MOVING/PACKING TIPS

Expert Moving & Packing Tips For Your Kansas City Move

If You Want To Move Like A Pro - Let NL Wilson Help

At some point, most of us will plan to move homes in our life. There’s dozens of reasons why, but the moving process always remains the same. When you’re on your journey to a new home, you’ll find that the amount of large and small details can be overwhelming without some level of organization and planning. 


NL Wilson has over 50 years of experience in moving, packing, junk hauling and more. We know the best methods and strategies to get you moved, quickly, efficiently and affordably. 

Preparing for Your New Move

Set a Moving Budget

The average cost of a local move is $500 for a one-bedroom apartment and $1,400 for a four-bedroom house. Long-distance cross-country or international moves will be more pricey. You can use online moving cost calculators to figure out a rough estimate of what the total cost of your move will be. It’s a good idea to budget enough to cover all costs plus an emergency fund for unexpected expenses.

Get Your Utilities Squared Away

Once you know you will be moving, contact your utility companies and make sure the appropriate accounts are transferred to, and installations are scheduled for, your new location. Your utility services typically include:

  • Phone & Internet
  • Water & Sewer
  • Trash
  • Gas
  • Electricity
  • Cable
  • Alarm System

Get Your Packing Supplies

Packing supplies can get expensive, so you’ll want to do a bit of planning when it comes to buying what you need. Online packing cost calculators can help you figure out what to buy and how much it will cost. If you decide to go with a mover who offers packing services, this part will already be done for you. Some moving companies also sell and/or deliver packing supplies to your home.

Arrange For Donation Pick Up & Junk Hauling

One of the best pieces of moving advice is to only move what you need to. Any clothing, furniture, exercise equipment or electronics that you don’t want to bring into your new home can be donated in the moving process. What’s more, moving a great opportunity to take inventory of your possessions and scale down. Many organizations like Goodwill and Salvation Army offer donation pickup to make this process simple.

Pack Your Moving Bag

Turn your belongings into useful packing tools. Suitcases with wheels can be packed with heavy items like dishes and books. Blankets can be used to wrap large pieces of furniture like dressers and bookshelves to protect them from damage. You smaller pieces of linen, fabric placemats, towels, washcloths, etc. can be used to wrap small fragile items like glassware or dishware.

Pack Your Moving Bag

Pack a bag of all of the clothes, toiletries and important items and documents you’ll need over the next day or two of you move. This should include not only what you'll need for move day, but also what you’ll need the day or two after you’ve moved into your new home in case you aren’t able to start getting boxes unpacked right away.

Take a Picture of Your TV Wiring

Trust us, this tip will save you so much time and the headache of trying to figure out how to make your TV functional again.

Keep Track of Box Contents Color Coding

Unless you have very few moving items, it will probably be difficult to keep track of what you have in each moving box. You can alleviate this issue, by writing the general contents of the box on the side of it or by taking pictures of the inside of your boxes once they’ve been packed. You can also use highlighters to color code your boxes.

Have a Plan For Pets and Small Children

Moving day is always going to be somewhat stressful, this can be even more challenging when you have to keep an eye on young kids and pets. If possible, the best plan of action is to arrange for them to stay with a relative or friend’s house for this period of time.

Don't Forget to Eat and Hydrate

Get a cooler and fill it with water, energy drinks, snacks and whatever else you’ll need to stay fed and hydrated on move day. It may even be a good idea to set a timer for snack breaks so you don’t forget to eat.

Give Your Unpacking A Deadline

Who hasn’t let boxes sit for months (or years) in their home that were never unpacked when they moved in? The truth is unpacking can take a significant amount of time. You can make a plan to get all of your things unpacked, bit by bit, over a certain period. This will help to keep the unpacking process from being overwhelming and while guaranteeing that all of your boxes get unpacked.

Remove Boxes As You Unpack

Speaking of feeling accomplished; once you’ve unpacked boxes, break them down and stack them in a corner of the room to go out for recycling. Having a visible marker of how  much you’re getting done will make unpacking feel much more rewarding.

