4 Tips for Moving Your Family on a Budget

By Simone McFarlane 8/11/2022

Moving is almost always a stressful experience. It can be even more challenging when you’re balancing the needs of your family and trying to stick to a budget. These four tips from Sensible Property Group can help you save money while moving and make the experience as easy and stress-free as possible for you and your family.

Know Your Needs for Housing

Each family has unique needs when it comes to housing. You should know the exact needs of your family when you start looking for a house to buy, and you may need to sell your current home before you know your budget. Make sure your new home has enough space to fit all of your family members comfortably. It should also have all of the features you desire because you can easily blow your budget by making upgrades.

If there is a delay between when you move and when you can start taking up residence in your new home, look for friends or family members to stay with until you can officially move in. It is important to ensure people can accommodate any pets you have before asking if you can stay with them.

Make a Plan for Moving

Having a plan in place can make moving less stressful. Choose a packing and organization system so that you can quickly find your belongings when you get ready to unpack in your new house. Remember to carry the essentials with you instead of in the moving van so that you have a spare change of clothes and your phone charger and don’t have to search for them.

This practice can also help when you are moving a business. The earlier you start planning, the easier it is to relocate the company with minimal disruption. Take steps such as working remotely and labeling all of your packing boxes so that you do not misplace supplies during the move.

Be Flexible

One survey found that 45% of Americans feel stressed and overwhelmed during a move. One contributing factor is that moving throws people out of their normal routines. You may want to stick to your routine as closely as possible to regain some sense of normalcy, but this usually only adds stress. It’s okay if you eat out instead of cooking while you unpack. You can catch up if you get behind on laundry. Give yourself grace and stay flexible to reduce stress. Don’t forget to practice self-care!

Meet New People

Getting plugged into your new city and meeting new people is the best way to get adjusted to your home. While you may think that you have to spend a lot of money on entertainment to meet new people, there are many cost-efficient ways for you and your kids to make friends. Take your kids to a local park to play with other children their ages. You can join a book club or another organization in your new city to meet adults with similar interests. If you’re moving back to the town you were born in, you can find search engines online to connect with other people who graduated from the same school. All you have to do is input basic information such as graduation date, school and name to find old friends and reconnect.

Moving your family to a new city can be an overwhelming experience. If you use these tips, you can make the process easier on your wallet and everyone involved.