As you know, clutter can often make or break a sale! Let’s work together to educate your clients on the best ways to de-clutter a home. You’re the real estate expert and we’re the storage expert – so this e-mail, part of our e-mail series on working with movers, offers some “home de-cluttering” tips that you can modify or update, and then share with your clients.

3 Quick Ways to De-Clutter Your Home

1. Have a Garage Sale: Before putting your home on the market, think about having a garage sale. There are more advantages than just getting rid of items that are cluttering your home, you’ll pocket some extra cash to off-set your moving costs and it will lighten your load on moving day, which could save you even more money!
2. Ask an Expert: Your real estate agent will help you by doing a walk-through of your home to identify any problem rooms or areas that need to be de-cluttered.
3. Use Storage Services: Want a surefire way to make a small room look larger? Storage could be your answer. Working with your real estate agent, you should determine which rooms would benefit from furniture storage. By eliminating large pieces, you will be able to open up your floor plan and make your house look noticeably larger!

Thanks so much for writing.  In the end it proved easier simply to move ourselves.  We are among the few who own so little that it was a realistic option!  But I am very grateful for your excellent service, and I wish you well,

Diana

Don’t be hesitant if you don’t know where to start. Before you begin decorating your home it’s best to ask yourself a few important questions. Do you plan to be in the home over the long term, or is it just a starter home? What furnishings can’t you live without? What home décor ideas have you seen elsewhere and might like to adapt to your home? The answers you come up with should guide your interior decorating ideas. Once you’ve got your home décor ideas all lined up, it’s time to pull together the materials.

Since you can’t afford Pottery Barn, or even Pier 1, you’ll have to find inexpensive, unique furnishings and discount furniture somewhere else. Check out the following tips to find out where to shop:

Shopping for Discount Home Décor

• Consignment shops – stores where private owners sell their used furniture – are becoming more and more popular. Check if there are any in your area. The inventory is one-of-a-kind, so if something catches your eye be prepared to buy. If you get to know the manager they can let you know when the sort of home furnishings you’re looking for come in.
• If your new home is in a pre-planned community, check out the developer’s model home for pieces you like. They may be a bit worn, but often the developer will sell off the home’s furniture after a period of time. It’s a great way get room sets that are already coordinated.
• Many big furniture stores have scratch and dent rooms: sections where they keep slightly damaged (but very inexpensive) models. Also keep in mind that most furniture stores periodically sell off used furniture (again, comparatively cheap) when they get rid of “showroom samples” or “floor models.” Ask about both possibilities when you shop retail.
• If you have any wholesale furniture warehouses in your area, consider stopping by. Buying wholesale furniture is almost always cheaper than buying retail.
• When looking at used furniture – or any used furnishings – don’t think of what they look like now, but what they could look like with a little refurbishing. Maybe that coffee table wouldn’t fit your living room now, but sand it down and add a coat of stain and it might not be so bad.
• Flea markets can be a great source of inexpensive, one-of-a-kind interior decorating materials. But finding a bargain at one can involve a lot of time and a lot of effort. Preparation always smoothes the way. The next few tips show you how.
• Nowhere is the expression “the early bird gets the worm” more apt than at a flea market. Vendors’ best used furniture and bargain furnishings often go quickly, leaving late arrivals with the leftovers.
• Some flea markets can be huge and it’s easy to lose focus. Take along a list of the furnishings you want before you set out. It also helps to take along sketches of the rooms you need to decorate, complete with dimensions and a tape measure to see whether the furniture in front of you will fit with your plans
• If you fall in love with a piece of discount furniture at a flea market, bear in mind that moving it can be an issue. Some vendors will deliver, but only at the end of the day and only for an additional fee. Thus, you’ll want to bring the biggest vehicle you have available (i.e. a pickup truck or a van) or consider renting one.
• When you’re moving a piece of furniture home from a flea market, you’ll want to take all the packing precautions you normally would when moving furniture. Before you head out to the flea market, make sure to bring a few old boxes, blankets, tarps, tape, twine, bubble wrap and a box cutter with you for the ride home.
• People selling antiques out of the back of van usually don’t take MasterCard or Visa. When you’re going to a flea market, bring cash.
• Don’t be afraid to bargain. Flea market vendors expect it, and with a little negotiation inexpensive items can become even cheaper.
• When perusing home furnishings, try to think outside the box. You might not want to eat off that set of ceramic dishes, but they might make colorful, unique wall hangings.

