The Complete Guide to Moving and Packing

The Complete Guide to
Moving and Packing
Introduction
Everyone knows that the process of moving can be very stressful. In fact it’s known as one of
the top five most stressful events in a person’s life. The act of packing up all of your worldly
possessions and transporting them unharmed to your new home is daunting. In addition,
choosing whether to hire someone to move your belongings or to do it yourself is a major
decision.
We put this eBook together to help people we know who are going through the process. It is
a compilation of information from sources like the US Government’s “Protect Your Move”
website that is designed to protect consumers from bad experiences and companies. There
is information from the American Moving and Storage Association, the oversight
organization that holds moving companies to the highest standards, and from Atlas World
Group, one of the largest moving companies in the world, who handles hundreds of
thousands of moves domestically and internationally each year.
We hope you find this useful in your endeavor. Whether this is a minor or major transition in
your life, we wish you peace, success, and happiness.
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
Part 3: Moving Day and Getting Settled
Section 3.1: Moving Day
Expert tips for loading a moving truck…………………………………………… 6-7
How to unload a moving truck………………………………………………………. 8
How to entertain kids on the road…………………………………………………. 9-11
Section 3.2: Getting Settled
Starting fresh after a move…………………………………………………………….
Arranging your furniture……………………………………………………………….
When you can claim moving expenses while filing taxes…………………
Meeting new neighbors…………………………………………………………………
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Part 3:
Moving Day and Getting
Settled
Here are tips on
how to properly
load and unload
your moving truck,
finding the best
time to move, how
to approach your
new neighbors, and
more.
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Section 3.1: Moving Day
5
Expert Tips for Loading a Moving Truck
Truck rentals for moving are designed to hold
a certain amount of items, usually measured
in cubic feet. For instance, there are 16-cubicfoot trucks, 24-cubic-foot trucks and other
sizes. But, the capacity of the truck means
nothing if you don’t know how to maximize
your storage space by packing and loading
like an expert. Often, movers don’t know how
to effectively load their goods in to their truck
rental, resulting in many cubic feet of space
left unused while some of their household
items are forced to be left behind. Here are
some tips for loading a moving truck so you
can pack like a pro.
Load large items first, or not
There are two schools of thought when it
comes to what should be loaded into the
truck first. Some experts believe that the
largest items should be loaded in first to
ensure you have the room necessary for
them. Others believe that you should load
your boxes in first, building a wall of boxes
from the backside of the truck to the door.
Either way is fine, but if you have a lot of
equal-sized boxes, you might find it easier to
go with the wall of boxes to maximize your
space. By packing this way, you can load up
the truck floor to ceiling with boxes. Just be
sure you tie everything down to avoid an
avalanche.
Distribute weight evenly
Distributing weight evenly throughout
the truck will not only make it easier to
load and unload but it will make the truck
easier to control once you get on the
road. Load the heaviest items against the
walls so you can keep the middle of the
floor open for easier loading.
Loading pictures and mirrors
Pictures and mirrors can break too easily
in the back of a moving truck, so protect
them by sliding them in between
mattresses. They should still be wrapped
and packed but by placing them between
mattresses, it will make the best use of
your space while ensuring nothing gets
placed on top of them.
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Expert Tips for Loading a Moving Truck (continued)
Disassemble tables for packing
Tables take up a ton of space when left together. To condense the size of the table, just take it
apart and load it in the truck in pieces. You can set the table on its side, flat against the wall
and it hardly takes up any space. Or, if the table is too problematic to take apart, load it into
the truck and store boxes or other items underneath it and on top of it to maximize your
space.
Store couches on end
A couch takes up more cubic feet in a moving truck when laid in the truck horizontally;
therefore, set it on its end and drastically reduce the amount of space it takes up. Most
moving trucks have high enough ceilings to accommodate a long couch placed vertically.
Use bookshelves
You don’t want to store your books on a bookshelf as its being moved but it can definitely be
a convenient solution for storing smaller boxes. By loading up your bookshelf with boxes,
you’re using that space to the fullest, otherwise, the space on the inside of the bookshelf
would be holding nothing but air while the boxes would be taking up space in another part
of the truck.
