How to move during the holidays - By Lisa DiBiase

One of the most stressful moments in life is moving. Both the holidays and moving can be stressful. Combine these two events together and your level of stress will shoot through the roof. But certain circumstances can make a holiday move necessary, and some people prefer to move during the holidays as they can more easily take time away from work and school.

If you are planning a residential move during the holiday season, take extra measures to reduce your stress and make the move a joyous journey toward a new beginning. Here are a few tips to help:

·         If you are moving right before Christmas, put extra thought into packing. When combining the busy holiday season with a move, you may prefer to only unpack necessary household items in your new home until after the holidays pass. If that's the case, pack and label those items separately from ones you won’t likely need until after the holidays. Keep holiday decorations and gift wrapping materials in boxes separate from your household items. If you already started shopping for gifts, make sure those are separate, too, along with your decorations and wrapping materials.

·         Don’t let the moving process dampen your spirit. Play holiday music while packing and do your best to create a festive atmosphere!

·         If you have young children, put together a box of holiday coloring books, puzzles and other activities to keep them occupied.  Also make sure they understand that Santa will find them in their new home. They may be worried without ever telling you.

·         Create personalized moving announcement holiday cards to send to friends and relatives. A couple ideas would be to take a picture of the exterior of the home, or your family on the doorsteps and provide your new address.

·         Take time out to relax, watch a holiday film, bake cookies, or simply soak in the tub. Although moving during the holiday season creates more chaos than normal, it helps to keep the peace of mind.

·         Lastly, hire a mover if it makes sense to help pack and move. If you plan to hire a mover, you must contact them as early as possible to set the date.

No matter what you decide, just understand this is a stressful time for everyone involved! Have lots of patience and remember the time of year and what the holidays are for. 

As I have said before, please call a local Realtor for all your real estate needs no matter how big or small. We are trained professionals here to make your life easier. It's best to surround yourself with the right team of professionals that can continuously give you the right advice for all your circumstances.