The time has finally come for you to leave the nest. Moving out of your parents' house is exciting and a bit scary. You'll want to make sure that you have all of your bases covered so that you get off on the right foot with your brand new life.
Moving Out of Parents' House Takes Planning
Moving out of your parents' house is going to take some careful planning on your part. This is not something that you'll want to just wing. Much thought should go into pre-moving considerations, the move itself, and after-the-move tasks.
What to Do Pre-Move
Before you step one foot outside of your parents' door, make sure that you have certain finances and arrangements in place.
Set Dates
Create a calendar of important dates surrounding your move.
- Have a set date to leave your parents' home.
- If scheduling movers, schedule them on a specific moving day and have a specific time that they will be arriving.
- Notify your job of any days of leave that you may take off for the move.
- If you are ordering new furniture for your new place, schedule the delivery day for after you move.
Set Finances in Order
When it comes to moving and finances, you don't want any surprises.
- Create a living expense budget. Before starting out on your own, you'll want to consider your costs versus your income. It is not a fun surprise to learn that you can't afford life on your own.
- Double-check your credit. Having a good credit score as you enter adulthood is important. You may have done this already to solidify a new place, but if not, do it now.
- Check on your nest egg. Chances are you have been saving money for some time leading up to this move. Ensure you have at least enough saved for your first month's rent, last month's rent, any additional down payments, moving company costs, the first month's utilities, and several hundreds of dollars for food.
- Pay attention to changes in insurance. If you are going to be getting on your own insurance policy, take care of that beforehand. Make changes to policies just in case of an emergency.
Get a Lay of the New Land
Take time to learn about your new surroundings.
- Before the move, hang out in your new community.
- Meet your new neighbors. Introduce yourself and let them know you are joining the neighborhood soon.
- Locate a nearby grocery store, pharmacy, bank, library, and restaurants.
Packing and Transporting
The time has finally come to get the actual move underway. You'll want to consider a few key issues before making your move.
Purge What You Don't Need
Think of this time as a fresh start. Discard items that you can bear to part with.
- You don't need to take decades' worth of belongings with you to your new home. Now is a good time to part with items you no longer want.
- Consider donating larger items that you'll no longer need.
Purchase Packing Supplies
Have all that you'll need to pack your life up purchased and ready for the big day.
- Check around local stores to inquire about using large boxes or purchase moving boxes.
- Purchase plenty of packing tape, bubble wrap, and sharpie markers to secure and label your belongings.
- Borrow or buy a dolly to better lift large items during the day of the move.
Organize Your Belongings
Organizing while packing will save you tons of time once you are in your new place.
- Spend some time mentally organizing your moving items. Think about what should get packed with what.
- Pack similar items together. Try to pack bathroom items together, kitchen items together, and clothes together.
- Label EVERYTHING. Label boxes with what can be found in there as well as notes on whether the boxes contain fragile items. Consider writing the name of the room the box should go in on the box itself.
Enlist the Help of Friends and Family
Get a little help from friends during your move.
- If you aren't hiring a moving company to do the heavy lifting, call on friends and family to help.
- Make sure that you have enough truck and car space to transport your belongings.
- Rent a large truck to move items if necessary.
- Ask different people to do different jobs. Ask some family to help pack, strong friends to help with the physical labor, and a different set of friends to shop with you or unpack.
- Send everyone who helped a sincere thank-you card or message or thank them with cookies or pizzas at the end of the moving day.
Readying Your New Place and New Life
You are finally in your new place, surrounded by boxes and to-do projects. Where do you even begin? Take a breath and tackle one job at a time.
New Items You'll Need to Purchase
You no longer have access to all of your parents' belongings. Time to go shopping!
- Cleaning supplies, don't forget dish soap and laundry detergent
- Paper products
- Garbage cans and trash bags
- Vacuum cleaner, broom, and mop
- Shower rugs, a shower curtain, liner and hooks, plunger toiletries, and bathroom accessories
- Hangers
- Laundry basket
- Coffee maker and filters
- Towels for the bathroom and kitchen
- Plates, cutlery, glasses, pots, and pans
- Basic tools: measuring tape, hammer nails, screwdriver
- First aid kit, and a sewing kit
- Smoke detectors, carbon monoxide detectors, fire extinguisher
Get Your Clean On
Make sure you have a clean and fresh start in your new place.
- Scrub kitchen and bathroom surfaces.
- Disinfect sinks and surfaces.
- Give the carpets a vacuum.
- Dust high up areas, fans, and blinds.
- Wipe down baseboards.
- Give the closets some love.
- Wipe away any scuffs on the walls. If your landlord allows, put a fresh coat of paint on the walls before moving everything in.
- If moving into a house- make a plan for initial yard work, Consider hiring a company to trim trees, mow the lawn, and mulch yard beds or enlist the help of friends and family to do this in the weeks following the move.
Take Care of Utilities
Being on your own is a blast unless you forget about utilities and have to live in the dark and the cold for a few days. Take time to set up utilities.
- Sometimes, setting up utilities takes a few days, so this is something that can often be done in the days prior to your move.
- Call the utility companies that you'll be using and create accounts in your name. There is likely an electric or gas company to contact as well as a phone, cable and internet company to set accounts up with.
- Apartment living might include some utility costs, but moving into a house will mean extra considerations like trash pick up, water, and possibly sewer.
Change Your Address
Make sure everyone who needs it has your new address.
- You'll need to change your mailing address so that all of those new bills go directly to your new home and not your parents' home.
- Utilities, cable, cellphone, internet, car payments, and medical and insurance forms will need an update on your records. Let them know of your new address.
- You will now be spending much more time paying bills compared to when your parents were handling all of that. Order custom address stamps or labels to stick onto all of your letters and bills.
Notify Friends and Family of Your Move
Celebrate your move with announcements and get-togethers.
- Announce that you have moved on social media and ask that people privately contact or text you for a new address. Don't put it on the internet!
- Have "Just Moved" cards made and send them out to family and friends.
- Throw a virtual moving party. Share your special accomplishment with friends this way.
Ready, Set, Live!
Being on your own for the first time is a once in a lifetime experience, so enjoy it! Yes, you need to pay close attention to tons of new responsibilities now, but don't forget to stop and smell the roses. You've accomplished something great by taking these initial steps to maturity and independence. Celebrate this start to your new life!
