Good planning and organisation can go a long way!
The prospect of moving to a new home is all sorts of thrilling – but with it comes packing everything you’ve ever owned into boxes, prepping your new house for the move and coordinating movers… The list goes on.
If you have no clue where to start, we’ve got these handy tips to ease you along!
1. Make a moving checklist, at least a month before your moving day
First up, plan a rough timeline before your move – ideally, you should give yourself a month or even more, especially if it’s a big move.
With this timeline in mind, you can come up with a checklist of tasks you need to get done.
Here are some things to include in your checklist:
- Identifying your move type: Are you going to DIY your move, get help from movers, or do a bit of both? With Lalamove, a DIY move can start from as low as $26, but you can also engage movers if you need their help!
- Sorting out items for the move: For individual belongings, organise them by who they belong to so you don’t miss out anything.
- Measuring your furniture: This will help you plan furniture placement for your new place.
- Requesting for leave: Keep up to 3 days leading up to your move free for sufficient time to finalise and oversee everything.
2. Declutter before packing
Roll up your sleeves, it’s KonMari time!
Start by discarding items that don’t spark joy anymore; it’ll be helpful to declutter early so you don’t bring things you don’t need/want over to your new home.
This’ll also give you sufficient time to sell or donate items, if that’s on your to-do list.
3. Get packing supplies, from boxes to wraps
Before you start packing, make sure you have the supplies you need on hand.
Besides purchasing boxes and asking if friends/family have any to spare, you can check at local retailers and supermarkets too!
Don’t forget to get enough bubble wrap and plastic wrap to protect fragile items and your furniture from damage during the move.
Some movers may also provide these, either complimentary with the service you booked or at an additional cost, so be sure to check with the movers you plan to engage.
You can use what you have at home too, like suitcases for books and shoes, or clothes/linen to wrap delicate or fragile items with.
4. Label your boxes
With your prep work done, you can get down to packing – leave essential items like identification documents, medication and toiletries for last.
These can go into a box of essentials for your first day at your new home.
This way, you have easy access to them if you need to freshen up midway, or need your first-aid kit in case of a home emergency.
For efficient organisation and easy unpacking, pack your boxes by room and label them accordingly.
Make sure to add a brief description of the contents too, like “Kitchen: Dishes” or “Living room: Toys”. For boxes with fragile items like glassware and electronics, label them to indicate that they’re fragile.
When your movers come by, let them know how to identify the boxes with fragile items so that they arrive at your new place intact.
5. Decide on the moving service you want to engage
After all the hard work you’ve put in leading up to moving day, you don’t want a poorly coordinated move to dampen your spirits at the last stage.
If you’re not getting friends and family to help, you can engage a moving service like Lalamove for a hassle-free experience.
With a wide range of vehicles, Lalamove caters for different needs, all in two easy steps!
Step 1: Choose the right vehicle(s)
Take your pick from vans and lorries for your house move that includes beds and big appliances/furniture like fridges and washing machines. For smaller appliances and electronics that are too small for a van but too big for a car, opt for an MPV.
(Do note that the vehicle type will affect the quote – more on that below.)
With such a range, you’ve also got the flexibility to move your items in batches, as and when you need.
Here’s an example: if you have a few days leeway and aren’t in a hurry to transport everything at once during your house move, you can break it up into more manageable stages.
- First, book a large lorry to transport bulkier items like appliances/furniture so you can start setting up your new home.
- Then, when you’re at the final stages of moving, book a smaller car or van to transport the daily essentials that you’d prefer to keep on hand until the last minute.
Step 2: Get an instant quote and check out
Booking is easy and customisable: to get started, you just have to enter your pick-up and drop-off location on the Lalamove app.
Customise your selections to suit your needs – that means you can select additional services that include a helper or two to help you with disassembly and moving, and services like furniture wrapping, trolleys and disposal.
You can review the instant pricing information for your selections on the Lalamove app, so rest easy knowing that you’re paying only for what you need.
Scenarios To Put Things in Perspective
a) Moving from Clementi to Tampines with a 14ft lorry
Say you’re moving from Clementi to Tampines and you need a 14ft lorry for a one-way delivery: it would cost about $100.
If you need the driver’s help with moving, that would come to $130 in total.
b) Moving from Woodlands to Sengkang with a 2.4m van
If you’re moving from Woodlands to Sengkang and using a 2.4m van, including a round trip, it would come to about $54 in total.
For more information on pricing*, you can check it out here.
And with that, you’re set to check out!
*The rates in these scenarios are variable estimates and therefore not fixed.
6. Check on moving rules and regulations
Be sure to check on moving rules and whether there are forms to submit!
For condominiums, you’d have to inform your current and new management that you’re moving.
There are also restrictions for the time and days that movers can enter the compound, and you’d need to make sure the lifts are padded during the moving process.
7. Don’t forget to settle administrative matters!
It’s easy to forget administrative details when you’re frazzled about ensuring the move goes smoothly, so note them in your checklist.
Some important ones:
- Update your residential address with the ICA
- Terminate your existing utilities account and set up a new one
- Apply for season parking if you’re a motorist
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