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By Ella Andrews, Guest Writer As the world has become a global village, businesses, education everything has become globalized. This has increased the number of people moving house, as sometimes families have to move because of their jobs and sometimes they have to do it because of education. Hence the number of house movers has increased and is even continuing to grow every day. Moving home is a very stressful job which requires a lot of patience. Sometimes it can be very traumatic for an individual. However a little planning and organization can make the entire process easier and help you be less tensed and hassled. Who will be doing it? The first thing you need to decide is whether you will be moving by yourself or if you’ll hire a company. If you decide to outsource it, a little research about moving companies will be required. You need to research about the efficiency and cost-effectiveness of their services. Their schedule should also be kept in mind that is you should hire them some months before you move. And if you have chosen to move by yourself then you need to check whether you have adequate transportation for relocating items or not.  Plan well in advance Shifting can be made less stressful, if you organize your house a few days before starting the process. This will make the process smoother for you. Furniture removals and moving other big items is not that stressful as the removal of small items. Therefore packing stuff, especially small items, should be planned and performed with patience and care. Before packing, decide whether you will be taking all the stuff along with you or not. There is no sense in moving stuff you do not want in your new house. For this you should consider the size of your new house, the area of it, and the decor there. Along with this, moving house is a great opportunity to get rid of all the useless and old items that you have kept for years. You can donate them or throw them away; this will make your move lighter and packing quicker. Pack as early as possible Do not delay your packing till the last moment, start it as early as possible. Begin the packing with the stuff that won’t be required until you move such as books, pots, off-season clothing and stuff like that. Once you have packed these items in the moving boxes, stack them all in a separate room designated to these boxes only. Label properly After packing the items in boxes, do not forget to label them. Label as per you convenience. Label the boxes according to the rooms they belong to or label them according to the items they carry. Making labels color-coded as per rooms and items can further customize labeling. This will require efficiency because labeling will not only make unpacking easy but it will also help in loading as it will indicate which box needs to be handled with due care and which can be loaded with ordinary care.  The essentials box
Make a separate box of essentials. Fill this box with all the necessary items that you will need to get through the first few days in your new house. This will eliminate the panic of unpacking all the boxes to find any of the items you need. Transfer the utilities Do not forget to turn all the utilities on in your new home. Make sure you have contacted the gas, electricity, telephone and cable companies and they are ready to install the connection, as all these utilities take time to connect. On the other hand, do not forget to turn off the utilities at your old house once you have left. Removals and storage, loading and unloading can all be made stress free if you get well prepared for the big day.
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Ella Andrews, Guest Writer Moving house internationally means that there’s a lot more factors you need to consider before you take the plunge. If it is a country that you are familiar with, then that is great. However, a lot of people make the mistake of not following a couple of solid ground rules that would tremendously help, especially when it is a new country. Moving house to another country, doesn't need to be as daunting when you observe a few things that will help you get there quicker.  1) Ensure that you end up getting a good value for money. A lot of removals companies that work overseas, have the nasty habit of charging you twice the price because you haven't done your due diligence. So always do your research when it comes to a moving company. This isn't a simple man with van situation. You are paying a company to be able to help you shift your stuff; you don't need any additional charges or hassle! 2) Find out the things that you are able to take along with you. Some countries are not allowed certain things at the border. Ensure that you read up on any travel procedures, well before you choose to move. The last thing you need is your luggage getting to your destination, and because of some reason—you do not make it. 3) Make sure that you look for commercial group-age services for your house moving. The reason for this is that you do not have to wait for a full container to have your stuff shipped out. With this method, you are able to get your goods shipped within a week and don't have any annoying waiting times. Many removal services now offer this fantastic service. 4) Find a removal company that is able to offer you a bespoke service. A lot of people do not realize that moving house internationally, is very demanding. When a company is able to offer you this service, the service they provide is often very tailor-made. You may want to reach there before your goods, or vice versa. Either way, these home moving companies have it down to a tee. 5) Don't take your entire house along. Part of moving to a new country is leaving your old life behind and beginning afresh. Sell as much as you can on places such as eBay and Amazon as well as donating and recycling. It is bad energy to carry a lot of junk along with you. Travel as light as possible and ensure that you look forward to a new life! 6) Start packing a couple of months in advance. It is easy to throw everything in at the last minute when it is a local move, however when it comes to an international relocation—take things like tea chests and pack them properly. This helps because when the removals people come to pick up your stuff, you won't have any issue handing it over, thinking where you packed what!  When you are able to follow the following rules, moving home becomes all that much easier. It is both exciting and nerve-wracking leaving where you live currently to move to an unknown place. Life is all about taking on adventures as best as possible, so the last thing you need is to wonder how the international removals process works. It is similar to a local or national removal, however things like customs—need to be considered before hand.
