Moving can be such an exciting adventure. New beginnings. A fresh start. A new home. All things to look forward to. However, the tail-end of packing and preparing for the move can have you wanting to either pull your hair out or burn all your belongings in a rage.
Moving can be stressful. But all the extra junk and clutter you have adds to the stress. One of the best things you can do as soon as you know about your move is to thoroughly declutter your home. It feels so good, reduces stress, and lightens your load.
Whether moving down the street or across the country, getting rid of stuff will save you time and money and boost your sanity. The fewer things you have, the quicker and cheaper your experience will be. Here are seven reasons you should declutter before your Utah moving company arrives with the truck.
1. Time
No matter how quick and efficient we are, we never have enough time in a day. That’s why starting your decluttering process months before your move is essential. Don’t procrastinate. Sort through all your belongings to decide what to keep, trash, and donate. If you’re a borderline hoarder, getting rid of stuff will take much longer than packing. Plan ahead and start early.
2. Money
A lucrative garage sale right before a costly move is a smart way to kill two birds with one stone: declutter and make some extra cash. Just ensure you separate your items so your “sell” items don’t get mixed in with your “keep” items. It seems someone is always in tears because a particular toy made its way to the garage sale and sold so quickly that nobody noticed.
3. Sanity
Clutter causes stress. Studies show a correlation between chaos and depression. Holding onto things you don’t need and will never use takes up emotional energy. Decluttering opens space in our lives for the things that matter. When we have so much stuff, finding anything is hard, leading us into patterns of not even using the things we love. Donate a carload of items and see how you feel after. You’re sure to feel a weight lift off your shoulders.
4. Progression
For those who move often and declutter before each move, you’ll continue to make progress in decluttering your life and freeing yourself from emotionally draining junk and clutter. You’d be surprised how much progress you can make when you dedicate just one hour a week to sorting through belongings and gradually getting rid of stuff. If your move is imminent, try dedicating four hours weekly for faster progress.
5. Downsizing
We’re assuming you don’t want to live amongst boxes and piles of stuff, so if you’re moving to a smaller home, you’ll need to get rid of things because they will not all fit in your new space. When you minimize the amount of stuff you have, it will feel so good that you’ll want to keep it that way, igniting a habit of spending less: win-win!
6. Cleaning
Cleaning a home full of junk is a nightmare. The less stuff you have, the easier cleaning is, which is reason enough to purge. Don’t make your life harder than it needs to be by holding on to stuff you never use anyway.
7. Giving
Sorting through items and toys is a great way to teach your kids not only good minimalist habits but also about giving to those less fortunate. You can involve your kids in the process, let them pick out toys they no longer use, and have them come with you to donate them to a local shelter. This is one way to ground your kids and help them make room for new things.
Where to Start
If you haven’t decluttered in a while, it may be overwhelming to begin the process. Here are some ideas of items that may be laying around your home and decluttering your life to get you started.
In the Kitchen:
- Appliances: If you last used it two years ago or more, it’s unimportant to you, and you won’t miss it.
- Extra Knife Sets or Mismatched Knives: You only need one set, and the mismatch just adds clutter. Keep one set of excellent, matching knives, and eliminate the rest.
- Mismatched dishes and serving ware: Make your cupboards and drawers more cohesive, functional, and aesthetically pleasing by eliminating the mismatched plates and serveware.
- Broken Appliances: You don’t want broken appliances in your new home. If they’re broken, toss them.
- Old Cookbooks: Will you ever use your dusty, outdated cookbooks? Probably not.
- Surplus Water Bottles: Chances are, you have a staple water bottle that you use every day. Do you need three water bottles with your bank name on them? The answer is, no.
- Untouched Seasoning and Spices: You had high hopes when you bought them, but there are some meals your family won’t touch, so those spices used once three years ago have got to go.
In the Basement or Garage:
- Scrap Wood: It’s just going to be a hassle to move. Scrap the scrap wood.
- Old Tools: Some old tools are helpful, and some no longer serve a purpose in your life. Save the useful ones and say goodbye to the others.
- Old Paint: Unless the paint colors match your new home, you’ll likely never use paint from your old house. Consider leaving it for the new owners.
- Surplus Camping Gear: Ask yourself what you use and what you don’t. Keep the essentials and donate the unnecessary items you don’t bring on your camp trips.
- Miscellaneous Construction Materials: Sayonara to the random insulation, sheetrock, windows, and plywood around your shed, basement, or garage.
- Excess Gardening Materials: Every plant comes with a plastic pot. While you may not want to throw them out when you repot the plant, it is more work than it’s worth to take them with you.
- Extra Garden Hoses: You need one for the front and one for the back, that’s it.
- Extra Furniture: If you stick old furniture in your basement that nobody even uses, then what’s the point of it? Lighten your moving load by unloading the old sofa.
- Yard Decorations: If you haven’t displayed them in your yard for 15 years, you don’t love them. Donating them gives them a new chance to be appreciated.
- Anything Broken: If you haven’t fixed it in the last six months, it’s time to part ways with it.
In Your Bathroom
- Expired Items: Look for items like lotions, creams, cosmetics, and other beauty supplies that are past their expiration date.
- Products You Didn’t Like: It can be hard to get rid of something you’ve barely used, but if you don’t like it, you’ll never use it.
- Dirty Shower Curtains: Your move is the perfect opportunity for new shower curtains.
- Expired Medicine: Check the dates and get rid of anything that is not useful anymore.
Preparing for a move is an excellent opportunity for evaluation and organization. You’ll be surprised how good it feels to declutter your heart out and minimize the clutter. As professional organizer Marie Kondo says, only keep things that spark joy for you. Make sure to start early so you can gradually purge without overwhelming yourself. Then, you’ll be ready for full service movers, and the process will be smoother without all that extra junk that will sit in a drawer or collect dust in a corner.