Have you ever longed for change? Nothing breaks up the monotony of daily life like moving into a new home, whether for a different job, moving closer to family members, upsizing or downsizing your living quarters, or even exploring new territory. After deciding on relocating, you must then consider, “How long does it take to move into a new house?”
Many factors affect your moving timeline: the number of rooms you need to pack (and the amount of items in each), the preparation, the drive time, and finally, unpacking and placement. Below, we’ll delve into each factor and how the best moving company in Montreal, Discount Moving, can help you through the process.
Step One: Sorting Through and Packing Up Your Belongings
Before moving into your home, you’ll need to stock up on packing supplies. That includes moving boxes of varying sizes, tape, packing peanuts and newspapers for delicate items, and other supplies you may need for packing. From there, sort your items into three piles in each room for things you want to keep, donate, and throw away.
Doing so streamlines the process and minimizes trips back and forth between your new and old home since you won’t be carrying unwanted items to your new space. Packing a lot of items (especially heavy ones like furniture and appliances) extends the packing timeline. If you’re in a rush, pare down what you want to take.
Packing Up an Apartment Space
If you’re packing up a small 400-to-600-square-foot studio apartment, start a month or two before your set moving date. Cleaning and packing should take one to two days total, especially if you don’t have a lot of rooms to go through.
But how long does it take to move into a new house if you’re leaving behind a slightly larger apartment space? For a two-bedroom layout spanning roughly 700 to 1200 square feet, start prepping for the packing process two months in advance. However, the total packing timeline may vary from that of a studio apartment, taking two to four days to get all your things into boxes.
Packing Up a House
Packing up a house requires more time and consideration than an apartment of any size. That’s because you’re not only dealing with more rooms and a larger household square footage, but also more possessions. Pack each room separately and start by boxing items you don’t use regularly. Leave out items you’ll continuously use until your moving day such as clothing, bedding, and bathroom and kitchen supplies.
Here’s how long packing should take depending on your house size:
- A two-to three-bedroom house: Start planning at least two months beforehand and expect packing to take at least three full days. If you’re packing in increments, it can take up to a week.
- A house with four+ bedrooms: Create a plan three or more months before moving day, and set aside four to six full days for packing.
Other Things You Should Consider During the Packing Process
Packing is the first step in moving, but it’s not the only thing you should do during this process. If you’re wondering, “How long does it take to move into a new house?”, don’t forget about all the other tasks involved in the moving process. That includes transferring utilities, cleaning up your old place, and getting things sorted out for your new job, if necessary.
You should also figure out:
- If you’re hiring professional movers, getting your friends to lend a hand, or are doing it on your own. The more helpers you have, the quicker you’ll set up shop in the new home.
- When to clean your old space and schedule an inspection for it so you know what necessary repairs to make.
- If you have to clear out other areas like storage sheds, attics, basements, and garages.
Step Two: Hitting the Road With Your Possessions
With a plan in play and all your items packed, begin the second stage of moving: moving your stuff from Point A to Point B. But before getting to the new apartment or house, consider how you plan to get boxes to your vehicle.
Getting Your Things to the Moving Vehicle
Can you simply carry things out from the first floor or do you need to take the stairs or elevator to get to street level? And if you’re using the elevator, how much space can you utilize within it to lessen your trips up and down?
As you can expect, one pair of hands taking things down the stairs takes hours or even days compared to several individuals using spacious elevators. So, factor this into your plan if you’re wondering, “How long does it take to move into a new house?”
Similarly, the size of your moving vehicle affects how many trips you have to make. A small sedan fills up far more quickly than a moving van.
The Duration of the Drive
Once you load up your vehicle, where are you taking it? Multiply the distance you’re driving by the number of trips you have to make back and forth to get a rough idea of how long you’ll be on the road.
For instance, a small move a couple of blocks away won’t take as long as a move to a different city or state in Canada. In the former case, you can use your personal vehicle instead of a moving truck to save on rental fees. For the latter, a bigger vehicle minimizes the amount of long trips you must make.
However, distance alone won’t provide an accurate read on travel time since traffic, especially during rush hours, can double your trip duration. Apps such as Google Maps estimate busy hours, how they affect your route, and your approximate arrival time. Some of these apps, Google Maps included, can even warn you about construction work, accidents, and detours that’ll affect your trip.
Calculate additional time into your travel plans for more leeway. For longer trips, also factor in:
- Rest stops, especially if you don’t have another driver with you
- Overnight stays that take you off the road for hours
- Navigating new and unfamiliar routes
Step Three: Settling Into Your New Home
Once you reach your destination, you can finally start the move-in process. But, how long does it take to move into a new house from here? We xplore the timeline for this transition period next.
Getting the Boxes to the Right Locations
After pulling up to your new home, consider accessibility. Do you have a convenient parking spot, such as a driveway on the side of your new house, or do you have to find a place that may be a block from your front door? Walking back and forth from a faraway vehicle countless times, especially by yourself, can take up hours of your time.
Once you bring your boxes inside, set them in the right locations. For instance, put boxes filled with kitchen utensils and dishes into the soon-to-be heart of your home and move boxes of clothing to your future bedroom or walk-in closet. Relocating the boxes keeps them from intimidatingly stacking up in one room and helps you remain organized.
Unboxing and Positioning Your Items
With clearly titled boxes in the right rooms, you can pull items out and immediately put them where they belong without running around the house searching for each item’s spot. These organizational skills can cut your unpacking time in half, and if you have others helping you put things in their new places, that can further affect the answer to, “How long does it take to move into a new house?”
Unpacking the Moving Relocation Timeline
All in all, the average house moving duration for a small apartment takes two to three professional movers two to five hours to load up, transport, and unload boxes. Comparatively, a DIY job can take one to two days.
Similarly, relocating from a small house takes experts four to seven hours, whereas you’ll need two to three days if you’re doing everything yourself. Finally, a large house with five or more bedrooms takes four to five movers a full eight-hour workday or you up to five days.
Once all the boxes are in your new space, it can take anywhere from a few hours to several days to unpack. Add these numbers to the packing time averages in step one to determine your total moving timeline estimate.
Stellar Services at a Discounted Price!
Our full-service moving company with five-star reviews on Google offers residential and commercial moving projects for those throughout Canada. Our stellar team specializes in getting our clients from one location to the next with ease and comfort.
So, whether you’re wondering, “How long does it take to move into a new house?” or need good movers ASAP, you can trust us with everything, including packing fragile items. We’re Canada’s go-to moving team for a good reason. Call Discount Moving at (514) 933-3555 for a free estimate today!
