One of the more tedious tasks of your to-do list before a house move is actually figuring out what to do with all that stuff you’ve got hanging around.
You need to consider things like, how many boxes you will need to transport your belongings, how to fit everything into your new home, how to streamline the whole process of moving, etc.
Typically, we collect plenty of things over the years. Some of them are useful and others not so much, but moving to a new place is the perfect opportunity sort everything out and start afresh.
Here are 7 Easy Steps to Declutter Before You Move. These will help you streamline the process and get the job done faster.
Understand Why You Must Do it
Understanding the reasons for doing something adds purpose and incentive for you to complete the task at hand much faster and better.
Decluttering will help you lower your moving and transportation costs, as well as save you plenty of packing time and storage in the new home.
Along with that, having everything packed will reduce the level of moving stress. Believe it or not, excessive clutter can spike the overall stress when moving to a new place.
Last but not least, if you decide to sell some of the things you won’t take with you to your new home, you can pocket the cash from the yard sale.
Organize
A big task like this needs solid planning, so don’t just dive in. First, you’ve got to figure out what is classified as clutter and what isn’t.
This is highly personal, but a good guideline to go by is if you haven’t used it in the past year or more, it’s clutter.
If it is damaged, it should be thrown away, no exceptions. For clothes, if you haven’t worn them in recent years, think about selling or donating them.
Don’t forget to sort through all seasonal clothing and evaluate what needs to be kept and what has to go.
Decluttering is also a good time to rid of any duplicate items. Before you go ahead and put these items in a box, be sure that you will actually use them at your new place.
Usually, we have objects in our homes that are gifts from loved ones or mementos from the past with sentimental value. But if you don’t have a use of some item, and it doesn’t hold any emotional value to you, consider parting away with it.
Instead of wondering if you should get rid of a specific item or not, ask yourself if you actually want to pack, move and unpack that item in your new home. Is this item worth the cost and hassle of moving it? Will it be useful to you in your new apartment? These questions will help you decide which items to keep, sell, donate or throw away.
Use Three Boxes
The Three Boxes method can help you in streamlining the whole process of decluttering. Basically, you need 3 boxes – one for stuff you’ll keep, one for stuff to donate or sell, and one for stuff to throw away.
When you are going through each room, drop the items into one of the three boxes.
Declutter your storage spaces first
Once you have the boxes prepared, you can start with decluttering.
Starting with storage areas will be easiest since the majority of the stuff in storage spaces is rarely used. Therefore it may be easier to make decisions about.
Decluttering and organizing your attic, garage, or basement and then proceeding to the bedrooms, living rooms, kitchens and bathrooms is a great way to begin preparations.
Declutter from Top to Bottom
Professional housekeepers usually clean each area starting from top to bottom.
Same goes for decluttering.
Just as in house cleaning, you are getting rid of unwanted stuff, readjusting the location of items and reorganizing.
To declutter your place from top to bottom you should start at the top level of your home, such as the attic or bedrooms, making your way down to the bottom level – basement, or garage.
Your dwelling will go through a huge transformation and you will notice the results of your hard work in every room.
Declutter from the Inside Out
Another effective way to declutter faster is cleaning the areas from the inside out. Not only it will be easier for you get in and out of the room, but you will also be able to see your progress much faster.
Start with clutter located nearest to the door and then work your way from the middle of the room to the walls. Moreover, you may decide to declutter items in a clockwise fashion inside the room so you will be able to see the progress you’ve made.
Keep Cleaning Supplies Handy
Cleaning supplies, trash and recycling bags should be the last things to pack. You will need to use them to clean the house if you decide to do it yourself.
Of course, you can avoid some stress by hiring a cleaning service that will clean everything for you.
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