If you are looking for a coast-to-coast relocation, you first need to answer the question of whether you are more East or West Coast. Once you do that, you can move on. If the answer is “West Coast”, but you live on the East Coast, you can always opt to move. That is why you are going to need these packing tips for moving from coast to coast, especially if you are relocating from Miami to California. So, let’s see what you can do while packing, to have as much of a stress-free move as possible!
Choose your movers wisely
Movers are a very important component of your relocation. Even though you might think that you can do it yourself, be aware that you have to cover around 2,800 miles if you plan on moving from Miami to California. That is why specialized teams are the best option when it comes to organizing such a long move. With their help, you will be able to focus on the more important aspects of your relocation like packing, for example.
Before we start with packing tips for moving from coast to coast…
Be sure that you are familiar with the differences between Florida and California. One of the main differences is the cost of living. While CA contributes the most to the U.S. annual budget and has one of the highest living standards in the whole country, Florida is much more affordable. This is important to mention in an article about packing because the amount of stuff you are going to pack is determined by the cost of living.
For example, if you have a large home in Miami, there is a possibility that you won’t be able to afford an equally sized estate in CA. Therefore, you will most likely need to downsize or put your belongings in a storage unit that can be somewhat expensive. So, if Cali is too expensive, maybe consider other states like Washington that have a lower cost of living.
Be systematic while packing
Being systematic means that you should go step-by-step and be very thorough while preparing for and actually packing. To accomplish this you need to do the following:
- Make a packing list
- Pack room-by-room
- Label everything
- Keep unpacking in mind
Of course, we will go over everything listed here. But, you must follow these tips in this specific order if you want to spare yourself the headaches that moving can bring.
Prepare a packing list – first of the packing tips for moving from coast to coast
A packing list is not only a great tool for a stress-free packing experience, but also for keeping everything in check. If you want to make a good packing list, you need to watch out for the way you write down everything. So, what you want to do is to think about everything you need in your new dwelling. Here, you need to make a distinction between need-to-have and nice-to-have.
As we’ve mentioned earlier, the standard of living in CA is much higher than in FL. So, downsizing will most likely be a necessity. This is exactly why you’ll need to prepare a packing list. Differentiate between your belongings and think about what you can do with unneeded items. Charity is a great option, but you can always organize a yard sale if you would like to cover some of the moving costs. But, don’t do anything before you have a comprehensive packing list!
Packing room-by-room is among the most important packing tips for moving from coast to coast
For real. If you don’t pack room-by-room, you risk not packing something very important to you. So, be sure that you don’t multitask. Even though multitasking may be very appealing, it’s is very counterproductive during the packing process.
So, when you are packing room-by-room, you should go into each room and observe everything that is in there. After that, write down everything that needs to be packed. Once you’ve done this for every room in your home, you can move on to the packing itself. This should be done following the order in your packing list. Also, don’t forget to label everything.
Labeling is key if you want your stuff to arrive in one piece
Of course, professionals will treat your stuff very diligently. But, if they don’t know what is breakable and what is not, check out nwmoving.com and avoid running into certain problems. As we said, your stuff will be diligently treated by your movers, but if you don’t label your moving boxes, they won’t fixate the boxes to prevent moving during transport. The reason for that is not negligence. On the contrary, movers won’t see a reason to prevent moving if there isn’t anything that might break in there.
Additionally, if you label your stuff properly, you will know in which order to unpack it. Also, you will be able to tell your movers where to put each box. As you can see, the benefits of labeling are multiple, so be sure to capitalize on them.
Lastly, you should keep in mind the process of unpacking
As we mentioned earlier, one of the reasons why labeling is one of the most important packing tips for moving from coast to coast is because of the process of unpacking. But, there is one other thing that you should keep in mind when packing. The order in which you pack determines the amount of time you are going to need to do the unpacking. This is especially important if you are going on an interstate move in bad weather. So, if you don’t want to spend an eternity unpacking, you better make sure that you pack in the order that will ease the process of unpacking once you arrive. This will save you a lot of headaches as well since you will have everything at reach. Also, you will be able to follow your packing list, to check if everything you packed is there.