Downsizing Tips for New Retirees

When you’ve reached the exciting time of life to retire, one of the first things you may be thinking about is downsizing the home and living a simpler life. Whether you want to travel more, move to a different area of town, or just have less house to maintain, retirement is the time to reduce the clutter and simplify life.

It can be overwhelming to downsize a lifetime of belongings, but once it’s done you can start to decrease the outgoing costs of maintenance and utilities that you once covered with your salary. Take a look at these tips to downsize and starting living with fewer costs and less stuff!

Prepare for the new space

Whether you’ve decided to move to a condo building, into a tiny home near family, or into an RV, you need to look at the things you have in the current home you’re in and start planning for what things will go into the new home. If you’re going into a very small property, it may be time to pass your items onto children, have a garage sale, or begin to donate belongings.

For those that want to travel during retirement, you’ll want to think about how many items you can travel with and if selling most of your items would help you to afford travel. If you plan to live close to family, you could live with more of your things and still offer much of it to relatives that won’t fit into your new home. On the other hand, moving from a home to a condominium or other home, you may realize that your furniture and belongings don’t work in the new space. Don’t allow your stuff to hold you back from your retirement dreams.

Consider real estate costs

The good news is that you are going to be spending less on maintenance and home costs now that you are downsizing, but you’ll still need to consider real estate costs with this big change. Selling your home may mean you have to make repairs and other renovations to get it to sell.

Then you’ll be buying a home which comes with down payments, closing costs, and more. In some cases, you may find that renting out your current home will help to fund your new living situation. By moving on from your home though, you’ll save on insurance, utilities, and maintenance costs.

Don’t assume you’ll be profitable

While selling the home and lowering expenses sounds like an easy way to double your nest egg, don’t expect that to be the case. You may find your house isn’t worth as much as you thought due to the current market and you’ll likely be funding your new home or chapter in life with any money from the sale. Get what you can from the sale of the home and spend it wisely going forward to sustain your new lifestyle. You may find that it’s wiser to keep the home and rent it out.

Ask for help when it’s time to sort your things

One of the hardest parts of downsizing is making decisions on your belongings. Sometimes having a friend or relative help make decisions with you will make it easier. You’ll want to give yourself at least three months before the move to start downsizing the home. Pass items on to your children and grandchildren that they would have received from you in the future and hire an organizational expert to sort through the rest.

Only keep the things you absolutely love or that have a function in your life, while getting rid of anything that is for “just in case” or unnecessary. You may need new ways to organize your things or they may not seem as useful in the next chapter of life after you leave this house.

Downsizing for new retirees is one of the last things you’ll need to do before you can start to enjoy retirement. Take it one step at a time and once you’ve downsized and started this new chapter the way you’ve dreamt it, you can sit back and relax now that your dreams have become a reality and all of the difficult tasks are done!

Must-Have Supplies to Protect Your Items During a Move

Do you worry about your stuff getting broken or damaged during your upcoming move? It’s one of those things that homeowners tend to worry about despite their busy schedule of hiring movers, packing, and getting things prepared for the new address.

The good news is that you can take this one off the list because there are some easy ways to protect your items during a move that will make the odds highly unlikely of damage. From bubble wrap to furniture blankets, here is a look at the must-have packing supplies that you should pick up so that you don’t have to worry about your items during the move.

The essentials

Start with the essentials that you would need in any situation. This is going to be things like moving boxes, labels, permanent markers, and packing tape.

Talk to your professional movers in order to decide who will be doing the packing and if moving boxes or other containers are provided. You may want to upgrade to reusable containers for your move to ensure extra protection and to get something more eco-friendly.

If you already have some boxes, make sure you have enough in different sizes and durability since heavier items will go in smaller boxes and lighter items will go in the larger boxes. You’ll also need specialty boxes for things like art and televisions.

Next, make sure you have a clear way to label every box according to room and items inside. This will include markers and labels. Don’t forget packing tape which needs to be specific for packing, since packing tape is made with nylon fiber lining to reinforce bottoms of heavy boxes. Use clear plastic mailing tape to tape your labels on them so that you can still see them while protecting them from water. Lastly, pick up a basic tool kit to disassemble furniture or cut tape if you need to get back into a box.

