METCALF MOVING BLOG
Useful Tips for Downsizing Before Your Move to a Smaller Place
Moving in any form can be a lot to handle, but transitioning from a larger place to a smaller one can be even more intimidating. It is far better to do your downsizing before you get started packing than to get everything to the smaller home and try to figure everything out later.
Here are a few useful tips to follow for downsizing before you and your belongings head to your smaller place.
1. Get measurements of the new place and assess your furniture.
Furniture takes up the most space in most dwellings. Take a quick trip to the new place, if possible, and get the room, doorway, and hallway measurements. Snap a few pictures with your phone of each room’s layout as well.
Once you are back with your belongings, assess which furniture pieces will actually fit. For example, if you have a sizable reclining sofa, a loveseat, and two chairs in your current living room, take these pieces’ measurements and determine what will fit and what will need to find a new home.
2. Tackle closets and storage areas with a discerning eye.
A smaller home usually means far less storage space than what you currently have. Therefore, whatever spots you are using now for storage will need to have the contents carefully picked through. The general rule is to eradicate anything you don’t use or can live without. Remember, what’s kept in storage in a larger home may simply be stuffed in a corner in a smaller place.
3. Carefully examine collections to determine what to keep.
We all have those collections of items we enjoy, and we all have collections of things that seem to just amass through the years. While it can be hard to part with the former, the latter can usually be considerably downsized. A few examples of everyday collections you may want to trim down include:
- Kitchen utensils and small kitchen appliances
- Extra towels, washcloths, and linens
- Tools and cleaning supplies
4. Trim down excess with the “one-item-per-use” idea.
The one-item-per-use rule means sifting through all your duplicates and tossing the lesser or least significant of the bunch. Maybe you have four saucepans of the same size, three accent tables for your bedroom, and two power drills. Keep one item for each use, and you’ll be amazed at how much you can downsize in the process.
5. Consider alternative storage.
Once you have gone through the house and weeded out as much as you think you possibly can, you may still have more than you can logically fit in your new place. If this turns out to be the case, you may need to look into alternative storage solutions. For example, you may want to rent a storage unit nearby or talk to a close family member about storing a few items for you.
Get in Touch with Professional Movers for Help
Downsizing to a smaller place can be a considerable task to handle. You might face many items to sift through and a lot of decisions to make in the process. If you are facing the move to a new, smaller home, make sure you enlist professional movers in your area to help you through the process. Contact us for a free quote!
