With many good deals to be had in the real estate market, many first time buyers see this as the perfect opportunity to buy an older, run down property and turn it into their dream home.  Others see the opportunity for making a profit from doing great things to that old fixer upper and reselling it.

If you’ve recently sold your home in the Seattle area and have had all your belongings moved safe and sound by your local movers in Seattle, then you’re ready for the next step of your moving and renovating adventure.  Here are some dos and don’ts of moving into a fixer upper without getting overwhelmed.

Do try and move boxes into an area of the home where you will not be renovating right away.  In fact, you may want to consider asking your Seattle moving company if they offer temporary storage of furniture that you can retrieve when the room is ready for it.  It’s very difficult to renovate around furniture and boxes of belongings.

Do draw up a plan of action and work in that order. For example you don’t want to spend time and energy fixing up old drywall only to have to tear it out to fix faulty wiring.   Be sure to put everything you want to do down on a list so you can plan your work in order.

Don’t forget to budget your renovations.  No doubt you have a dollar figure in mind that you want to spend.  It’s easy to get carried away and over spend on one area leaving you without funds to continue the whole job.  It’s a good idea to start  with a list of everything you want to do ideally, and then as you put the actual cost to jobs, you will eliminate or alter the jobs according to what budgets will allow. For example, you may want new tiles in the bathroom, but when you look at the budget, you may opt instead for a really good cleaning and polishing so you can invest in new fixtures instead.

Do invest in modern energy efficient products wherever possible. Energy efficient windows and doors, heating and cooling systems and air cleaners and purifiers are very highly valued in today’s real estate market.

Don’t be afraid to call on the services of a professional if you feel overwhelmed.  A few dollars spent getting help from a person with the skills to do the job right can often save you a lot of money and headaches in the long run.   In some cases there is still plenty that you can finish yourself once a professional has provided some basic advice and steps for you to follow.

Do take your time.  It may seem like a project that never ends once you start renovating.  Try to stay focused on the task at hand rather than always looking ahead to the day it will all be finished. Take joy from each accomplishment knowing it is a step towards your final dream home.

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Making the decision to move is only the very first of a long list of decisions waiting for you.  Once your house is sold and you know when and where you are moving, you will need to make plans for the best move for you.  A professional mover in Seattle is as near as your keyboard or telephone, and consulting with them will help you decide just which of the many services they offer are the ones that you can make use of.  To help you get started here is a brief rundown of moving services that are generally offered.

Free Estimates
All moving companies of reputable status will offer free moving estimates.  They will most likely send a consultant to your home to assess your belongings in order to give you an accurate estimate.  Be wary of companies that don’t visit you to do an estimate.  If they just give you a quote over the phone or online, the actual numbers could change and be a lot higher than originally expected.  Using an online quote as a starting point can be helpful but bear in mind that it will be an estimate.  Be sure to get a final quote in writing before committing to a moving service.

Packing and Unpacking
Depending on how much time you have and how busy your lifestyle is, you will need to decide if you will pack and or unpack yourself or have the movers do it for you.  For many folks, packing up their things to move is a very personal thing and not something they want left to strangers.  Likewise with unpacking, they want the adventure and excitement of unpacking all their cherished belongings and carefully choosing where to put them in their new home.  For others, however, the perfect moving scenario is to sell the house, go away on a little trip and come back to a new home all unpacked and ready to live in.  For them, the more the moving company can do the better.  Movers will most often offer as little or as much of a service as you wish.

Boxes and Packing Supplies
If you are doing your own packing, make certain your moving company can supply you with boxes, bubble wrap, packing tape and any other materials you may need.  These items can be purchased separately so you need only buy what you actually need.  Movers can also offer some good packing tips if you ask them, such as the best boxes for particular items and how to pack fragile items.

Oversize Furniture/Specialty Items
Even if you are doing all the packing yourself, you may still need to know if your moving service will move your piano or large pieces.

Storage
If you are moving into a home with big renovation plans, you may want to ask your movers if they offer temporary storage of your items until you are finished with the renovations.  Most Seattle moving companies will offer this for a fairly reasonable extra charge.

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Right after you move, it is important to take the time to make a thorough inventory of your belongings and make sure everything arrived in good condition and that nothing has been lost.

Most probably, movers will ask you to check your valuables as they bring them to your new home.  They will provide an inventory sheet with corresponding numbers and descriptions for the task.  Even though it may be difficult to concentrate with all the work being done around you during the move and with movers bringing several loads together, try to focus and organize the inventory check so that you don’t miss any items.  You could ask a friend to help you double-check every valuable, or divide the duties of checking the list and looking over the items.

Check furniture and appliances very carefully for missing feet, broken knobs, and scratches, and plug in appliances to ensure they are working correctly.   If there is something missing, mark it and tell the movers immediately.  If you see damage, make a note on the inventory list.  Do not sign the sheet until you are certain that everything has been accounted for.  It will greatly simplify things if you locate boxes or discuss damages while the movers are still there.

While you unpack, make notes about what you think is missing or damaged.  You’ve already checked for missing boxes, but not for missing things inside them.  Everyone who is unpacking should have an inventory list for the box they are working on.

Everything should be checked within the next few days after the move; otherwise, damages or losses may not be covered by the movers’ insurance.

As soon as you’re done unpacking and if you have found missing or damaged items, call the movers and ask them to track the items; maybe something was forgotten in the truck and is easy to recover.  If something is not found, call the insurance company to file a claim.  You will have to give detailed information about the item that is missing or has been damaged, and the inventory list you made prior to moving will be crucial.

