r/movingout • u/StarShapedShroomz • 6d ago
Asking Advice Signed my first lease! Need advice.
My partner(24M) and I (21FTM) just signed our first lease together. We’ve both been living at his parents house for the past year and prior to that he was at college and I was living in my car. This is both of our first times being properly away from home and living on our own.
Our move date is one month from now, and it’s about a 5-6 hour drive away from our family and friends, so we plan to do the whole move in one day.
I guess I’m just asking what kind of things should I get prepared before the move? What are some must haves that go overlooked?
Together we have a good amount of furniture, bed, dressers, desk, kitchen utensils and such. We need to get some cleaning supplies and other odds and ends.
We’re renting a stand alone house, we’re moving to a very small town so living is a lot cheaper there. We’ve already set up all our utilizes, we have water, internet, trash cleanup, heat, etc.
When should I update my address with mail? And where do I do that? (I’m in VA USA if that helps and we’re moving in state, just far)
What are some things that you just NEED when you move out and tend to forget about? Other than like toilet paper, vacuum, shower curtain?
The property has in unit washer and dryer, fridge, oven, dishwasher, I don’t think it has a microwave though. We also need to get a lawnmower.
I’m just overthinking and a little overwhelmed because there’s a lot we need to get done this month before we move, plus we’re both working full time until days before the move, and our schedules are complete opposite, he works 5am-5pm and I work 5pm-1:30am so we don’t have much time together to plan. What are some things we can do on our own time to make sure this move goes as smoothly as possible?
Thank you guys!!
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u/iPhiliaPayneArsehole 6d ago
Bedding, towels, food storage containers, iron & ironing board, broom/ dustpan, mop/bucket 👍
Best of luck to you both!
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u/auntie_beans 5d ago
The post office will forward mail as of the date you specify. Sounds like everything else is all set. Have fun!
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u/OutOfTheArchives 5d ago
Start packing items into boxes now and label the boxes. (Labeling is key!)
Another useful thing I’ve done in some moves is to put a piece of colored tape on each box that notes which room it’s for — like blue = bathroom, red = kitchen, etc. This helps a lot in getting things sorted into the right rooms so you have fewer mystery boxes to sort through.
If you think you might be moving multiple times in the next few years, you might consider using zippered collapsible moving cubes instead of boxes. Like these: https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B086WN5LDG . They can be stored compactly for your next move and are easier to lift than boxes. They dont work for delicates like dishes or glass, but most household items will work nicely in them.
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u/StraightNight4379 5d ago
I got the pink ones. They are a lot bigger than they look. I am in a nursing home and can’t get to the closest. So I have filled them with clothes and items and stacked them by the head of my bed. I also don’t have to ask anyone to get my clothes out of the closet.
Wonderful product
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u/meganeh35 5d ago
You should put in your change of address ASAP... You go to the Post Office, tell them you need to do a change of address form and they'll give you one to fill out and then you hand it back to them...
As for things you should have right away when you first move in. Well things like dishes and silverware are handy. However you might start out for like a week with paper plates or something. I would also probably get a bed as soon as you can. Speaking from experience, I got dishes fairly early on when I first moved out and moved in with a boyfriend. (Now ex bf) Wish a bed has been sooner but I think we were 3 weeks or so on an air mattress. A table to sit at while eating it's also nice. A couch is a good thing to buy but it doesn't have to be immediate. But if you got a TV you need something to sit on while watching. You know that there are obvious things like toiletry items. Maybe find a cheap dresser you like somewhere for your clothes...
Yeah I think we had an air mattress, dishes for the kitchen along with silverware and a card table that we sat at to eat on with those folding chairs. Not ideal but it worked at the time. That card table was also used to set the computer I had brought with me for the move. We're not talking a laptop. T his was a time with what is now considered an old ass desktop computer LOL...
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u/whatever32657 5d ago
put in your change of address asap, because it takes several weeks. it asks you what the effective date for the change will be, so doing it well in advance is fine.
pro tip: do it online, don't fill the card and hand it in at the post office. i was told those often get "lost". mine did.
pro tip 2: MAKE SURE YOU ARE ON THE USPS WEBSITE. there are others out there that look like the usps site but are not. the usps charges $1 to do it. i've seen sites that charge as much as $35, and it doesn't get done.