Use the straps
Packing like an expert means you will have your truck loaded up floor to ceiling, but this
doesn’t mean that these items won’t still shift in transport. To protect all of your items, use
packing straps throughout the process to keep certain items safe and secure. Rather than
strapping it all in at the end, strap down sections at a time for optimum safety.
Follow these simple packing and loading tips and you’ll notice that you’ll not only pack more
efficiently but your move will go much smoother than you might have imagined.
Source: http://www.moving.com/truck-rental/tips-for-loading.asp
There are also many videos showing how to load a truck. Some are better
than others; here’s one: http://youtu.be/aJBtSShwQNM
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How to Unload a Moving Truck
When the moving truck has arrived at its
final destination, the back of the moving
truck should be opened with care in case
any items shifted during the
drive. Unloading the truck should be
conducted methodically, from top to
bottom, front to back. As boxes and
furniture are unloaded, the items can be
given a quick visual inspection for signs of
new damage. Damage to furniture should
be recorded and reported in case a claim
needs to be filed later. Boxes that arrive at
their destination torn, ripped, or open
should be closely inspected for signs of
damage to the items inside. A large rip or
tear in a box may also cause items within to
fall out without anyone noticing. A quick
inventory of the box should be completed to
ensure nothing is missing.
The position of the truck when
unloading can also help or hinder
moving day. Trucks should be parked in
a way that offers a direct path from the
back of the moving truck to the main
entrance of the new home. This may not
always be possible in crowded cities, but
every effort should be made to keep the
route direct. When the path between the
back of a moving truck and a main
entrance becomes difficult to navigate,
the risk of damage to property, as it is
unloaded, increases significantly.
With a professional moving team on your
side, you don’t have to worry about things
like parking a moving truck or unloading
heavy boxes. A professional team of
movers handles every aspect of moving
property on and off the moving truck.
Parents are recommended to occupy their
children in an area of the home that is away
from the movers. This can ensure that the
children don’t accidentally get stepped on or
tripped over by a mover carrying large
boxes.
See more at:
http://www.acerelocation.com/2012/02/unload-amoving-truck/
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How to Entertain Kids on the Road
Think of road trips with your children as rare opportunities. When else do you have a long
stretch of time with your kids uninterrupted by television, homework, phone calls, friends
or other distractions? Especially with kids along, getting there can be half the fun. Plan
ahead and follow the cardinal rule of family travel: maintain a sense of humor. After all,
sometimes cars break down, babies spit up, traffic crawls and attractions get crowded. Here
are some suggestions, oriented to age groups, to make your road trip memorable for all the
right reasons.
TWEENS AND TEENS
•
Talk with them. Get the conversation going by telling tales of your childhood. Kids love
to hear about their parents at their same age.
•
Listen. A car provides an ideal venue for older children to open up about their feelings.
Since the driver looks straight ahead and the passengers often do too, conversation
feels much less judgmental than a face-to-face talk.
•
Let teens pick aspects of the trip. Most teens won't have given your journey much
thought, although they will express definite opinions. Once on the highway, hand your
teens guidebooks and travel apps so they can choose a few activities and restaurants.
•
Share music. Music really can soothe the soul. Ask your teens to share songs from their
personal iPods or MP3 players that the family might like. Use your car's stereo system
or tote a portable speaker.
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How to Entertain Kids on the Road (continued)
GRADE-SCHOOLERS
•
Vary the seating. After miles on the road, it's common to hear such backseat cries as
"His foot is on my side." To manage a meltdown, divide and conquer. Switch places so
that the child old enough to sit in the front moves next to the driver. If there's another
adult, have him sit in the rear. That not only stops squabbles, but gives each child
important one-on-one time with a parent or grandparent.
•
Use the baby to mark a border. With three children, place the youngest one in the
middle of the car's backseat. That creates a buffer zone between fighting older siblings
and positions two kids to play with the tot.
•
Think picnic. Tweak the tried-and-true rule of taking a bathroom and snack break
every two to three hours: pack a lunch and pause for a picnic and a Frisbee game at a
local or state park along your route.
•
Bring games and toys. Bring the movies, portable electronic games and other hi-tech
toys your brood favors. But think low-tech, too. Pack pipe cleaners for making crazyshaped critters, as well as coloring books, crayons and sticker games, plus a few new
toys as a surprise.