Supplies for extra protection

Now you’ll want to start stocking up on the extra supplies that protect your items from damage. Start with stretch wrap which you’ll use to secure doors and drawers of furniture pieces like your cabinets and dressers. It works as a self-adhesive to itself without sticking to your furniture like a piece of tape would, and it leaves no residue behind. Next, get packing paper that you can use to stuff boxes and wrap your fragile items. Don’t use newspaper since the ink can leave stains.

You’ll love using bubble wrap during your move because it’s one of the easier ways to pad breakable items, while being affordable and easily available in large rolls. You can cut sheets as you need to line the bottoms of boxes. For items not going into a box, you’ll want to have blankets to protect furniture, mirrors, and other fragile items.

Get felt pads to protect the floors, rope or bungee cords to keep boxes and furniture in place, and a hand truck or dolly to move items carefully.

How to ensure a proper move

The best way to protect your items during the move is to hire a professional moving company to do the best job possible. They will know the best ways to protect your things, the safest ways to transport them, and they are trained to handle everything with care during the move out and the move in. Be sure to make this step your top priority for your upcoming move.

If you want to be sure you have the proper supplies to protect your items during your move, first hire a professional moving team, and then stock up on these supplies that will give you the best chances for success.

4 Common Moving Disasters and How to Avoid Them

Dented walls from moving out furniture, broken dishes from improper packing, not being able to find anything because you didn’t label your boxes, and not getting proper insurance when you need to file a claim are all moving day disasters.

Are you guilty of making these moving mistakes in the past? You don’t want to be that person that realizes you skipped Moving 101 by forgetting to find out about these things in advance. When you want to have an easy moving experience, make sure you start by learning what not to do so that you can focus on what you should be doing. Take a look at the four common moving disasters that happen to families and how you can avoid them so that the big move is a successful one.

Forgetting to hire the moving company soon enough

The first rookie mistake that families make is trying to hire a local moving company at the last minute because they procrastinated. This is a classic moving mistake because you have so much to do that you are bound to procrastinate on something.

You should be planning ahead at least by one month if not more, especially when it comes to hiring your professional moving crew. This is the team that is going to protect your items during the move, make sure everything is moved efficiently on moving day and makes sure you are covered for things like where the truck will park to unload your belongings and how you will move those house plants without killing them.

Your professional moving crew will walk you through the whole process from where to get moving boxes to what time of day you should move out. If you do this last minute, you could have a crew that doesn’t know how to properly protect antiques, doesn’t call ahead to make sure a truck can fit on the street you’re moving to, shows up late or with no experience, or is actually a fake moving company that will take advantage of unknowing families that have actually hired crooks.

A professional moving company will ensure they can move all of your belongings, will protect your house from damage in the process, and will bring the right equipment for the job.

Not packing properly or labeling boxes

The next mistake to avoid is improper packing and not labeled well. Did you pack a large box with your whole library of books that will hurt someone’s back? Did you try to pack breakables with other items carelessly into a box that will bang around in the moving truck and shatter? Did you get old boxes that are in poor shape and try to pack lampshades and dinner plates that need more support?

It’s important to pack properly with heavy items in small boxes for a manageable transport, sturdy boxes for your malleable items, and everything packed into good quality boxes that aren’t about to cave in. Then, labeling items with the contents and the room they belong in, rather than just the word “fragile,” will ensure that you can find the things you need when you arrive at the new house. You don’t want to arrive at the destination and not know where to find the first aid kit, the dog food, or bath towels.  

Trying to move your heavy furniture yourself

Hiring a professional moving company will help you to avoid beating up the house you just sold or the house you just bought when moving furniture and other bulky items. Those heavy couches and furniture pieces can easily bang up walls and corners, but your moving company will have the proper supplies to make sure everything is well protected from the floors to the walls and the staircases.

Not getting the insurance you need

Lastly, don’t forget to look closely at that moving insurance policy. You may avoid buying it altogether or try to get a cheap coverage plan but then you are in a rut when you need to make a claim on a piece of artwork or family antiques. It’s important to cover those fragile items that are worth a significant amount of money and worry less about furniture from a department store that you put together yourself. Put your insurance focus on your high-dollar or sentimental items.

Avoid these common moving disasters by planning ahead, getting proper moving insurance, and taking plenty of time to pack and inventory your items for a successful moving day experience.

