Here’s a practical guideline approach to prepare for your local or long distance move.
THREE TO FOUR WEEKS OUT BOOK YOUR MOVE
Houses are selling quickly these days. Book your move with Mayflower three to four weeks early. During the busy spring and summer months dates fill up to capacity quickly and you could be left not securing your desired date and may have to put your belongings into warehouse storage until a date becomes available.
Mayflower offers ‘complete’ moving services. Our move coordinators explain the move process in detail to avoid customers being surprised as the time draws closer. Listen to your move coordinator because they are experts and will provide excellent advice to ensure a Stress-free move experience.
Schedule a Virtual or in-home estimate months in advance. This will allow you time to sell, donate or trash items you know you won’t need to take to your new home. Our salesperson will prepare a Binding estimate based on weight and mileage. On move day, your items are loaded into the truck & the truck will be weighed. If your shipment weighs less than the estimate, you will be Paid a Weight Credit based on the estimated weight minus the current weight.
Be sure to let the sales estimator know if you have any oversized furniture. Movers won’t take items that won’t pass through doorways, hallways, and staircases without causing damage to property. This applies to both your origin and destination homes.
Two to three Weeks Out: If you’re packing: Buy your supplies and Start Packing.
Pack one area Completely—then go on to another area. Pack Seasonal items, extra linens, books, décor, & holiday decorations, the basement, garage and attics should all be packed first. Items left unpacked should be discarded or donated.
We cannot stress enough the importance of packing early.
DO NOT BUY/USE PLASTICE TOTES! Plastic totes are not meant to be stacked inside a truck from floor to ceiling. Plastic totes conform to Climatic conditions: In the winter, they freeze, crack and break. In the summer, they heat up and expand causing lids to collapse upon one another.
At McLaughlin Mayflower, we provide gently ‘used’ boxes for customers who wish to pack themselves for FREE! Ask your move coordinator for boxes and they will be provided to you. Boxes can be picked up as often as needed. McLaughlin Mayflower will provide paper and tape. Ask our move coordinator to email you a detailed sheet outlining the size boxes needed for each item. For example: Book boxes are sized to hold 25 lbs. -books are heavy.
HIGH VALUE ITEMS: PUT ALL items of High Value in one location in your home. DO NOT PACK THEM YOURSELF. OUR PACKER WILL INSPECT, INVENTORY AND PACK THEM AT NOT COST TO YOU. Items of high value included but are not limit to electronics, China, crystal, framed artwork & figurines.
If you have oil paintings or valuable statues these may need a third-party to crate them. Explain these to your move coordinator. McLaughlin Mayflower does offer crate services and your move coordinator will advise you on the best approach for those pieces.
ANTIQUES, TYPE UP A LIST OF YOUR ANTIQUES. TYPE A LIST OF EACH PIECE OF ART AND INCLUDE THE ARTIST’S NAME, THE NAME OF THE ART PIECE AND HAVE READY THE CERTIFICATE TO PROVE AUTHENTICITY. Antique furniture should have the certified name of the piece (usually given to homeowner’s insurance co.).
Grandfather clocks and pianos that have ‘inners’ must be disassembled by a third-party service. The parts must be wrapped and labeled and given to the packer so they can be inventoried and placed inside a Parts Box. If you pack parts yourself, we have no knowledge of their existence and they won’t be inventoried. Label the box with the name of the parts you put inside to make it easy to locate at destination.
As soon as you secure a move date; Manage the Logistics
File a change of address with the U.S. Postal Service online.
Contact your utility providers — gas, electric, water, and internet — schedule service stops at your current address and starts at the new one. Schedule utilities to be active at your new place a day or two before you arrive, so you’re not walking into a home without lights, running water, or air conditioning.
Notify your bank, insurance companies, employer, doctors’ offices, pharmacy, and any subscriptions or memberships of the address change
If you have pets, this is also a good time to research veterinarians near your new home and make sure medical records and prescriptions are transferred.
One week before your move:
90-95% of your household belongings should be packed. Day-to-Day & necessary items should be the only items unpacked.
Defrost your freezer 48 Hrs. before you move. In winter months, unplug your TV 24 hrs. before you move.
Take photos of your electronics setup to make set up at destination easy.
NOTE:
PARTICLE BOARD furniture: known as ‘RTA” (ready to assemble), SHOULD NOT BE DISASSEMBLED per manufacturer’s instructions. we will take them assembled, however, we will not be held liable if the screws become loose or if the item warps due to the inherent nature of RTA furniture. . We suggest that these items be given away, sold or donated. Taking the risk that ‘RTA” furniture arrives in good condition is up to you.
DAY BEFORE Preparation
Pack a bag or a clearly marked “open first” box with everything you’ll need for the first night: phone chargers, medications, a change of clothes, pajamas, toiletries, a few snacks, toilet paper, basic cleaning supplies, and anything else that needs to be immediately accessible before the rest of the boxes are unpacked. If you have kids or pets, pack a separate bag for them with their own essentials and comfort items. This one step saves a lot of frantic searching at the end of a long day.
Do a thorough walkthrough of every room, closet, cabinet, shelf, and outdoor space before the truck leaves. Check the attic, the garage, the shed, the back porch, and the top shelves you don’t usually look at. It’s much easier to catch something you’ve missed while the movers are still there than to realize it two days later.
Start Strong, Finish Smooth
The earlier you get moving on the plan, the easier moving day itself becomes. A little structure in the weeks leading up to your move means you get to spend the actual day watching the plan come together rather than scrambling to hold things together. When you’re ready to schedule your move, contact McLaughlin for a free estimate — and let’s build a timeline that works for you.