So, you’re moving to a new home. Congratulations! This is an exciting time for you and you should be proud of your accomplishment.

This can also be a stressful time for you, though. There’s so much to do when you move. Where do you start?

If you’re feeling overwhelmed, don’t worry. Around 43 million Americans move every year, which means 43 million Americans are trying to figure it all out, too. You’re not alone. Here are five simple moving tips that will help the process go smoothly.

Create A Timeline For Your Move

When moving to a new home, it’s important to give yourself clear deadlines. Establish when you need to be out of your current place, how long it will take you to move, and when you plan on being in your new home.

Moving takes a lot of time and coordination, so giving yourself these deadlines makes it easier for you to stay on track. Write these deadlines down on a calendar for a visual reference.

Craft Your Moving Checklist

Now that you established when you want to move, it’s time to create a checklist of all the things you need to do to ensure your move goes smoothly.

Warning: there may be a lot of things on this checklist because there are a lot of things you need to do when you’re moving to a new home. Some of these list items include packing up your current place, hiring moving professionals in your area, contacting the utility companies to set up a shut-off date on your old place, cleaning your old place, and more.

It can be easy to get overwhelmed by this list, but if you take it one task at a time, you’ll get through it before you know it.

Decide What You’re Taking To Your New Home

Moving to a new home marks the beginning of a new chapter in your life. That being said, you may not want to bring everything from your old place to your new home.

Before you relocate, go through all your stuff and decide what you’re keeping and what’s getting donated. Really take a good look at everything: your furniture, kitchenware, lighting fixtures, clothing, and more. Then, divide it into two categories: must-haves, and donations.

By doing this, you’ll declutter your space and make your move easier. The less stuff you have to move, the better.

Hire The Right Movers

Even after you get rid of some stuff, you’ll still have a lot to move. To save yourself time and hassle, research and hire a residential moving service to help you out.

There’s a lot of perks to hiring a moving service. For starters, you don’t have to recruit friends and family to help. Often, getting people to help you move is one of the toughest parts of moving to a new home. There are only so many people you can ask to help with this task, so if no one can help, you’re stuck doing it all on your own.

Spare yourself the headache of having to recruit people to help you. When looking into a moving service, make sure you check things like reviews, customer testimonials, and what their services entail. Compare movers in your area, and then choose the moving assistance that will help you most.

Don’t Procrastinate On Packing

Once you have everything set, start packing as soon as possible. Not many people enjoy packing and as a result, they procrastinate doing it.

If you procrastinate packing, you could really stress yourself out. Moving can already be a stressful time, so the last thing you need during this process is more stress.

A great strategy for packing is to pack up one room at a time. Set a deadline for yourself for each room and stick to it. That way, you’re not scrambling the night before the move to cram everything into any box you can find.

Moving to a new place is definitely a process. There will be times where you feel frustrated or overwhelmed, but you shouldn’t let those feelings define your move.

However, moving to a new place is also exciting. This new place is where you’ll create so many new memories with people you love and care about. Remember your end goal when moving and the process will go a lot smoother than you think.

5 Helpful Tips For Anyone Moving To A New Home