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How to Manage and Reduce Stress During Your Move

How to Manage Stress During Your Move

Moving to a new home or apartment is equal parts exciting and stressful. You get to finally move into your dream place (hopefully) that you can decorate as you see fit. However, after a couple of days of packing, organizing, and cleaning, the excitement starts to fade as you realize that the tasks you need to complete will take hours if you want it done correctly. Moving day is no exception. Even if you hire professional NJ movers, you still need to make sure everything you packed arrives in one piece and then go through the arduous task of unpacking.

It’s no surprise that with all the moving parts you need to manage that moving can be an incredibly stressful experience. Add kids and/or pets into the mix and moving can feel like an impossible task. Luckily, there are some things you can do to manage stress during your move.

Start with a Complete Moving Plan

One of the first and best steps you can take is to break the task of moving into several smaller steps. Take a couple of hours and write down everything you need to do to make the move successful. Don’t rush this part! The more detailed your plan is, the easier it will be in the long run. A few items to include on your to-do list include:

  • Creating a budget
  • Researching nearby movers
  • Getting necessary documents from your doctor’s office and vet’s office if you have pets
  • Finding/purchasing packing materials
  • Organizing your belongings and selling and/or donating them
  • Packing everything up
  • School transfer information if you have kids
  • Scheduling utilities turn on at the new location

And so on Once you’ve created this list, you can start scheduling everything out and setting deadlines for each of the items. You can also organize the list by urgency and leave some of the smaller details like mail forwarding until after you settle into your new place. There are a lot of moving pieces, but having a master plan you can refer to when you feel overwhelmed can help manage your stress levels.

Start with Small Tasks to Make Moving Easier

Rome wasn’t built in a day. Unless you have to move suddenly, you should start planning your move at least a month before your actual move date. This way, you can get at least one or two things done a day. While it might not seem like much in the beginning, every task you complete in advance means one less thing you need to worry about on moving day.

Larger tasks like decluttering can be done over the course of several days or even weeks so don’t try to cram both of these into one day. When it comes to decluttering, try to get a room done a day. Areas that you use as general storage (garage, basement, etc.) might require a few days as you’ll probably have to sift through a lot of stuff so break these up into two or three days. Decluttering can be a tedious process, but it will make packing a lot easier. Separate everything in the room into three piles: keep, donate/sell, throw out, and then organize every item into one of the three piles. Once you’re done, put the donate/sell items into a box and put them somewhere out of the way. After you’ve decluttered everything, you can host a garage sale to get rid of all your unwanted items. If you still have items left over, give them away for free. If they’re in good shape, drop them off at your nearest Goodwill store.

Like decluttering, you should do your packing over a few days. Start with rooms/areas that you don’t use often like a guest bedroom or attic and create an inventory of everything in these rooms. Make copies to keep on hand in a moving binder and to give to movers if you hire them.

Seek Help from Friends, Family, or Hire Professional Movers

You don’t have to move by yourself! Enlist the help of friends or family when it comes to packing or moving heavier things if you’re going the DIY move. Even if they won’t help with the move itself, they might be able to help in other ways such as:

It’s never easy to ask for help, but know that your good friends and family members are usually more than willing. Just remember to return the favor by providing some food and drinks after the move and answering their call should they need to move in the future.

Of course, the other form of help you can enlist is that of the professionals. There are plenty of NJ moving companies that can make moving day a breeze and many offer a variety of services from the standard loading/unloading of your items to full-service packing and storage. While hiring pros will be more expensive than going the DIY route, it can save you a lot of time on moving day and you won’t have to worry about getting hurt because you were lifting heavy items. Just make sure you have enough money in your budget to cover these costs. Many movers will do their best to work within your budget. Even if you’re only able to afford the most basic service of loading and unloading, you’re still saving yourself some time on moving day.

Research Thoroughly About Your New Neighborhood

Sure, it might be exciting to move to a new neighborhood, but it can also be a bit scary especially if you’re not familiar with the area. How will your commute change? Where is the grocery store? Where’s the nearest gym? And the questions keep piling up. Before you know it, you might be more anxious than eager at the prospect of your new place.

To ease your mind, start doing some research ahead of time when you have a few moments. This can be as easy as plugging your new address into google maps and searching around the area to find points of interest such as laundromats, grocery stores, restaurants, home improvement stores, etc. If you live a reasonable driving distance away, consider taking a cruise around the neighborhood and familiarize yourself with the local streets, stores, and parks. Introduce yourself to your future neighbors and get to know the locals beforehand. By the time you move in, you’ll feel more at home.