More helpful moving tips find at: http://removalcompaniesbarnes.co.uk/ Ayla Urwin-Toll P.R. Representative with Moving Made Smooth, Inc. Everyone wants to stay within budget when moving. This often involves getting multiple quotes for the service and choosing a company that is within your budget, but isn’t so low of a price that you question their quality. And, if it wasn’t obvious, a quote is only as good as the information it is based on. This means that to receive an accurate quote, you must give accurate and complete information to the person generating that quote. Below are some tips on how to be prepared and get that accurate quote.  1. Be forthcoming with any information regarding your move.
Yes, you want to save as much money as you can during the moving process, but you are better off being honest about what you have and anything that may increase the time it takes to perform your move. We do not charge extra for moving items up stairs or if we have a long walk from the truck to your new home, but we can give a more accurate quote for how many hours the move will take if we know such information. It can also take more time if you have numerous large, heavy pieces of furniture. If you give accurate information upon scheduling your move, your estimate is more likely to be the amount you actually pay. 2. Ask questions! We are here to help you. If you aren’t sure how a particular policy of ours works, then ask questions. It is much easier for us to explain any company policies or procedures prior to a move than the day of. For instance, when a customer books a crew for four hours and the men finish the job in three, then we will not charge you for the fourth hour. Or perhaps you are moving out-of-state and only need Moving Made Smooth to load your rental truck. We would ask you to provide your own moving blankets by purchasing them from a company like Northern Tool or by renting some along with your truck (it is pretty easy to rent some along with a U-Haul, for instance). If we are performing both the load and unload, then they would be provided for you.For any move we provide any dollies, furniture moving straps, and floor & door protection. 3. Make a list of things a moving company is likely to ask if you’re planning on getting multiple quotes. Some examples of what you should have on your list is date of move, any preferred times, load address, unload address, the size of your truck or desired size, flights of stairs in your dwelling or in the apartment complex, list of large, unusual, or heavy furniture, and include any special needs you may have. This allows you to be prepared for most of the questions a mover will ask when giving a quote or booking your move. Thank you for reading our latest blog and, as always, have a great move! Ayla Urwin-Toll P.R. Representative with Moving Made Smooth,Inc Moving to the country side can bring relaxation and a sense of peace that a city environment cannot offer. Most people who make the transition from city life to living in a small town are capitalizing on this fact. Take a look below to see some useful tips when making this transition. • Remember to pack a lunch or grab some snacks for the day you move into your new country home. Often people forget that stores are a lot further from home and unlikely to be open 24 hours in small towns. These circumstances could make your move day even more tedious if you forget to bring food and beverages with you.  • Make sure that your phone service, internet, & cable/satellite are to your needs. There's nothing more annoying on a stressful move day than spotty cell phone reception. Try to troubleshoot any difficulties you may have before moving in. Buy a signal booster if you need to. • Be sure that you can hire movers to unload your belongings in your new area. Keep in mind that some companies will not be flexible with their service area. • See if your current job offers telecommuting. Working from home can sometimes give people the extra peace & quiet they were looking for. If not, small towns can offer a rich variety of jobs or perhaps you can bring a skilled trade to the town. • Mingle. Try and become friends with people in your new community. Check out public places or community attractions and events.  Please feel free to leave a comment below!
Ayla PR Representative at Moving Made Smooth, Inc. If you are relocating due to starting a job in a new location, which can be a new job, an old job that has moved you to a new location/branch, or a move due to your company relocating. The IRS form needed to deduct moving expenses is Form 3903.  Who Qualifies For These Deductions? There are three main qualifications that allow you to file for these deductions. 1. Your move must be closely related in time and distance to the start of work in the new location. 2. Your move meets the requirements of the Distance Test. 3. Your move also meets the requirements of the Time Test. A move that is closely related in time is usually defined as occurring within a year of starting work in the new location. Exceptions are made if you can prove that reasonable circumstances prevented you from moving within the year time frame. You can look over exceptions in greater detail on the IRS website linked below. A general guide to determining if the distance is closely related is if your new home is closer to your place of work than your old home. A move that qualifies under the Distance Test means the distance between your new job location and your old home is greater by 50 miles or more from the distance between your old home and your old job location. To clarify, this means if your old home is 5 miles from your old work location, then your new work location must be at least 55 miles from your old home. This requirement does not take into account the distance to your new home. Members of the Armed Forces do not have to meet this requirement. For more details about this requirement see the full IRS document linked below. Qualifying a move under the Time Test means that you meet the requirements outlined for an employee or self-employed person. An employee must have worked or will work full-time for 39 weeks within the first 12 months of moving to your new location. A self-employed person must have worked or will work full-time for 78 weeks in the first 2 years and have worked or will work full-time for 39 weeks within the first year of living at the new location. If you have not yet completed these requirements before filing your taxes, but will do so within the new year, you can still file for this deduction. There are more extensive rules listed on the IRS website linked below. A retiree or survivor of a person who moved into the United States may be able to deduct some of the costs of moving from another country. Follow this link to the IRS for more information about this exception (http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs- pdf/p521.pdf#en_US_2014_publink1000203483).  What Moving Expenses Can I Deduct?