The 5 DIY Cleaning Mistakes Renters Make

Renting an apartment is great. You can sign a year lease without making a huge financial investment. And best of all, you most likely had an apartment manager or property management company on-site to help with any maintenance you need throughout the length of your lease.

What’s even better? Well, that one small financial investment you made — your security deposit — is refundable if you leave the place in good condition after you make your move to your next place.

But that’s a HUGE piece of the puzzle — the big move. We all know that moving is stressful and oftentimes requires the help of seasoned professionals in your area. And without the help from your local moving company, things can get out of hand quick.

So, when you’re ready to move out of your Chicago apartment, here are a few things you can’t forget to clean. Because if you do, you might risk losing out on that security deposit. And this is the last thing you want to do when you’re funding a new move and a new place. Even though your money had been held hostage for an entire year, clean the right way and it’ll be yours again in no time.

But first, trust us and hire the movers — your bank account will thank you later.

The Dreaded Bathroom

The bathroom isn’t a very glamorous place to begin with. And when it’s time to move out of your apartment, you already know cleaning the bathroom is a hugely important task. But after a year of living in your small apartment, things can get a little bit messy. Once you have a moving date set, start to move things out of your bathroom in order to get a really deep clean. Start with the soap scum on the tiles, tub and shower. Grab some bleach from your corner store and dive in. Next, move onto the bathroom drawers. Don’t just remove the materials from the drawers, but make sure you give those a nice scrub as well. Clean the corners and remove your liners to make sure the place looks brand new. After that, you can move onto the countertop and sink. Scrub these with any normal bathroom cleaner and you should see all the dirt and dust fly right off. You can do the same with the mirror and the fan as well.

Last but not least … the floor. It’s time to get on your hands and knees and scrub that years’ worth of dirt from the floor. It’s not the most enjoyable thing to do, but it’s an absolute necessity if you ever want to see that security deposit again.

How movers can help with this: you spent all that time cleaning your place, so don’t mess it up by moving furniture throughout your entire place on your own. Hire movers and they will be extremely careful while moving out. None of your hard cleaning work will be ruined if you let the pros assist you in your move.

What About the Kitchen?

The kitchen is another area in your apartment that you’ve used almost every single day since you moved in last year. You know that you’ll need to scrub the floor, clean out your belongings from the cabinets, clean and disinfect the countertops. But there is one thing you cannot forget — the dishwasher.

Dishwashers are usually neglected by renters. They forget to clean the appliance that helped them clean their dishes for months. What happens is that the dishwasher filter keeps absorbing dirt from the dirty dishes. Over time, the filter loses its strength and the appliance stops working efficiently. You can use a water and vinegar mixture to scrub the interior. Then, clean the filter and run the dishwasher a few times with your dish soap. After that, make sure you run the cycle once more with just water to ensure all soap and cleaning mixtures have been dissolved. After this clean, you’ll be certain that your security deposit isn’t lost because of this appliance.

How movers can help with this: the moving company will scour your place for anything leftover and they’ll make sure you don’t forget to check very last inch of your apartment before handing over the keys. They might not clean the dishwasher, but they’ll make sure your kitchen is spotless and you haven’t left anything behind.

Dent & Dings

The apartment looked brand new when you moved in. But since then, you’ve been a little rough on it. You’ve had a few parties, had a few pets visit, and maybe you even did a few fitness or workout videos in the living room. If this is the case, you might have put a few dents or dings in the walls or floors. Of course, any major issues that you gave to your landlord during your pre-move-in review are not your fault, but the others need to be fixed in order to get your security deposit back. If you’ve put small holes in the wall for pictures, make sure you replace those and paint over them to make things look just like they did when you first moved in. You’ll also want to be sure to repair things like broken blinds, burnt out lightbulbs and chipped paint.

Don’t let a few quick touch ups be the reason you lose out on that security deposit. You can grab a gallon of paint for $30 and take care of it all within an hour.

How movers can help with this: that absolute last thing you want is to fix up all your dents and dings and then try to push your couch through a small doorway by yourself. This is a recipe for disaster. Let the movers carefully manage the process and you’ll be left with no door dings that cost you even MORE money when you move out.

The Floors Need It

A vacuum is a great place to start when it comes to cleaning your floors. Do a thorough job vacuuming all of the carpets or floors in your apartment and then you’ll clearly be able to see the stains and other issues you’ll need to fix up.