Don’t Forget to Say Your Goodbyes

With all of the logistics of moving, it’s all too easy to fill up all your available time with packing, decluttering, and so on. However, carve some time out in the last week or so before your move to say your goodbyes. The best part is that you don’t need to plan anything elaborate. A simple barbecue or potluck would be a great option and you can invite your friends and neighbors. If you’re planning to move far away, you might want to set aside a full day for family members and close friends so you can really spend some quality time with them. Goodbyes are hard, but setting aside enough time for them can help you and your family not feel so overwhelmed.

If you have children, saying goodbye is especially important. You want to make sure they get a sense of closure and are able to see their friends one last time. Make sure to also check in with your children during the move to see how they are doing and what they would like to do to say goodbye to friends, family, and even the house. This might mean having play dates at their favorite park, going to their favorite restaurant, and maybe even taking some pictures of the old house and creating a scrapbook. If doing the latter, make sure to leave some empty pages at the end so they can take pictures of their new home!

Eliminate Stress on Moving Days

As you can see, planning is at the heart of all moves. The more time you have, the more you can split apart tasks into more manageable chunks. Speaking of planning, don’t forget to plan some downtime as well! This might mean taking a bath, eating a meal at your favorite restaurant, reading your favorite book, or having a family movie or game night. Taking the time to unwind and take your mind off the impending move can help melt away the stress.

Don’t neglect basic necessities either during your move. Create a healthy meal plan and stick to it! There are plenty of meals that you can cook in under 30 minutes. Also, make sure you get some exercise, stay hydrated, and get at least 7 hours of sleep a night. You’ll need as much energy as possible during this time.

Moving house is an adventure so make sure you enjoy the ride. As stressful as it might be, there are a lot of positives to moving. Write them all down and remind yourself of them when you start getting anxious. If everything still feels overwhelming, consider bringing in professional NJ movers to help out!

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Moving Tips

How to Save Money on Your Next NJ Move

4 Tips to Save Money on Your Next NJ Move

Moving to a new home can be exciting, but it’s also expensive. In addition to the money you spent securing your new home, moving comes with its own set of costs. Luckily, there are ways you can bring down the cost of moving, but it will take a bit more planning and effort on your side. Is it worth it? That’s up to you and how much time and energy you have. With that said, the money saved during the move might mean you can splurge on new decor or a nice dinner out once you’re settled in.

If you’re looking to save some money, try out the methods below for your next NJ move.

Declutter and Sell Your Less Useful Old Items

Decluttering is one of the best ways to save money on your move especially if you’re using professional NJ movers. After all, the less boxes and furniture you have, the less time it will take them to load and unload your belongings from the truck. It also means less time you need to spend packing and wrapping.

Of course, deciding what to get rid of can be difficult especially if you have an emotional connection to certain items. However, moving is the perfect time to unburden yourself. Take some time to look at everything you own and think about the last time you used that item. If you haven’t used it in the past year, chances are you don’t need it, but there’s someone out there who might get great use out of it.

One of the best ways to make a little extra cash is to have a garage or yard sale. While you won’t recoup the original cost of the item, whatever money you do make from it you can put towards your moving expenses. If you have items like camera lenses or vintage clothes, you might be able to put these up on eBay for a decent profit.

Of course, there will be items you might not be able to sell. If they’re still in decent condition, you can donate them to your local Goodwill store. While you won’t get any upfront payment, you can write off your donations in your taxes at the end of the year. So make sure you get an itemized receipt after donating! Otherwise, you can post on your local neighborhood Facebook group letting people know they can take the items away for free. Either way, the goal is to reduce the amount of stuff you need to move.

Avoid Buying New Supplies Right Now

The cost of moving supplies adds up quickly – some tape here, bubble wrap there, and all of sudden you’ve spent a couple hundred dollars and you still need more for the rest of your stuff. While there might be times where you have to buy supplies, there are plenty of ways you can avoid it with a little planning.

Besides hiring movers, the biggest moving expense is the boxes. Thanks to online shopping, almost everyone likely has some empty boxes lying around. Consider asking neighbors, friends, and family members for any boxes they might have. You can also go to your local grocery store or liquor store and see if they have any.