For more information check out this link to the IRS website: http://www.irs.gov/uac/Publication-521,-Moving-Expenses Ayla PR Representative with Moving Made Smooth, Inc. There are a lot of decisions involved when you decide to move in with another person; whether you're newlyweds, dating, or just roomies. The task of merging your stuff can be tedious and even frustrating at times. Coordinating the move itself can be tricky. Setting ground rules is also an extremely important task. You should also make a financial plan for bills and rent. Deciding to Move in Together The decision to move in with a friend or significant other is a very important life decision that shouldn't be taken lightly. This will be a person that you spend a lot of time with and you will have to deal directly with this person and their habits for an indefinite amount of time. Think about your personalities and what you both do in your spare time. Are they compatible or are you able to be flexible? If you're considering moving in with someone who has a party every Friday night and you work early in the morning every Saturday you may want to reconsider the arrangement. Are you frequently in conflict with them or in an 'on-again, off-again' relationship? Maybe you are allergic to their favorite pet. Sometimes there are circumstances that cause people to be incompatible under the same roof even though you are the best of friends or devoted partners and that's okay. It's a whole lot easier to prevent the arrangement than to organize moving out and breaking a lease in the back end. Merging Your Possessions It can be difficult to decide on who's furniture will end up put into your new place together. Maybe you have a favorite chair that you are absolutely unable to part with. Assert yourself about your 'must-haves,' but remember to be flexible. They may be just as attached to some of their belongings as you are to yours. Give them room in your new home, but don't forget about yourself. Balance is key. If you have a lot of left over furniture, consider selling, donating, or storing it. Keep in mind that long-term storage can get costly.   Coordinating the Move When two people are moving into a new place together it can make a move harder to coordinate simply because you have two homes and a lot more stuff to keep track of. Keeping organized is very important (you can check out some of our other blogs for tips & hacks). Even more important is proper planning. We recently had a customer schedule her move (in my opinion, ideally) for a move in with a significant other. They had a storage unit and a house that both needed to be moved onto moving trucks and unloaded at their new home together. So they hired four of our men and rented two trucks. Two of our men were able to load one truck at the storage unit and the other two went to the house to load the other truck. Both trucks then arrivedat the new house and the four men unloaded the two trucks in record time. Whatever you decide to do for your particular situation, remember to take it easy on yourself. The last thing you need is an argument on moving day.  Setting Your Ground Rules When moving in together, it can be mutually beneficial if you lay out all of your pet peeves to the other person. If it bugs you, let them know. It is NEVER a good idea to let a continual annoyance fester into resentment. If your boyfriend leaves the toilet seat up and that little voice in your head flies into a tirade, you should let him know that. Be aware though that it may be destructive to your relationship to start off the discussion if you are annoyed or angry. Bring it up, let them know that a change in their behavior is important to you and beneficial to them (because it grows your relationship), but don't bite their head off! Treat your new roommate or significant other with the same respect you would want to receive from them. Be understanding. Remember, they are adjusting to you just as much as you are adjusting to them. If they forget about the toilet seat a few times before it becomes a routine it's completely normal.  Financial Planning Financing is also very important to have worked out in advance. Decide if you are going to split the rent and bills or if you are designating certain bills to be a particular person's responsibility. Be sure to make your roommate or significant other aware if there is any reason that they unexpectedly cannot afford a bill and make it clear that you expect the same from them. You never want to have them angry at you because the power got shut off and you didn't tell them about it or vice versa.  Ayla PR Representative at Moving Made Smooth, Inc. A lot of factors must be considered when deciding upon your new home. One of the most important factors is whether or not the new neighborhood is a good fit for you and your family. Moving Made Smooth, Inc. has made a helpful list of attributes that you will want to research before deciding on where to relocate. What is the crime rate in the neighborhood? An important factor to research is you and your family's personal safety. If a particular area has a large number of crimes or registered sex offenders in the vicinity, you may want to consider relocating to a different neighborhood. Below I have links to the different sex offender registry sites and other general crimes. Useful links: Search for crimes in any area Nebraska sex offender registry Iowa sex offender registry Links to any state sex offender registry  Are there any nearby schools that are a good match for my children? One of the hardest parts of moving when you have little ones is finding the right school. Some kids want to go to a school with the best drama or football departments. As parents, you may be interested in schools