The Tiny house Blog

Essential Tips for Packing and Organizing Belongings Before a Move

By
Jason Francis
Designed and built over 100 custom tiny homes, lived on a sailboat for 9 months, and loves to live life to the fullest with his wife and their 4 kids.
Updated on:
February 4, 2025
Essential Tips for Packing and Organizing Belongings Before a Move

Moving to a different place is certainly one of the most exciting things you'll ever experience. After all, this is a perfect opportunity to start your life from scratch and have the life you've always wanted.

Even though you are probably currently bursting with joy, the truth is that you are also very overwhelmed as well, because regardless of how thrilling moving is, it's also very time-consuming, stressful, and tiresome.

There are so many things that need to be organized, planned, and figured out before you say goodbye to your old life. In these situations, you can easily forget to do various tasks, but don’t worry! If you use this guide as a reminder, nothing will be left undone!

Plan Everything Accordingly

It doesn’t matter whether you’ve lived in a tiny home or a bigger one, in both cases, packing must be carefully and thoroughly planned. That’s not something that can be rushed, or even worse, be left for the last minute.

According to the experts, you need to plan everything as soon as you can, so you can be one hundred percent sure that you are ready for this big day. Why is early packing so essential? Well, that’s because it gives you the chance to go through all your belongings to see if you’ll keep everything or if maybe there are items that are no longer needed.

Besides that, the sooner you begin with it, the less stress you'll experience. Not to mention the fact that when things are rushed there's a huge risk of making mistakes along the way, now, the question is, when is the perfect time to start packing?

At least six or seven weeks before the actual move. You can start with things that aren’t as pivotal, like storage rooms, attics, basements, etc. These are spaces that are typically loaded with items that you either don’t use as much, or at all.

Two or three weeks before the move, you should focus on the belongings that are really important to you and that you employ on a regular basis, and be sure to pack them properly (meaning that all the boxes are sealed the right way) to avoid dealing with any wear and tear.

If You Can’t Do It Alone, Seek Help!

It doesn’t matter if this is your first time moving to another place or not, you are probably aware of the fact that this whole transition is far from smooth sailing. This is especially the case if you’re gonna be moving to another country.

In these instances, things are even more complex and challenging. Thankfully, there are people who can help you effectively relocate and they come in the form of International removals that lots of people resort to when they want their international move to be smoother. Keep in mind that professional movers have a plethora of experience when it comes to moving, both locally and internationally.

In other words, they know how to properly pack all your things so nothing is damaged during transit. Additionally, since they’ll take care of your belongings, it means that you should feel free to focus on other essential aspects of your move. 

Time For Some Decluttering!

Certainly, one of the most efficient ways to speed up this entire process, and make it far less stressful is by decluttering. That’s something that’s supposed to be done before you begin packing.

Why is this recommendable? Namely, it will allow you to pay close attention to anything that’s in your possession to see if there are any belongings that are taking too much space and that need to be tossed away.

Decluttering isn't solely about eliminating the items that you no longer employ, but also making sure that you only bring the important things into your new home. Besides that, if you do it on time, then you will drastically decrease moving expenses.

How come? Well, that’s because most moving companies set their prices based on the number of things (and their weight) that need to be moved. In a nutshell, the more items you have, the more money you’ll need to set aside for their services.

On the flip side, if you’re handling everything all on your own, without anyone’s assistance, then you won’t need as many boxes to transport and pack, which means that everything is going to be less physically and mentally draining and stressful.

Everything Should Be Labeled

If you want to remain organized, then it’s pivotal to label all your moving boxes the right way. Make sure to mark every single one of them with its content and the place where you’ll place them.

By doing so, you’ll save yourself a lot of precious time when it’s time to unpack. What about your clothes? According to the seasoned movers, something that’s considered mandatory as far as this is concerned is pants hangers.

They are going to help you keep all your pants wrinkle-free and properly organized, and, at the same time, make unpacking a lot less frustrating and nerve-wracking. Apart from that, they are space-effective too which is certainly a huge plus!

Having A Moving Box Index Is Another Great Idea!

A lot of people who are preparing for the move have the tendency to skip this step, probably because they are tired of doing so many things and they don't perceive this one as anything that's too essential, which isn't exactly true.

Yes, it may be a bit tedious and time-consuming for some of you, but its benefits are far bigger than they may appear to be at first glance. So how does it work? First, you need to take your binder and jot down the next number on your label.

Once that's done, you should pack the box, properly seal it, and then put the label on it. Then write the number, along with the content on the index. If you do everything correctly, you'll end up having only one set of numbers, which is great!

You Should Utilize The Proper Packing Supplies

It’s of huge importance to choose high-quality packing materials if you want to be one hundred percent certain nothing bad happens to your items during transit. In these situations, you definitely shouldn’t skimp on costs, otherwise, you are increasing the risk of ending up with damaged belongings.

There are various things that you can utilize for these purposes, and below, the most essential ones will be enumerated:

  • Top-quality, firm boxes – There’s nothing better than putting everything into sturdy boxes. They are the ones that will ensure everything is properly transported. Bigger boxes should contain lighter items, while the smaller ones should contain heavier things.
  • Packing tape – If you want to prevent any damage and/or spills, then you should employ high-strength tape because it is designed to keep the boxes sealed.
  • Cushioning materials and bubble wrap are perfect for fragile things such as electronics, glassware, or anything else that can easily be broken/damaged. 
  • Markers and labels – They are here to help you and professional movers easily identify the content of every box.

You Need To Prepare A Box For Your First Day

Once you arrive at your new house, you will most likely be very tired from everything you've done previously, and probably the only thing you'll want to do is simply relax and unwind. The last thing that's going to be on your mind is to go through all your boxes just to find one or two things that you'll need for that day.If you want to make this happen, then you should have a so-called "First Day" box that's supposed to have all your necessities and essentials that are simply mandatory. It should contain the following:

  • Toiletries – This refers to things like shampoo, toothpaste, toilet paper, toothbrush, soap, or anything else that you use regularly. 
  • Medications – You should pack any medications that must be taken every day, or pain relievers, just in case.
  • Something to eat and drink – Moving can oftentimes be very physically demanding, hence it would be smart to grab things that you can eat on the go, that will boost your energy, like nuts, fruits, granola bars, along with some juice and water. All these things will help you stay on your feet, and, simultaneously, keep you relatively full, since you probably won’t cook anything that day.
  • Chargers and any other pieces of electronics – This doesn’t include solely phone chargers, but chargers for computers and tablets (if you own them) too! Having them within your reach will ensure you are always available and that you can entertain yourself at any given moment once the moving is done.
  • Essential documents – Don’t forget to pack all the documents that are considered important, like your passport, personal ID, moving contract, or any other document that’s relevant. You should place all of them in a single box to avoid wasting time trying to find them.

Although moving is primarily very exciting, oftentimes, it can be very chaotic and hectic as well, however, as you can see, there are a bunch of awesome things that you can do that will help you keep everything in perfect order.

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