If you work in an office, check with the mailroom to see if they have any empty boxes that they plan on tossing. Chances are, you’ll end up with more boxes than you need. If you don’t have any luck with friends and family, you might be able to find some options online via Facebook, Nextdoor, or Freecycle.

You can also reuse some of your own items for packing. Instead of using bubble wrap, why not wrap fragile items in t-shirts, towels, newspaper, or sheets? They’re an excellent option as they will still protect your valuables without costing any extra money. Just make sure that the movers are extra careful as you don’t want to deal with broken glass in your clothes!

Consider Self-Packing Everything to Save Money

Sure, hiring professional packers might make your job easier, but it comes at a pretty hefty cost especially if you do full-service packing. While it might be a time-consuming task, it’s a lot cheaper to pack everything yourself. If the money you save isn’t enough motivation,  then consider this: you can pack your boxes in the way that makes sense to you.

While professional packers will generally do a good job, sometimes they’ll group items together that don’t necessarily make sense. You have complete control over what item goes into which box. That will make it a lot easier when you need to unpack as you’ll know exactly where everything is.

If you need the extra help, instead of springing for the full-service packing consider a partial packing option. This allows you to pack the majority of your items while leaving certain rooms to the pros. So maybe you don’t want to deal with packing all the fragile items in the kitchen.

Hire the pros! It’ll save you some time and, while more expensive than packing yourself, will still be cheaper than if they packed everything. Just make sure to ask the movers how much they charge and how long the packing services will take before you agree to this option.

Hire the Most Affordable NJ Movers

Yes, you can go the DIY move, but doing everything yourself is not just stressful, but can be dangerous! Even if you’ve moved multiple times in your life, you won’t have as much experience as professional movers who move almost every day of the week.

The pros know exactly how to stack the boxes in a truck to avoid damage, navigate tight corridors and corners, and lift heavy items properly. Many people have injured themselves trying to move furniture or even heavy boxes and there’s nothing worse than having to move with a strained back or ankle.

There are plenty of NJ movers to choose from, but that doesn’t mean they’re all equal. While it might be tempting to go with the cheapest option, chances are they won’t be very professional and could end up damaging your belongings during transport. In the worst case scenario, they might be a scam and hold your belongings for ransom until you pay a higher fee.

To avoid this, you’ll need to do plenty of research online and by directly calling each company. Don’t be afraid to ask questions and always look up their Department of Transportation number to make sure they are properly licensed. You should also look up online reviews to see what their customers think. Once you’ve done all that, you should be able to find movers NJ residents trust.

Once you’ve found the right movers, make sure to read the contract carefully. Are there any fees you weren’t expecting? Most local movers charge an hourly rate, which ends up being cheaper than volume pricing. However, if there’s inclement weather or you haven’t finished packing yet, your final price might end up higher than what you expected.

Also, don’t forget to check what kind of insurance and liability options they offer. If you own a lot of valuable items, you might want to get full liability coverage. If the company doesn’t offer it, you can always get a third-party option.

Easily Save Money on Your Next NJ Move

By following these tips, you should be able to save yourself a few hundred dollars. What you do with that money is up to you! These tips only work if you start planning your move at least a month in advance, so make sure to start as soon as possible. When it comes to finding reliable NJ movers, you can always give NJ Great Movers a call for a free quote.

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General

Everything You Need to Know About Moving Insurance

Everything You Need to Know About Moving Insurance

If you’ve ever hired a moving company, you’ve probably heard about moving insurance, but not too many people look into it beyond what might be listed on the site. While technically moving insurance isn’t actually insurance (it’s a valuation), it offers similar protections. So if something gets lost or damaged during the move, the moving company will provide appropriate compensation. So what options are available and how do you choose the right one for you? The handy guide below can provide you with more information.

Discover the Different Types of Moving Insurance

All registered moving companies must offer two specific kinds of valuations when going over state lines, but most reputable companies will also offer them for local moves. Asking about valuation coverage is a great way to filter out bad or scam companies as they often won’t have any. If you’re looking for movers, NJ or beyond, make sure to ask about their valuation protection!

Released value protection

This is the most basic coverage most NJ movers offer and comes completely free with your professional move, you just have to ask and contractually agree to the coverage. While it might not come at any extra cost to you, it’s also the most limited option. You will only be reimbursed up to 60 cents per pound per item. That might work fine for cheap items, but you’ll lose a lot of money if something expensive gets damaged like your TV, art, or fine china. Plus, there’s no option to replace or repair an item when filing a claim. All you get is the flat rate.

