Your order of business when you move into a new home

Moving out of an old home can be messy and disorderly. Moving in and settling into the new home can easily become chaotic. The pain of forgetting what was packed where, and what goes where. The newness of it all, this new home, the process of re-setting up in a home with different angles and dimensions as the former, everything.

When you’re surrounded by boxes, what you need is a strategy. It works to have a practical guide that helps and eases you into this process. So what first moves should you make as you land into your new home?

Cleanex the First: No matter how much you want to get it over with, there are four important things to do before you can commence the unpacking phase;

• Clean and prepare your new home: It’s easier to wipe down shelves, clean windows and mop floors before your belongings are in place. Make sure your home-to-be is spotless when your items arrive. If you can’t get to your new place early enough to do a thorough cleaning, consider hiring professional cleaners to do the job for you.
• Inspect and organize your belonging: Check all the delivered boxes and household items against your inventory sheet (which you created during pack-up) to make sure nothing is damaged or missing. Then have each of your possessions taken to the room where it belongs. If everything has been properly marked/labelled, sorting through your items will be a ‘piece of cake’.
• Set major furniture and appliances: Position your large furniture pieces and bulky household appliances first after which you can put any smaller items you unpack later directly in their rightful places. Plan your interior design well in advance so you don’t end up moving heavy pieces around several times.
• Tackle the necessities: What matters most when unpacking your items after a move is ensuring that your essentials are immediately accessible. So, prioritize your belongings and unpack only the necessities first.

 

Bedding: You may not be able to unpack the entire bedroom right away, but you’ll definitely need at least the bed the day you move in. Reassemble the bed frame (if necessary), lay down the sheets, unpack the pillows and spread the blankets so you can get a good night’s rest — you’re going to need it. Provided that you have a change of clothes and some comfortable indoor shoes – as well as curtains on the windows to ensure your privacy- the rest of your bedroom items can wait until you find the time and the energy to deal with them.

 

Bathroom items: Without a doubt, your personal care items, toiletries and medicines should top the list of the most important items to unpack after your move. Put out toilet paper and soap, find your toothbrush and toothpaste, hang the towels and the shower curtains and unpack any other bathroom essentials you’ll need to wash away the weariness and stress of moving.

 

Kitchen necessities: Kitchens tend to take a very long time to unpack and organize properly due to the large number of items that need to be sorted and carefully arranged.

As soon as you’ve hooked up the large appliances, such as the fridge and the gas, move on to your smaller kitchenware. Plates, silverware and glasses should be the first to find their places in cupboards and kitchen cabinets, closely followed by cooking utensils, pots and pans, and pantry items.

 

Kids’ items: If you have young children, unpack some of their favourite toys, books, games and blankets during the first few hours in your new home. Keeping your young ones happy and occupied will let you concentrate on your work thereby finishing it faster.

 

Finishing up: When you’ve unpacked the three most essential rooms in your home (bedroom, bathroom and kitchen), everything else can wait a bit. There are no deadlines to meet, so you can set your own pace when unpacking and decorating your new place — just unpack in order of priority without procrastinating.

If you stay organized, set reasonable goals, clean after every unpacking phase and dispose of the packing materials in a safe and eco-friendly manner, your new surroundings will soon stop looking like a warehouse full of boxes and start feeling like home.