Packing & Unpacking Tips For Your Kansas City Move

If You Want To Move Like A Pro - Let NL Wilson Help

At some point, most of us will plan to move homes in our life. There’s dozens of reasons why, but the moving process always remains the same. When you’re on your journey to a new home, you’ll find that the amount of large and small details can be overwhelming without some level of organization and planning. 


NL Wilson has over 50 years of experience in moving, packing, junk hauling and more. We know the best methods and strategies to get you moved, quickly, efficiently and affordably. 

Get Your Quote

To schedule your move or receive more information, please fill out the form below or call us at 913-357-5330.

Preparing for Your New Move

Set a Moving Budget

The average cost of a local move is $500 for a one-bedroom apartment and $1,400 for a four-bedroom house. Long-distance cross-country or international moves will be more pricey. You can use online moving cost calculators to figure out a rough estimate of what the total cost of your move will be. It’s a good idea to budget enough to cover all costs plus an emergency fund for unexpected expenses.

Get Your Utilities Squared Away

Once you know you will be moving, contact your utility companies and make sure the appropriate accounts are transferred to, and installations are scheduled for, your new location. Your utility services typically include:

  • Phone & Internet
  • Water & Sewer
  • Trash
  • Gas
  • Electricity
  • Cable
  • Alarm System

Get Your Packing Supplies

Packing supplies can get expensive, so you’ll want to do a bit of planning when it comes to buying what you need. Online packing cost calculators can help you figure out what to buy and how much it will cost. If you decide to go with a mover who offers packing services, this part will already be done for you. Some moving companies also sell and/or deliver packing supplies to your home.

Arrange For Donation Pick Up & Junk Hauling

One of the best pieces of moving advice is to only move what you need to. Any clothing, furniture, exercise equipment or electronics that you don’t want to bring into your new home can be donated in the moving process. What’s more, moving a great opportunity to take inventory of your possessions and scale down. Many organizations like Goodwill and Salvation Army offer donation pickup to make this process simple.

Pack Your Moving Bag

Turn your belongings into useful packing tools. Suitcases with wheels can be packed with heavy items like dishes and books. Blankets can be used to wrap large pieces of furniture like dressers and bookshelves to protect them from damage. You smaller pieces of linen, fabric placemats, towels, washcloths, etc. can be used to wrap small fragile items like glassware or dishware.

Pack Your Moving Bag

Pack a bag of all of the clothes, toiletries and important items and documents you’ll need over the next day or two of you move. This should include not only what you'll need for move day, but also what you’ll need the day or two after you’ve moved into your new home in case you aren’t able to start getting boxes unpacked right away.

Take a Picture of Your TV Wiring

Trust us, this tip will save you so much time and the headache of trying to figure out how to make your TV functional again.

Keep Track of Box Contents Color Coding

Unless you have very few moving items, it will probably be difficult to keep track of what you have in each moving box. You can alleviate this issue, by writing the general contents of the box on the side of it or by taking pictures of the inside of your boxes once they’ve been packed. You can also use highlighters to color code your boxes.

Have a Plan For Pets and Small Children

Moving day is always going to be somewhat stressful, this can be even more challenging when you have to keep an eye on young kids and pets. If possible, the best plan of action is to arrange for them to stay with a relative or friend’s house for this period of time.

Don't Forget to Eat and Hydrate

Get a cooler and fill it with water, energy drinks, snacks and whatever else you’ll need to stay fed and hydrated on move day. It may even be a good idea to set a timer for snack breaks so you don’t forget to eat.

Give Your Unpacking A Deadline

Who hasn’t let boxes sit for months (or years) in their home that were never unpacked when they moved in? The truth is unpacking can take a significant amount of time. You can make a plan to get all of your things unpacked, bit by bit, over a certain period. This will help to keep the unpacking process from being overwhelming and while guaranteeing that all of your boxes get unpacked.

Remove Boxes As You Unpack

Speaking of feeling accomplished; once you’ve unpacked boxes, break them down and stack them in a corner of the room to go out for recycling. Having a visible marker of how  much you’re getting done will make unpacking feel much more rewarding.

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