Full value protection

As the name suggests, this option protects your belongings for its full value. While more comprehensive than the released value, you likely will have to pay a premium – around 1-2% of your property’s value –  for this valuation and, in many cases, meet a deductible.

In general, full value protection means the moving company will be liable for the full replacement value of the goods they damaged. It’s up to you to declare what you think they are worth per pound. Many moving companies will have their own policy and most will have a minimum value you have to claim for your belongings.

Some states even have regulations on what the minimum level of coverage is. If you’re not sure, you can always ask the moving or insurance company for information. Typically, the value is anywhere between $4-$6 per pound. So if you are moving 5,000 pounds and you declare the value to be $6 per pound, the maximum amount you can receive is $30,000 if everything is damaged or lost during the move.

When you file a claim, the moving company has three options:

  • Repair the item
  • Replace it with an item of comparable value
  • Make a payout for the cost of repair or current market value of the item

Be forewarned that opting for full value protection also allows moving companies the right to limit their liability for high value items like antiques or expensive shoes. If you happen to have a lot of expensive/priceless items, make sure to bring it up to the movers to see if they will be covered or not. You might be able to purchase additional coverage for these high-value items, but you’ll need to pay a higher premium.

Third-Party Insurance for Hassle-Free Local Moving

Not all NJ movers provide a full value protection option, especially if you’re moving locally. In these cases, you can supplement it with a third-party moving insurance policy. Unlike the value protection you get from movers, the coverage you receive from third-parties is a form of liability insurance. The movers will still reimburse you for the $0.60 per pound per item if anything gets damaged. However, they will work with the insurer to make up the difference up to the limit of the policy.

How much you pay for third-party insurance depends on how much you’re moving and how far. In general, companies will weigh your property and charge a fee of $1.25 multiplied by the weight. With that said, every company will calculate the cost differently so make sure you get that information ahead of time so you’re not surprised by the final cost. Speaking of information, you should also ask what the insurance covers. Some policies might only apply to boxes that you haven’t packed yourself.

One important thing to remember is that your homeowners and renters insurance most likely will not cover your belongings during a move. You’ll have to check your moving insurance to read the caveats. In some cases where you keep the same policy your items might be covered while they’re in transit, but it’s not guaranteed.

Determining the Best and Most Suitable Options

So now that you know your options, how do you choose the best option? The first step is figuring out the value of all your belongings. That means creating a comprehensive list of everything you own before you move. While you’re at it, take a video or pictures of every object and note any existing damage.

As you create your spreadsheet, do a little research on the value of your items. Do you happen to have an expensive shoe collection, rare art, or antiques or is most of your furniture and decor from Target and Ikea? Once you’ve determined the value of your items, estimate the weight.

From there, you just need to do a little math. Say your belongings weigh a total of 5,000 pounds. The basic released value coverage will only provide a max of $3,000. If you’ve estimated that everything you own is worth $3,000 or less then there’s no need to get the full value protection.

When considering the full value protection don’t forget to factor in the cost of the insurance as well as the deductible. If you’ve decided the value of all your belongings is $80,000, then the basic $3,000 coverage won’t cut it. Even with the premium and deductible, it’s still worth it to cover your more expensive items like TVs, furniture, etc.

Protect Your Belongings Easily by Hiring the Best Movers

Having peace of mind during a move is important, especially when you are trusting a moving company with your most precious belongings. That’s why you want to hire NJ movers that provide value protections. That way, if something gets damaged or lost, you’ll receive some compensation.

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General

The Most Common and Important Moving Services for NJ Movers

Common Moving Services for NJ Movers

It doesn’t matter how many times you move, the process is often overwhelming and stressful. For many, hiring professional movers to take over some tasks can be a huge relief, but not all movers are the same. Even within New Jersey there some moving companies offer more options than others. That’s why it’s so important for you to figure out what you want to do yourself and what you want to hire NJ movers for. If you’re curious not sure what services movers might offer, the list below can help you plan your next NJ move.