If you do notice some stains on the carpet, treat them appropriately and work to remove the stains without using chemical products. First, try sparkling water or soap and water and see if that does the trick. If not, consider calling an expert floor cleaner to help out with this. You don’t want to damage one piece of the carpet which ends up causing a full replacement. This could be a huge expense.

Beyond the carpet, make sure you sweep all tile, wood or vinyl floors and then mop them with a cleaning product that is right for the individual surface. If you don’t own a mop, then you can just grab a Swiffer from the local corner store and get to work!

How movers can help with this: just like we mentioned above — the pro movers will NOT scratch your floor or rip your apartment carpet when you enlist their help during your move. Why risk it? Hire the movers and let them handle it.

Schedule the Inspection

You may have taken all the necessary precautions when cleaning your apartment. You might have even gone above and beyond and done a spectacular job. But if you don’t plan an inspection with your landlord, you might have a huge issue on your hands. In order to get your security deposit back, you must plan a landlord inspection a few days before you move out. The landlord will verify that the place is in good condition and the systems and appliances are in working order. Use this opportunity to request your security deposit back. If they say you need to fix up a few more things, at least now you know and you have time to do so.

Overall, there are many areas of an apartment that need to be cleaned and fixed up prior to moving out. If you want your security deposit back, then it’s important to give yourself the necessary amount of time to meet the cleaning requirements of your landlord. After all, they hold the key to your deposit.

And if you’re overwhelmed with the pressure of cleaning an entire apartment, you can always call on the help of cleaning and moving professionals!

How to protect walls when moving

When it comes to moving day, your biggest concerns are likely about something happening to your stuff or something happening to the house you’re moving out of that day. That’s because many times, furniture and heavy items can bump your walls and cause damage to a house that you’ve already sold.

On the other hand, you may be worried about damage to the walls of your new home you just purchased and the work and money that would go into repairs. The good news is that you can take some precautions to greatly reduce the likelihood of damage. Take a look at the best ways to protect your walls during your move.

Protect your walls

There are different ways to go about protecting your walls during the move. The simplest way to start is to make sure everyone is wearing proper attire, with things like loose chains, large zippers, and large rings removed to avoid something rubbing up against a fragile surface. Wrap the items you’ll be moving out and into the new place with proper plastic, shrink wrap, padding, and soft fabrics to avoid damage if something rubs up again your walls. 

Next, contact your local Chicago moving company or pick up your own supplies that would help cover the walls before the move. You’ll find that cardboard or Masonite is a great solution for protecting the walls. You can also try furniture pads, especially for areas like the stairs or underneath banisters, since these are easy to hang and drape.

Another way to protect your walls during the move is to cover the walls in drop-cloths that will help prevent scratches during the move. Sharp corners will need extra padding to avoid marks on the walls while you’re moving out items like the bed frame or the armoire. Consider other options like cardboard, wooden boards, or bubble wrap for wall protection in narrow rooms. Even brown paper grocery bags on the walls will work and will save you some cash if you already own them.

Make sure everyone is taking plenty of time to move heavy or large furniture, especially when going through doorways. You’ll want to measure the areas you are taking them through and have enough movers to help with awkward and heavy items.

Sometimes dismantling an item is the best plan of attack and using proper equipment to assist you with the moving process. Make sure any items that can be slippery are not dirty or wet to avoid dropping it or slipping, such as kitchen appliances and pack away your fragile items in advance. Then, make sure your pathway is clear of debris, rugs, and mats.

Don’t forget your carpets and floors

One area you may have forgotten to address is your carpets and floors. Make sure you’ve applied some self-adhesive plastic covering to your carpets to keep clean of dirty shoes, tears, or spills, and then protect the hardwood floors with cardboard or felt to avoid denting or scratching. You can also use rug-runners over hard floors and Masonite boards over carpets.

While you may be most concerned about protecting your household goods and don’t want to spend additional money to protect your walls and floors, you may want to give this area more thought.

Consider the difference in costs between adding safety precautions to the home you’re moving out of and moving into, versus the cost of repairing the walls, the carpets, or the floors. Protecting your home may be one of the best investments you make when it comes to your upcoming move. Use these tips to properly prepare for your move so that you are not left with a repair bill afterward.