You have successively found a new place in Chicago to call your home! It’s all perfect and exciting until you realize about how much much you have to move. Below are 24 Essentials Moving Tips by The Professionals Moving Specialists.

Label the Outside of Your Moving Boxes with Not Just Inventory, but the Room the Items Are Likely to Go:

Stay ahead of the game!You can save yourself a lot of time and headaches by simply indicating on the outside of your box what items are inside and in what room these items will be going.

Pack an Overnight Bag with First Day Essentials:

The day that you move in, there will be items that you will likely need right away (food, toothbrush, soap, toilet paper!)Make sure you pack an overnight bag that you keep on you so that you are prepared for that first day.

When Packing Silverware Such as Plates, Pack Them Vertically Rather than Horizontally:

Packing plates vertically can help to prevent any kind of damage as opposed to horizontal placement, where plates are more prone to moving around in transit.

Try to Clean the New Residence before the Move:

This is something most people forget to consider, and they just move in without realizing that they will in fact be spending the night.Make sure to clean all rooms, especially bathrooms, to make sure that it is decent and ready for your arrival.Don’t wait till after the move, as you will only be exhausted and will hate yourself for not thinking about it sooner!

Use a Garbage Bag for clothing :

This might sound absurd but I have friend that moves many times that swearby the garbage bag for packingkeeps your clothes on their hangers, for much faster unpacking.

Label Any Small pieces and Parts and place in a small press and seal bag:

This one is also sort of a no brainier, but still many people make this mistake.If you had to disassemble anything, make sure that you keep all of the screws and other items together, and label them so that you know what they belong to.The best thing to do is place them in a plastic bag, label them, and tape them together, so that you know what goes with what.

Take Photographs of Hard to Assemble Items:

Keeping photos of hard to assemble items is an effective way of reminding yourself how something fit together before you disassembled it for your move.This can apply to furniture, electronics and hardware.

Use Reusable Plastic Moving Boxes as Opposed to Cardboard:

Reusable plastic is much more efficient than standard cardboard for moving.It is more durable, water proof, and contributes no waste products to the environment.Essentially you’ll be going green, and making things easier for yourself in the process.

Vacuum Seal Clothing For Easier Packing and Transport:

This is an ingenious maneuver to make packing a lot easier.Simply vacuum seal your clothing before packing, and you can maximize the amount of storage space you can use for your move.HOWEVER, always remember that while you may be conserving space, the weight is still the same, so don’t think that by vacuum sealing and packing clothes it somehow makes it weigh less.It does not.Always consider the weight!

For Fragile, Antique, and Piano Moving, It’s Best to Hire a professionals moving company:

Moving can be a very difficult process and if you are inexperienced you could end up damaging your valuable and antique belongings.In regards to moving these significant items, its within your best interest to hire a professional mover that deals in antique, fine art and piano moving.Some even offer climate controlled vehicles and storage facilities.

Hire a sitter for your pets or kids:

Living in the city of Chicago, IL and moving without any help from neighbors or friends or family. Hire a sitter on your moving day, last thing you need to worry about on moving day is where your kids or pets.

Make Sure Everything Is Packed Before You Begin Moving!:

I don’t think this one needs to be explained

Make Sure You Inform the Post Office of Your Change Of Address Prior to Moving:

Be sure to inform the post office of your change of address, otherwise your mail will be sent to your previous address, and this can be potentially harmful when you consider the bills that you will not be receiving because you forgot.

Bring Dental and Medical Records With You Or Have Them Transferred Along With Any Other Important Documentation:

This one is also pretty straightforward, just keep in mind these items are important in your new residence.

Enroll Your Children in Their New Designated School Before Moving:

Make sure that you know what school your child will be zoned to attend, and be sure that you have them enrolled before you begin your move.It is important that you don’t have you child miss any necessary amount of time from school!

Sell Or Donate Your Unused Items:

If you know that there are items that you will not be taking with you, properly dispose of them, sell them or donate them.Any perishable items must be either recycled or disposed of in the proper manner.And if you are having a tough time selling any unused items, and they are still usable, simply donate them to charity.Organizations such as The Salvation Army will take your unwanted clothing and donate them to those less fortunate.

Give Yourself Enough Time to Manage All the Various Aspects of your Move:

It’s recommended to begin planning your move roughly a month to two weeks before the move is scheduled to take place.Give yourself plenty of time so you are not stressing it!!

Do Not Purchase Grocery 2 weeks prior to Your Move:

You cannot effectively move the food in your fridge during the move day, as you run the risk of leaks, spills and spoiling.It is recommended that you do your last bit of grocery shopping at least 2 weeks prior to the move so that the majority of your food is at least consumed before you begin moving.

Defrost Your Fridge before Moving:

Pretty self-explanatory.

Remove Trash and Hazardous Materials:

A mover, by law, cannot move any hazardous materials or perishable items.Therefore, it is your responsibility to properly dispose of trash and to not include items such as propane, or gas along with your moving materials.

Take Care of Your Movers/ Helpers:

Whether you hired professionals or bothered your friends, show some appreciation to the people who are helping you move out of your house.Offer them water, refreshments, and make sure that they are properly cared for (after all they are the ones carrying your personal belongings!)

When Hiring Movers, Make Sure They Are Professionals:

The Better Business Bureau keeps a listing of all accredited business that are deemed legitimate in accordance with government regulations.You can check this site when hiring a mover to make sure that you are not taken advantage of by fraudulent moving companies.

Prepare Your Children for the Move:

Make sure your children are well accommodated during the moving process, and make sure they are kept well informed during the process.Children can become anxious moving into a new place, away from their friends and the places they were familiar.Simply reassuring your child or children can go along way in easing them into the transition.

Don’t Stress It:

Most people let the prospect of moving stress them out, worrying about their new neighborhood, their new neighbors, and the quality of their new residence.Simply remain calm and remember this is not the end of the world!The best advice would be to have friends or family assist you throughout the entire moving process so that you are not constantly worrying about the state of your belongings.Also its always cool to throw a housewarming party, invite neighbors and family so that you can make new friends, learn about your neighborhood, and not feel like a stranger in a strange land.