Local Moves: Find the Most Remarkable Moving Services

Perhaps the most common moving service requested of NJ movers. As the name suggests, residential moves help regular people move their belongings from their old house to their new one. In its most basic form, residential moving only includes loading and unloading of boxes and furniture from your old house to your new one. Some moving companies might provide other free services including:

  • Basic disassembly/reassembly of furniture
  • Wardrobe boxes
  • Some light packing of items such as lamps, paintings, etc.
  • Uninstallation of AC units and dismounting of TVs

Not all movers will offer these options though so unless you have confirmed this with the company directly, don’t assume they will do this for you! Even if they do offer these services, it might be better for you to do the disassembly, uninstalling, and dismounting of your furniture. It will reduce the overall time the movers need to spend, which can reduce your overall costs. Of course, most movers charge a minimum for their services so if you think that you won’t go over that amount with the additional work, then you might as well take advantage of these free services.

Packing and Unpacking: The Most Important Part of Moving

Next to lugging your boxes and furniture on and off a truck, the next task most people hate when moving is packing everything and then unpacking. It’s a huge time commitment and improper packing techniques can lead to broken items. And no one wants to see broken glass when they open up a packed box. Not all NJ movers provide packing and unpacking services, but there are many who do.

Of course, adding on this service will cost extra money so make sure you have the budget for it. With that said, you don’t have to spend a fortune to have your items packed. Many moving companies have a partial packing option. All you need to do is let them know what rooms you need help with and then you can pack the rest of your house. This option allows you to save money and still organize your boxes and belongings for the majority of your house without issue. If you don’t want to deal with packing at all, you can choose a full packing service. As the name suggests, the movers will pack everything up for you and, of course, provide the appropriate packing materials.

In addition to packing, you can also hire movers to unpack your boxes. It’s a great option if you have the money as you can immediately get settled into your new home. With that said, the downside to having others unpack is that they won’t necessarily put everything where you want it so you might have to spend some time after to organize properly.

Regardless of whether you choose full service or partial, you’ll need to provide an inventory of the items you want packed not just for the movers, but for yourself. That way if anything ends up missing, you have a record of every item that should have arrived at your new home. Reputable movers will have basic coverage for lost and/or damaged items of $0.60 per pound per item. Make sure to let them know immediately when you notice something has gone missing. The best companies might even reimburse you more than the baseline amount as an apology.

Storage: A Less Popular Yet Useful Moving Service

Although not as common as the other two services, many movers in NJ do offer some storage options. There are many reasons why you might need storage:

  • Can’t move into your new home yet
  • Moving from a larger to a smaller space
  • Long-term travel (1+ month)

And so on. Whatever your reason, you need a place to securely store your belongings. While there are plenty of third-party options available in NJ and beyond, one of the benefits of booking storage with a moving company is that you get an all-in-one service. Not only will they bring your items to storage, when you’re ready to move to your new place, they will bring everything to you at no charge.

If you need storage, make sure to ask the movers about their facilities. Not all companies offer the same amenities. Some might have simple outdoor lockers while others have climate-controlled options. While basic outdoor storage isn’t horrible, there’s no guarantee that your items will be safe during extreme weather events. If you want to make sure your belongings don’t suffer any potential damage from weather or temperature related issues, always opt for climate-controlled storage. You should also ask about the security of their facilities. Some might have a guard on-duty but no security cameras. Finally, ask about their rental length. Not all companies offer long-term storage so if you need something for longer than that time, make sure to ask.

Moving Boxes and Plastic Bins: The Most Useful Options

Sure, you can get cardboard boxes for free, but that means you need to spend time looking for them and then lugging them back to your home. Not everyone has the time or interest in spending weeks looking for boxes. Plus, used boxes might already suffer from some damage and could fall apart during your move. You can buy new boxes from the home supply store, but you’re not guaranteed high quality materials.

If you want to make sure your belongings are safe, you should purchase directly from movers. Not only do they source their boxes from high quality vendors, they also have a variety of sizes to choose from so you’re not stuck with comically large or small boxes. These boxes can withstand the moving process and you can always save them for later or donate them to someone else in need. For those looking to be more environmentally friendly, you can rent plastic bins from moving companies. These bins are a great option as they are easily stackable and water-resistant so they won’t break down in even the heaviest downpour. Plus, since they’re rented they don’t take up any unnecessary room in your new home. Just call up the movers and they will pick them up.

Which Is the Best Service for Your NJ Move?

There are a lot of options available so it can be overwhelming. Your best bet is to figure out your needs as well as your budget. From there, you can decide what options make the most sense for your move. If you have any questions, don’t be afraid to ask! Reliable NJ movers will work with you to create a personalized moving experience that works within your budget.