•
Arrive by late afternoon. After a day on the road, everybody looks forward to an out-ofcar experience. Plan to arrive at your daily destination well before dinner so that you
and the kids can take advantage of the swimming pool or play area.
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How to Entertain Kids on the Road (continued)
BABIES AND TODDLERS
• Understand your family's rhythms of
the road. Some families prefer putting
little ones in pajamas and starting the
drive after dinner when traffic
diminishes and kids sleep. Others find
that early-morning departures enable
them to be at their destination before
the late-afternoon, kid-cranky hours.
•
Work with a tot's schedule, not against it. Maximize little ones' naptime by driving
when they sleep and stopping for meals when they are hungry. Don't expect your
three-year-old not to be tired when it's her naptime just because you've arrived at the
children's museum.
•
Know what your child can drink in a moving vehicle. Some children can down a bottle
of juice or milk in the car, but then upchuck it two miles down the highway. Best to give
some thirsty tots only water until you pull in to a rest stop.
•
Be prepared. Keep lots of wet wipes, paper towels, and diapers as well as a few trash
bags and extra clothes within easy reach.
•
Dress for the drive. Make sure the baby's wearing easy to undo, comfortable clothing.
Save the "grandma dress" with the lace and frills for after your arrival.
Source: http://travel.usatoday.com/destinations/bestoftheroad/story/2012-05-09/Family
travel-How-to-entertain-kids-on-the-road/54852946/1
See more at: http://www.acerelocation.com/family-travel-how-to-entertain-kids-on-the-Road/
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Section 3.2: Getting
Settled
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Starting Fresh After a Move
Moving offers unique opportunities for
starting over. Instead of moving old appliances
and furniture from one home to another, you
can use the opportunity to get rid of your old
furniture and order new furniture to meet you
at your new place.
The Internet can be used to find deals on furniture and appliances in the area of the new
home to keep shipping costs to a minimum. If you would like to sign for and receive the
furniture on your own, or if nobody is available in the area to sign for the items at delivery,
the moving party can schedule the furniture to arrive after move-in.
Getting rid of items that are no longer wanted and will be replaced is as easy as holding a
garage sale, posting the items on the Internet, or donating the items to charity. Either way, a
profit can be made in the form of cash or tax credits that can be applied to new stuff for the
new home.
The cost of shipping a car will motivate many people to sell their car before moving day,
especially people moving overseas. Aside from being expensive to ship, American made cars
are often too big and bulky to fit comfortably on European roads. Citizens of many regions in
the world don’t even have cars because the public transportation system goes everywhere
they need it to go. Cities like New York, Boston, and Washington, DC are home to
many people who do not rely on cars for transportation.
Seize the opportunity of moving to rid your load of the old and bring in the new!
See more at: http://www.acerelocation.com/2011/10/starting-fresh-after-a-move/
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Arranging Your Furniture
How you decide to arrange
your furniture will affect
the room’s appeal,
comfort, and functionality.
Understanding these basic
rules about furniture
arranging will get you
started on the right foot.
The first step is to define the purpose of the room. This is important in helping you decide
how to use the space effectively. Next, you should choose a focal point. The focal point of the
room could be a fireplace, television, window, etc. Deciding where you want to direct
attention will help you arrange the furniture accordingly.
Keep in mind that some furniture “expands”. Examples of expanding furniture are hide-abed couches and chairs that need to be pulled out from a dining room table. You’ll need to
leave room for these adjustments when placing your furniture. A good tactic for furniture
placement is to position large pieces parallel to the wall, rather than diagonal, which takes
up precious space, especially in smaller rooms.
Keeping traffic lanes open is imperative when deciding how to arrange a room. Furniture
should not obstruct the convenient or familiar paths from one point to another.
Before actually moving the furniture, it’s a great idea to sketch out the room dimensions and
basic shapes of furniture. You can sketch a few different options for layouts and choose
which you like best on paper before the heavy lifting.
Source: http://www.hgtv.com
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When You Can Claim Moving Expenses While Filing
Taxes
If you moved due to a change in your job or
business location, or because you started a new
job or business, you may be able to deduct your
reasonable moving expenses, but not any
expenses for meals. To qualify for the moving
expense deduction, you must satisfy two tests.
Under the first test, the "distance test," your new
workplace must be at least 50 miles farther from
your old home than your old job location was
from your old home. If you had no previous
workplace, your new job location must be at
least 50 miles from your old home.
