Downsizing a home to reduce costs can be an inexhaustible source of stress and drama, especially for people with modest planning and organizing skills. Just think about it: any type of move can put a lot of pressure on your shoulders, considering that you would have to pack all your household contents and move them from one place to another; then open dozens of boxes and rearrange all these items inside your new house or apartment. The process becomes an even bigger challenge when you are forced to inventory and prioritize the things that you have accumulated over the past few years or decades. While you don’t want to sell or toss the furniture that you have inherited from your late grandparents, or the practical but not very trendy dining set that you have received as a wedding gift, you may realize that you don’t have enough space to store all these nonessentials inside your new home. In this context, keep in mind that you could make the best decisions when it comes to handling your belongings by renting storage units in Memphis, TN, and applying the basic downsizing tips listed below. Make Lists. Ideally, you should start thinning out your collections at least three months before the big move. This would give you plenty of time to assess the financial and sentimental value of each piece in an objective manner, and get used to the idea that you will have to donate, sell or leave in storage more than a few items that you don’t actually use on a regular basis. Add or Remove Items Based on the Particularities of Your New Environment. A new environment that is extremely different from the one that you are about to abandon may turn certain categories of personal effects into the ideal candidates for long-term storage. For instance, families downsizing from a big house to a small condo will no longer need to keep gardening tools, ladders and lawn mowers within reach. Resist the Temptation to Throw Away Goods That Can Still Be Reused. The fact that you are moving into a new house may encourage you to become a better version of yourself and sell, recycle, reuse or donate things that you no longer need, instead of throwing them in the garbage. As easy as it may be to pitch old clothes, wire hangers and outdated furnishings, choose to become more environmentally responsible and do your best to find the most adequate home for the stuff that you couldn’t accommodate inside or around your new property. Create a Layout Based on Your Floor Plans. Next, try to mentally rearrange your furniture inside your new environment based on the floor plan of the house or apartment that you’ve just bought or rented. Draw plans, sketch potential layouts and make changes until you are pleased with the end result. In case you have crammed in several bulky pieces, such as chairs, tables or armoires, edit your list of contents a bit more to create a chic and airy minimalist look. Leave some of your furnishings in storage, until you feel prepared to sell them or find a place for them inside your new home. Explore the Most Advantageous Methods to Part Ways with Old Belongings. If you want to avoid second thoughts and regrets associated with your decision to downsize your home, make sure you find the right buyer for your high-end nonessentials at auctions or through reputable secondhand dealers, instead of selling them rapidly at a fraction of their real cost. Some secondhand dealers come to your home, collect the things that you wish to sell, offer you a fair price for your merchandise and even agree to drop off the products that you wish to give to a local non-profit to help you save time and gas money. No matter how you’re planning on reorganizing your contents to make them fit inside your new small house or apartment, note that you could avoid the stress caused by an upcoming move by renting the best Memphis storage units offered by US Storage Centers.
