A Guide to Settling into Your New Home

Once you’ve found the perfect house for you, it’s finally time to move and settle in! You’ve already gone through the stresses of house hunting, vetting, and finally signing for your new property. Now all you need to do is go through the final touches of making it yours! Settling in, however, is more than just decorating your new house – it’s finding your place in the community as well. To help you get settled in, we have compiled this guide so that you can transition into your new life smoothly. Don’t forget important, key steps and follow these:

 

• Moving Advice

The first part of moving into your new home is, of course, packing. You can hire a company to pack your belongings, or you can do that part yourself. Doing it yourself will save you money, and you’ll even be able to do one last spring clean before you move out. That way when you move in to your new home, it really is a fresh start.

To help with the unpacking, you need to have a system. You would be amazed at how stressful it can be searching through every box you own for that one thing you need to make dinner, after all. Instead, organize your boxes. Write on them which room they belong in, and even what, exactly, is inside them. The more detailed, the better. This is also how you’ll mark which boxes contain fragile items and which are heavy. This will better protect you, and the movers.

Other ways that you can pack your boxes is to do them in order of importance. That way, you have all the necessary items that you need to live in the same box. For instance, you can have all your cooking utensils and tools in one box. That way, when you first move in all you need to do is open that one box and you can serve yourself dinner!

Once you’ve packed everything up, it’s time to a moving company, like for example Small Movers, who will give you an upfront estimate. Further, the movers you choose should also have worker’s compensation and be able to reimburse you if any of your own equipment gets damaged in the move. Don’t rely on cheap movers who won’t get the job done right. Instead, rely on affordable movers who will protect your things and work fairly.

• Pre-Move Renovations

Before you hire your moving services, however, you should change a few things in your new home. Flooring and walls are two areas of the house that will show the most wear and tear. They are also areas of you home that require you to move a lot of furniture around. Save yourself the effort and change these two areas before you move in. That way, you can have the freshly painted walls and new flooring in before you ever need to worry about furniture.

• Moving In

When you first move in, things are going to be hectic. If you have marked your boxes properly, however, you should be able to organize everything into the room that it belongs in. That way on the first day you can at least organize the furniture and have all your items in the appropriate rooms. You should also be able to make your own beds before you go to sleep.  

On the first day, work on unpacking everything that you need to function within your new home, and continue from there for ultimate comfort.

• Becoming Familiar with Your Neighborhood.

Once you’ve moved in, it’s time to get acquainted with where you now live. Go for walks, go into all the nearby stores, and see what the parks are like. Though you should have done this before you moved, it is now time to become more familiar and intimate with your surroundings. The more you walk around, the better you’ll become acquainted with your new neighborhood and the more it will feel like home.

This is especially important if you have children. Not only do they need to get excited about the areas nearby, but they also should know their way home if they ever get lost.

• Meet Your Neighbors

Your neighbors could be your new best friends, or, at the very least, they could have children for your own kids to play with. Either way, it’s important to know who lives near you. You don’t have to be friends, but you need to be at least friendly.

• Become Involved

This is particularly important for children, but it applies to adults as well. Become involved with the community if you want your new place to feel like home. Becoming involved with the community means signing up for classes, events, and even sports so that you can meet people with similar interests. This is particularly important for children, who make friends much easier than adults but at the same time find it harder to adjust to new surroundings.

• Make Friends

The workplace is a great setting to make new friends for adults. It’s also a great way to meet their friends as well, if you were to hang out after work. Between your neighbors, your coworkers, and even those who are in the same community groups as you, you should have no problem making new friends. Families with children also have the change to make friends with other parents as well. Be open, friendly, and genuine and you’ll be sure to have new friends in no time.

• Make New Memories

The last step to settling in is to start to make key, lifelong memories in your new home. Soon enough, your new house will be home.

Settling in is an important time in everyone’s life, because it sets the tone for the rest of your life. If you settle in well, make new friends, and connect with your community, then you’re well on your way to making your new house a permanent home where you’ll live, laugh, and grow.