Moving Company Tips

Whether you’re getting ready to downsize to a smaller house or upgrade to a larger one, you’ll need time to organize your current property and prepare it for staging and selling. While many homeowners handle this themselves, others find professional help makes the process easier.

When Jonathan Kanter and his wife, Lisa, were preparing to move from their home in Potomac to a larger home in Bethesda, they took the opportunity to simplify their lives and get organized.

“We’d been in the house nine years, and during that time we had two kids and accumulated a lot of stuff,” Jonathan Kanter says. “We wanted to improve the way we live so we could stay more organized in our next home and make sure we didn’t just pack up things we don’t need or want.”

The Kanters worked with Scott Roewer, a certified professional organizer and owner of Solutions by Scott & Co. in Washington, starting about three months before listing their home. They cleared out their garage and basement, and Roewer helped them donate unneeded belongings and sell valuable items.

“So many people in D.C. live hectic, high-pressure lives and want to spend their free time with their families,” Jonathan says. “It’s liberating to have an outside person help. Scott not only helped us prepare our house to sell but also unpack and stay organized in our new home.”

If you decide to get professional help with organizing and decluttering before a move, you can often find assistance from a moving company, interior designer, real estate agent, home stager, or move manager. While each professional has a slightly different skill set, there’s often overlap, and they’ll work together as a team.

“In recent years, good Realtors usually provide a list of items to pack or move out before listing the home to create the illusion of space,” says Jonathan Neal, president and CEO of Metropolitan Moving and Storage in Rockville. “Staging homes has created a new segment in the moving business. Some companies now provide storage, so you can keep items in their warehouse until your new home is ready.”

Before you settle into your next home, expect weeks or even months of preparation—though professionals often get calls just a week before a scheduled move.

“The earlier you get started, the better,” says Lisa M. Bartolomei, principal of Lisa M. Bartolomei Design in South Riding, Va. “Eliminate what you don’t need first, then decide what you’ll keep for your next home, and finally, prep your home for sale.”

Getting Organized

Roewer says sellers save time and money by sorting through everything before moving rather than while unpacking.

“Start with a timeline that works backward from your first open house to today,” Roewer says. “Plot out your time on a calendar and make the sorting blocks nonnegotiable.”

He suggests starting in the least-used room, like a storage space or garage, where it’s easy to make quick progress. Real estate agents also recommend clearing as many surfaces as possible—especially in the foyer and kitchen, since buyers notice them first.

“The single most important starting point is a scaled floor plan of your new home,” says Alexandra Koneff, co-owner of Orchestrated Moves in Bethesda. “Most people overestimate what will fit comfortably, wasting time and money.”

Koneff also recommends visualizing your new lifestyle—whether you’ll entertain, need large dining sets, or have kids’ play areas to plan around.

Empty-nesters moving into retirement communities may want to hire a move manager, says Julie Sabag, marketing director at Fox Hill in Bethesda. A move manager can help sort belongings to donate, gift, or keep, and handle as much or as little of the move as you want.

“We call ourselves the ‘wedding planners of the moving industry,'” says Susan Danick, co-owner of TAD Relocation in Gaithersburg. “We go through each room, identify what to keep, what to let go of, and what can be reused for staging or in your next home.”

Danick says her company offers a free one-hour consultation, with hourly rates based on workload. Costs can range from $600 for basic packing to $6,000 for complex moves.

Storage Options

If your home lacks storage, consider boxing up items you won’t need until after moving—such as off-season clothing, photos, or extra kitchenware. Organizers or move managers can help choose storage solutions.

“I usually recommend a portable onsite storage pod that can be loaded during staging and delivered to your new home on moving day,” says Roewer. “Other companies offer pickup, storage, and delivery services, so you don’t have to move things twice.”

Metropolitan Moving offers warehouse storage with pickup and delivery. Neal says the average cost for pickup, one month of storage, and delivery is about $1,000, depending on volume. “It can be worth it if your home sells faster and for a better price,” he adds.

Koneff says her team researches storage options for cost-effectiveness and convenience, noting that cheaper units are often farther away. If you’ll need access, closer locations are better.

“If your mover offers storage, confirm exactly where and how your belongings will be stored to avoid damage,” Neal says.

Preparing for the Move

Neal advises asking friends and your real estate agent for moving company recommendations and checking reviews. “There’s huge variation in quality, so choose based on service, not just price,” he says. “Always request an on-site estimate for accuracy.”

Koneff notes that move managers can help compare estimates and coordinate movers. Some even label and unpack every box in one day. Both she and Roewer recommend using plastic moving crates instead of cardboard boxes—they’re stronger, stack better, and reusable.

While moving is often one of life’s most stressful experiences, professional help can make the process smoother and less overwhelming.

Michele Lerner is a freelance writer.