What moving usually entails is that you are leaving your home for good. You are going to a new place that you will call home and that your life has a fresh start. This is what moving usually means. However, sometimes there are situations when leaving your home is just a temporary thing. Perhaps you have to move to another city for work because there is some hectic, urgent period that is going to last for half a year or so. Or, you are moving because of college or some other academical reasons. The exact reason why you are moving can be important, but it is not necessarily crucial. To prepare for a temporary move you will have to be as careful and as focused as for the regular one.
Try asking friends and family for help during the move.
Why is moving such a challenge?
Moving is a complicated task no matter how you look at it. So, if you are going on a vacation, and temporarily moving to California, for example, that also counts as a temporary move. You have to pack food and plan your rations, at least partially. The clothes that you are taking with you has to be picked up carefully, taking into consideration the part of the world you are traveling to. Planning the breaks, you will have to take during your journey is another thing that you will have to think about.
Although temporary moving has a lot of similarity with your standard move, there are some specific elements that you will have to take into consideration. Your task will not just be to set up an efficient move. Deciding what you are going to do with your old house or apartment is practically as important or even more important, compared to the move.
In order to prepare for a temporary move, you will have to think about many crucial points:
Factors to analyze when you prepare for a temporary move
As we said, there are several elements that can vary significantly, thus changing the whole status of your move. Here are the most important ones:
The duration of your stay in your temporary home
- Short-term relocation – Let’s say that you alone have to move to another city for a couple of weeks. This means that you will most probably be staying in a motel or a hotel. Also, you won’t then have to carry a lot of your things. You will basically need clothes, suits, some of the electronics like a laptop and other essentials you can’t get by without.
- Long-term relocation – If you have to live away from home for a longer time (perhaps with your family), the situation differs quite a lot. You will have to move a lot your things with you, practically most of it. This also means that you will have to find a suitable place to rent if for the duration of your absence.
Think about how long will you stay away from your home.
The housing type that you will use
Hotel – If you pick this option, you won’t need a lot of your things with you. Clothes, toiletries, electronics, and medicinal supplies are what you will need in a hotel. As for the rest of your possessions, you can leave them in a storage or, even possible, at home.
Extended stay hotel – In these type of hotels, you will have furnished rooms with a kitchen. Also, there are usually laundry facilities, as well as other things you may need. This means that, again, you can leave the majority of your possessions in a storage, or at your home. You will only need the essentials things with you.
A rented apartment/house – In this case, you will probably bring at least the majority, if not all, of your possessions. This may be tiring, but at least you will have all of your things with you. However, you should aim for finding a furnished house so you don’t have to prepare for a temporary move several times.
Weather conditions
When you prepare for a temporary move, you have to think on many different levels. An important factor here is the weather at the place where you will stay. You need to take into consideration what the climate, in general, is like there. That way, you can pick what sort of belongings are you going to have to take with yourself. For instance, if you are moving to Alaska, you have to take all of your winter clothes, but at least you won’t need your summer clothes there. This means that you will save up space and resources on transportation. Still, bear in mind that seasons change, so you may yet need your winter jacket.
Deal responsibly with the items that you are leaving behind
If, for some reason, you decide to spend your temporary absence in another country, bear in mind that making a long distance move is not an easy task. Still, if you plan to come back to your home, you can probably leave your belongings there. You have to make sure that everything there is in its most optimal state when you leave. This means that you want your house and everything in it safe from eventual burglary attempts and other eventualities.
Let the professional movers take care of you furniture and heavy items.
If you are selling your home or terminating your lease, however, when you prepare for a temporary move, you will have to find a suitable storage for your things. This is the best and smartest decision you can make if you will have to find a temporary home for yourself. Ensure that you pack all of your belongings carefully. You don’t want to find out, after having paid hundreds of dollars for storage and living for several months somewhere else, that your oven is broken.
Lists
You will need two lists. The first is your inventory list. If you are going to return to your home, then this one is kind of optional (or at least optionally long). Making an inventory list is a very useful thing to do while you prepare for a temporary move in both cases. It gives you a clear view of what you have and you easily determine what you will need in your temporary home.
The second list is the list of the things that you will find in your temporary home. Make a list of appliances and furniture that you think that you will need there and then make sure that you check which of them are present. This, combined with your inventory list will enable you to precisely decide what things you need to pack with yourselves and which of them you can need at your home (or in the storage).