that have good before and after school programs. Be sure to thoroughly research a school before enrolling your kids. We have collected a few links to get you started if you are new to the Omaha area. Useful links: Omaha Public Schools (OPS) Catholic Schools in Omaha Private Schools in Omaha Council Bluffs Community School District Are there any activities available for me and my family in the vicinity? It is important for families to do activities together to facilitate bonding. Or maybe you justaren't interested in becoming a hermit in your new city. Either way, it can be difficult to find new routines in a new environment. We have a few attractions in the Omaha area that may interest you. Useful links: Henry Doorly Zoo Joslyn Art Museum Durham Museum Lauritzen Gardens Centurylink Center Old Market TD Ameritrade Park Holland Performing Arts Center  Is the neighborhood quiet? What is the Community like? Everyone is looking for a quiet and safe place to live, right? Maybe you like old houses or modern ones. Or possibly you want to get Cantonese for dinner on Wednesday night and Mexican food the next. Whatever it is you are looking for in your new neighborhood, doing research will help you find the right place. Useful links: Statistics & Demographics About Any City (some information on this site requires a fee, but the site is very helpful without paying a cent).  Will I have job opportunities after I relocate? Omaha is home to many small businesses and large corporations. It is relatively easy to find work and many businesses in Nebraska have been little affected by recession. This is pretty attractive to many people who move into the Omaha area. If you are moving out of the area it may be useful to look up unemployment statistics for the new city or search job websites for jobs in your field. Useful links: Unemployment rates for metropolitan areas (I suggest using ctrl+F to find a particular city) Cost of living  What is the Natural Disaster Risk in the New Neighborhood? This may not be the first thing you think of when moving to a new area, but it is nonetheless important. Below I have a link where you can see the disaster risks as reported by FEMA. You can check a disaster risk by region on the left menu. Useful Links: Disaster Risk  Ayla PR Representative at Moving Made Smooth, Inc. Sometimes it can be hard to let go of old furniture, clothes, etc., but moving often calls for some sacrifices, especially if you're moving into a smaller dwelling with less closet room. Keep in mind that the more you are able to get rid of, the less you have to pay for a mover to relocate it. Furniture Old or damaged furniture are prime considerations for the 'go' pile. If it is in decent condition, organizations like goodwill will accept donated furniture. If not, arrangements should be made for haul away. Also, you should consider if the furniture will fit in your new home (see our last blog in the link below). The other link is to a nation-wide organization that picks up your furniture for free and drops it off at local charities. http://www.movingmadesmooth.com/omaha-moving-blog/-did-you-measure-your-furniture-and-will-it-fit-in-your-new-home http://www.donationtown.org/news/donate-furniture.html  Clothing Out-dated clothing is something we all have lingering in the backs of our closets whether its that paisley shirt or a sweater from last season. If it is something you haven't worn in six months or more, it should go. Anything that has been torn (that isn't meant to be) should also be put in the 'go' pile. Like furniture, anything that is in good condition can be donated. Ladies, you may also want to have a second opinion. Have a girlfriend come over to help you sort through your closet and help you decide what can go. She can also get first dibs on anything you decide to get rid of!  Miscellaneous Anything in your home that has no sentimental value and isn't frequently used should be considered for the 'go' pile. This can include almost anything; books, old Christmas lights and other decorations, paperwork, china sets, treadmills and exercise equipment, old technology, your kid's old toys, cans of paint, etc.  Staples and Best Buy both offer technology recycling at their locations. Books can be recycled by your curb-side garbage men or be donated. Old paint and chemicals can be recycled at Under the Sink (http://www.underthesink.org/). Toys can be donated to Goodwill or Salvation Army. Other items may be given to family and friends. For some things you may want to make a trip to the dump or rent a dumpster.  Ayla PR Representative with Moving Made Smooth, Inc. There is an old saying about being a "fly on the wall." Imagine yourself as if you were your belongings loaded into your rental vehicle. The truck is bouncing so the furniture is rubbing against each other. There is also a large pot hole coming up. Now the entire load is going to feel the effects. Those plastic containers could split, crack, flex, or break. Now imagine all the items that are above, below, and beside it. Every item around this container will topple or shift. This is the reason why Moving Made Smooth, Inc. strongly suggests against the use of plastic containers.  The truck is now moving toward road construction, one with drops and weird angles in the road. The truck bounces and sways. Any furniture without a moving blanket will be subjected to the friction of all the surrounding items in the truck.  We don't like thinking about what would happen to your furniture without moving blankets so why would you? Moving Made Smooth, Inc. vehemently recommends the use of moving blankets. For more information please take a look at the Packing Supplies page.  |
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