Moving into your first apartment is a huge step for adults—young and old alike. It’s normal to feel excited about this leap toward independence, but it can also be a little nerve-wracking if you’ve never lived on your own before.
If you’re in this situation right now, you probably have a ton of questions. How do you pack? What do you need? Where do you even begin? To make things easy, we’ve made a handy Moving into First Apartment Checklist to help you get ready for the big day.
Creating Your Space: Make Your Apartment Your Comfort Zone
One of the coolest things about moving out for the first time on your own is creating a space that truly reflects your personality. Moving into your new home is like decorating a blank canvas: it’s yours to decorate, style, and breathe life into.
However, moving into an empty apartment can start to get pricey when you think of all the things a first-time apartment renter needs. One of the best moving out for the first time tips is to start by making a first apartment checklist to help you classify items that are first-day priorities and items that can wait.
Some items you can put into categories include:
Furniture
Kitchenware (such as plates, utensils, cups, pots, and pans)
Bedroom essentials
Bathroom essentials
Cleaning and maintenance supplies
Items for your living area
Once you map out what, exactly, you’ll need for your apartment, make a budget. To keep things reasonably priced, look for secondhand items in good shape that you can snag for a fraction of the price. You can often find good deals at many discount home goods stores.
Plan For the Place You Have: Tips for Avoiding Clutter
Moving for the first time means that it’s also probably your first time packing and going through all of your belongings. In this case, it helps to make a list of what you might need to get rid of in order to avoid clutter.
Go room by room and start sorting through your items. Place each item into one of three groups: must keep, donate or give away, and trash. While parting with some items might feel difficult, it will save you a lot of hassle once you’re in your new place. You won’t have as much clutter in your new place, giving you more space to decorate and make it your own.
Measure Twice, Hang Once
When you get to your new place, it’s time to start taking measurements to see where everything is going to fit. Don’t rush through this part! Take your time to measure spaces like your walls and floors carefully, write down the measurements, and then do it all over again to double-check the accuracy.
This is especially important for things like cutting wallpaper or carpet to fit perfectly. You don’t want to measure, cut, and then discover the material doesn’t fit. That can be an expensive mistake!
The same goes for wall-adorned items. Measure each spot on your wall twice before you start hammering into the walls to hang up items like photos and artwork. Take accurate measurements and make sure they are level before you start affixing or hanging things. It’s always better to take extra time to get it done right the first time and avoid costly mistakes.
Consider Hiring Professionals
Your first time moving into an apartment is a special time, and you deserve to have an enjoyable experience. To minimize the hassle and ensure the process goes smoothly, it might be worth calling in professionals.
While there are definitely steps within the process that you can conquer yourself, professional movers for first-time apartment renters know what they’re doing and can get the job done quickly and efficiently. This is a huge bonus, especially if you’re moving by yourself and don’t have as many pairs of hands as you need on moving day. Movers can even help with packing, depending on the type of services that you’re looking for. It really doesn’t get any easier!
Make Your First Time Moving Out Easy with MASH Movers
First-time movers who need a helping hand can find it with MASH Movers in Austin. We’ve helped numerous people move in and out of Austin, a city that we hold near and dear to our hearts. Our workers pursue art and music in their free time and have a passion for our unique city.
We quickly shift into mover mode when there’s someone who needs a few extra sets of hands for the big day. Drop us a line today to learn more about our services and receive your risk-free quote!