The second test is the "time test." If you are an employee, you must work full-time for at least
39 weeks during the first 12 months immediately following your arrival in the general area of
your new job location. If you are self-employed, you must work full time for at least 39 weeks
during the first 12 months and for a total of at least 78 weeks during the first 24 months
immediately following your arrival in the general area of your new work location. There are
exceptions to the time test in case of death, disability and involuntary separation, among other
things.
If you are a member of the armed forces and your move was due to a military order and
permanent change of station, you do not have to satisfy the "distance or time tests."
Moving expenses are figured on Form 3903 (PDF), ‘Moving Expenses’, and deducted as an
adjustment to income on Form 1040 (PDF). You cannot deduct any moving expenses covered
by reimbursements from your employer that are excluded from income.
Credit: http://www.irs.gov/taxtopics/tc455.html
See more at: http://www.acerelocation.com/2013/03/when-you-can-claim-moving-expenses-on-your-tax-return/
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Meeting New Neighbors
When you move, you will meet dozens of new people. Of all these new people, you will
probably meet your neighbors first. Meeting new neighbors is important. They can help you
settle into your new home, give you advice for good places to visit, and even become your
newest friends. Here’s how to approach your neighbors and what to talk to them about:
Approaching Your Neighbors
Like with anything, there are some social rules that accompany meeting a neighbor. Here are
some major ones:
•
Evening time or weekends – The best time to talk to your neighbors is in the early
evening or on the weekends. That’s when they’ll most likely be home and not rushing
to get somewhere. However, if you see them out on the driveway at a different time, say
hello.
•
Introduce yourself – Your neighbor might not know you even moved in. You should let
them know who you are and where you live.
•
Smile – Meeting people isn’t easy. Bring a smile and a good-natured mentality and you
should be fine.
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Meeting New Neighbors (continued)
What to Talk About
Start your conversation by saying
hello and introducing
yourself. However, after that you
could talk about the following
things:
•
The neighborhood – Ask your neighbor about anything that you should make sure to
see or do in the area.
•
What they do – Find out what your neighbor does in life. It might not only be
interesting, it might actually benefit you in the future, such as if your neighbor is a
doctor or handyman. Also, explain what you do.
•
Pet peeves – Find out if your neighbors have any pet peeves, like loud music or mowing
the lawn at an early hour, and share yours with them. This is the best way to avoid
future altercations.
•
Your idiosyncrasies – Let your neighbor know about any unusual things that you do,
such as practicing the violin every night at 7. Also, let them know if you have kids or
pets. That way, they’ll be on guard.
•
Just chat – It might be hard to connect with some neighbors. For them, just be genial
and concise. However, you might feel more of a bond with others. For them, use your
conversation as a time to share interests. However, don’t keep them for too long. If
you’d like to continue the conversation, try to set up a time to get together for dinner
or the likes.
Credit: Ryan Craft, http://www.movingguru.com/movingguide/meeting-your-new-neighbors/
See more at: http://www.acerelocation.com/2013/02/meeting-new-neighbors/
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Thank you for reading Part 3 of
The Complete Guide to Moving and Packing!
We wish you an enjoyable and stress-free
move.
For more such information, read :
Part 1:Deciding on a Moving Company or DIY
Part 2: Packing and Preparing for your move
Click here to Download.
Click here to get instant quotes on your
moving needs.
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For more information, visit our website at :
www.AceRelocation.com
About the authors
This e-book was conceived of, compiled by and produced by Ace
Relocation Systems, Inc. Ace Relocation is an agent for Atlas Van
Lines, is family-owned, has been in business since 1968 and has
nine locations from coast to coast. They execute over 14,000 moves
each year, primarily for individuals and their families who are
moving for their jobs, whether it be for a corporation, the U.S.
Government or the Military.
Disclaimer: this information has been collected from many sources, including our own experience. It
is offered as a guide only. Not all situations are the same and it is always advisable to have a
professional mover come to your home to evaluate exactly what is needed to safely transport your
household goods. We make no guarantees and Ace Relocation Systems, Inc. may not be held liable or
responsible for any damage, injury or loss as a result of the contents of this e-book. These are merely
helpful suggestions to assist you in your endeavor.
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