Top 5 “Moving In With Your Partner” Tips

Valentine’s Day is upon us, a time for flowers, chocolates and – moving? It may sound a little cheesy, but some couples use this romantic day as an excuse to move in together. And as we all know, a move this big, presents some unique challenges.

Now, we may not be relationship gurus, but we know a thing or two about both local Ottawa moving and long-distance moving and how to prepare for one. Our moving-in with your partner tips should make the process less stressful and home life more organized.

1. Plan Ahead

Once you’ve agreed on making this potentially long term decision, it’s time to plan where, when and how.

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Say your relationship is long-distance, you two need to decide on who’s moving where. Whether you’re moving to cities like Calgary, Vancouver, Edmonton, Montreal or cities in PEI, you both need to discuss how this will affect job situations and lifestyles (like rural, suburban or city atmosphere).

Commit to a set day when the move will take place. Without a day to keep you both accountable, you’ll end up moving in together when you hit your senior years. Because life is so busy, you could end up putting off the move until you find the time, which could be for a while.

When planning on how you’re going to move, don’t ask your friends to help. Although it may be the cheapest option, there’s a lot that can go wrong with an untrained group of amateur movers. Trust professional movers who make this their full-time job.

If you’re not sure how moving-in together will go, resort to a trial period. Spending a specified amount of time together will help test out how long it’ll take before you both drive each other crazy.

Signing a lease requires some planning if you’re an unmarried couple. If you are a married couple, no law demands your partner to add their name to the lease of the home. For unmarried couples, you need to come to an agreement whether you’re both renting a place as co-tenants, or one of you becomes the sole tenant, and the other becomes the subtenant.

2. Figure Out A Budget

Okay, we didn’t want to bring it up on such a romantic occasion, but there will be costs associated with moving, and not just for the movers. For example, have you thought about who will be covering the first month’s rent? What about groceries? What about utilities? Will you be sharing all the bills?

Trust us; you’re not going to want to figure this out as you go. Organizing your money and knowing where it goes will make things so much more comfortable in the long run, helping you save up for date nights or getaway vacations.

You’ll have to consider a few things:

1. How much will a move cost?
2. Who will be doing the shopping?
3. Does one person make more money than the other?
4. What are the consistent monthly costs?
5. Are there services that only one person uses?

Next, find yourself a good budgeting program or create an Excel sheet (advanced users only) and start keeping track of everything, obsessively. Try to make it fun; you’ll be doing this a lot.

3. Sort & Organize Belongings

Couples that are moving in together will need to take stock of household furniture and items by going through your mutual belongings. Like that worn-out gaming chair your partner has a strange attachment to, you will sometimes require an open mind when sorting through each other’s things.

Think of this as a time to declutter. Be honest with yourself, your partner and the belongings you both own. Do you need this, or does your partner have something similar? Do you really need two of everything? How much do you love it or how much does your partner hate it?

A few items you should decide on are:

• Selling or packing clothes you may or may not need
• Selling or packing books that you’ve read a thousand times
• Selling or packing duplicate appliances
• Selling or packing artwork – both classical and tacky

Once you’ve decided what items are parting from your relationship, you need to decide on how you’re going to get rid of them.

You’ve got three options on getting rid of your once-favourite items:

1. Selling: have a garage sale, or sell it to your uncle
2. Donate: give it to charity, or your uncle
3. Toss: if it’s older than dirt, toss it in the garbage, landfill or recycling center – or to that uncle who’s always asking for your stuff.

Not willing to get rid of your extensive collection of troll dolls? Don’t settle for selling them when they’re so dear to your heart. Instead, agree on renting a shipping container or storage unit, giving you and your partner flexibility if you don’t agree on keeping some personal but odd household items. It’s also a significant investment if the relationship doesn’t work out, your prized treasures aren’t in someone else’s possession. Once you’ve organized and agreed on what items are travelling with you to your castle, get started packing.

4. Set House Rules

Your flaws are on full display when you move-in together. Whether you like to turn your dishes into skyscrapers or you don’t seem to mind a dirty bathroom, creating house rules creates order. The main rules should revolve around chores because a clean home is a happy home. Discuss what you both think is a fair way to divide up chores and home responsibilities.

Also, it’s sometimes alright to compensate. If your partner had a tough day or going out with some friends, taking up their responsibility for a day goes a long way. As long as you communicate, compensating makes your rules feel less like rules and more like two people helping each other make their home happy, clean and organized.

5. Celebrate

Whether that’s with a date night or inviting friends over for a housewarming party, celebrate and share this incredible moment. You’ve worked hard to organize and plan this move, and all of it has paid off. We encourage inviting friends over because they usually come bearing gifts and food.

Moving Can Be Stressful, Choose Cassidy’s

With Cassidy’s, you’ll see how easy it is moving in with your partner. Our staff of movers have acquired vast experience in moving large furniture, organizing moving boxes and dealing with constant bickering between two lovebirds.

Whether that’s moving into a new city, new place or an owned property, Cassidy’s is ready to help you and your partner get settled in. Bring Cassidy’s along for your move!