Even though something could go wrong, normally everything works smoothly if you have taken the precaution of researching locally and hiring quality Movers in Seattle WA to help you handle the move.  Investing a little more could save you lots of headaches and bad experiences later.

A lot of people dread moves, but this is because they don’t take it seriously and fail to plan ahead.  When you know exactly what to expect, how to get organized, and even what could go wrong, nothing can get you off balance, and you will be ready to deal with whatever happens in an effective way.

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After a move, most people are left with dozens or even hundreds of boxes they don’t know how to dispose of.  Obviously, you are anxious to get rid of all that stuff that is only cluttering your beautiful new home, however, you should take the time to do it right and dispose of them in a useful and eco-friendly way instead of just throwing them in the garbage.

Here we give you some tips as to how to give moving boxes a good use after you don’t need them anymore:

1.    Contact a box broker
In many cities, there are companies that specialize in buying and selling used moving boxes; find one near you and sell them all of yours.

2.    List your boxes on BoxCycle
This is a service within the US.  You access the website, list your boxes for sale, and the company will sell them for you.  The service has great reviews, a clear sign of how well it works.

3.    Post on Craigslist
This is another great place to list the boxes you want to get rid of, sell, exchange, or just give away, and it is free.

4.    Use some of them as compost containers
This is a good option if you have an herb garden or beautiful yard at home and you are into organic gardening.  You just have to ensure the boxes are protected from animals that could destroy them.

5.    Contact a charity
Normally, libraries, community groups, and shelters need lots of boxes to move books, clothes, shoes, appliances, and food, among other things.  You can find a lot of places to help with just a few phone calls.

6.    Find local recycling programs
Almost every city has a place for recycling big quantities of cardboard material.  In some cases you will have to take the boxes to the recycling center yourself, but that is not a big inconvenience.  Make sure you find out details like how many boxes they will take, sizes, and if you have to flatten them before delivery.

Seattle moving companies can help you find the different recycling, reusing, and disposing options in the area; maybe they will even offer to take your boxes to help you dispose of them.  The important thing to remember is that when moving, cleaning up and disposing of materials in the right way is as important as packing, unpacking, and getting your home organized.

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Moving to a new place involves a lot of work and consideration.  Besides the move itself, with all its worries, possibly one of the most difficult challenges for new tenants is knowing the difference between normal wear and serious damage when asking for the security deposit back.  The line is fine when it comes to wear and damage, and you must be prepared to walk it without crossing it.

Security deposits are designed so that you work to get them back.  Here are some tips so that you learn what is normal and what is definitely not:

1.    Walls- some dirt and several pinpricks are normal, but huge holes, paint that is not the original color, and burns, will definitely be categorized as damage.  If necessary, paint and repair whatever needs it, so that you get your deposit back.

2.    Carpets- obviously, carpets and floors wear down with time due to aging, however, the landlord will not accept huge stains, burn marks or tears.  Research how to care for the carpets and floors so that you can maintain them in good condition for as long as you live there.

3.    Appliances- these must work properly, of course.  If a mechanical problem occurs, call the landlord immediately, or else, you will have an issue later.

4.    Keys- normally, these break with time, as well as locks.  What constitutes damage is due to misuse, loss, or removal of locks from the doors without proper permission and supervision.

5.    General condition- at apartment complexes, a cleaning crew will commonly clean the space before renting it, since managers know there will be some dirt.  Nevertheless, they don’t expect to find the place in a chaotic state, so you should clean before you move and hire a professional Seattle moving company that knows how to work in an organized way.  It will surely help you get your money back.

Once you are ready to move out, make sure you review the original condition report you filled out when you first leased the place, so that you can identify the trouble areas.  True, there is a fine line between normal wear and real damage; however, it is a lot about common sense.

If you are an organized, caring and clean person, you will most certainly not have any trouble getting your deposit money back.

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If you are thinking about moving to an apartment, you better have a digital camera handy.  It can really simplify your apartment search and move-in processes, by instantly capturing every crucial space and its condition.

Once you really get going, you will visit dozens of apartments, and it will be very hard to remember all of the details for each one of them, unless you have an out-of-this-world memory.  Through the pictures, us mere mortals will have no way of forgetting about the interesting or not so practical details regarding the design, style and colors.  These are research photos that will be very useful when making a final decision.

The pictures will help you move in too, as they will help you buy appliances and furniture that will truly fit and enhance the space.

Once you have chosen the perfect place, and before you call the movers in Seattle to help you, take a walk through the apartment and take photos to record its condition.  This will be very useful once you decide to move out, because you will only get your security deposit back if the apartment is in the exact same state.  Take pictures of problem areas, like stained carpets, so that you have a way to prove that it was not you who damaged it.  Make sure you talk to the landlord about any concern or damages you see before you move in.

When moving to a new apartment it is fundamental that you get rental insurance and be prepared in case of a burglary.  For this, you must take pictures of your belongings and the electronics’ serial numbers, and save the receipts for expensive appliances like TV’s, furniture, computers, china, and stereos, so that you can file an insurance claim with enough proof in hand.

And since they say that thinking ahead is thinking wise, when the time comes to leave the place, do not forget to take pictures of the condition you are leaving the apartment in.  The same as before you moved in, clear the space and take some ‘after’ pictures as a back up, just in case you have trouble when getting your deposit back.

The set of pictures you take must last several years in good condition, at least while you are living at the place, thus, file them in a safe place where you can find them easily, and also store them online as a back up.  And of course, make sure you take good care of your digital camera!

If you liked this article, tell all your friends about it. They’ll thank you for it. If you have a blog or website, you can link to it or even post it to your own site (don’t forget to mention www.psmoving.com as the original source).

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