might be one of our most important packing tips—keep all of your important papers with you in your car. This includes things you definitely wouldn’t want to lose, such as birth certificates, Social Security cards, recent bank records, new job contacts, current bills, utility company numbers, etc.

When you’re planning to buy or sell a home, keep these packing tips for moving in mind to make the transition to your new place much easier, and contact Coakley Realty. Not only can our expert real estate agents provide you with more helpful packing tips for moving, they can also effectively and efficiently sell your home or help you find the right place for you and your family.

If you would like to suggest a topic for inclusion in one of our future email newsletters, contact us today! We look forward to hearing from you.

Rory S. Coakley
Coakley Realty, Inc.
20 Courthouse Square, Suite 107
Rockville, MD 20850
www.coakleyrealty.com