For a decade, high housing prices made it hard for people to stay in the state, even if they wanted to. But falling house prices and increased hiring are enticing former Californians to come home, moving company officials said.

“I think the people realize that when we move back to California, we’re never going to have interest rates or (house) prices this low,” said Linda Oakley, owner of Atlas Transfer and Storage Co. in Poway, affiliated with Allied Van Lines. “We want to live in California, where it’s warm and sunny and happy.”

Indeed, 2,926 more families moved into California than moved out of it, the third-highest figure of any state or Washington, D.C., according to the combined data of Atlas Van Lines Inc., United Van Lines LLC and Allied Van Lines Inc. For years, California had seen more households moving out than in. In 2007, Atlas’ data indicated that trend had reversed, but it didn’t turn around in Allied’s data until 2011.

U-Haul International Inc., which doesn’t provide the same type of data, said it helped move 5.6 percent more people into California than out of it, according to spokeswoman Ashleigh Wagner.

Wagner also had some local data from U-Haul: Between January and November 2011, it helped 1 percent more people move out of Escondido than in, it helped 1.9 percent more people move into Oceanside than out, and it helped 11.5 percent more people move into Temecula than out.

U-Haul, United and Atlas represent 40 percent of the moving market, and Allied is private so there is no market data available, according to Boston-based market analyst Pell Research.

By the raw numbers, California had the third-highest net gain of movers, behind Texas and Florida, but those are all states with large populations. When viewed as a rate, California ranks 13th, with 0.23 moves per 1,000 households. Washington, D.C., ranked first by this metric, with a net of 2.68 incoming moves per household, almost four times that of No. 2-ranked North Carolina (see this article online for the complete table).

Illinois had the highest rate of departing families among the 50 states plus the district, losing 0.91 families per 1,000 households. New Jersey and Connecticut had the next two highest rates.

California has long seen more people leaving the state as the cost of housing skyrocketed. By 2007, the median house price in North San Diego County peaked at $639,000, and it peaked in 2006 in Southwest Riverside County at $420,000, according to a North County Times analysis of transactions in the two counties. Those prices plummeted 38 percent and 50 percent respectively as a real estate bubble imploded and a recession pushed many people out of work. As of December’s data, the nation had added more than 100,000 jobs for six consecutive months, and that trend is reflected in California.

“We’re seeing corporations wanting to hire again,” said David Frank, vice president and general manager of the San Diego office of Alexander’s Mobility Services, an Atlas affiliate. “We’re seeing technology companies wanting to get ahead of the game. Even if they’re not selling product yet, they’re hiring designers and those kinds of jobs. We’re seeing Qualcomm, and Sony, and some of the other companies doing some of the hiring.”

Oakley and other local moving company officials said 2011 had been an up year. Oakley said her business was up 6 percent compared with 2010. Her company moves people all over Southern California, and she said she’s been bringing people in from out of state. Paula Nix, office manager for Eckert’s Moving and Storage in San Marcos, said business was up in 2011, including local moves, although not always for the cheeriest of reasons.

“A lot of them are losing their homes, or they’re just first-time buyers and they’re all excited about getting a new deal on their home,” Nix said.

Nathan Pletcher, an electrical engineer, has enjoyed the tech resurgence. On Friday, Linda Oakley’s movers came to take his belongings out of his Leucadia home to bring them up to Mountain View so he can start work for Google.

He originally came to California from the Midwest. Now he and his wife, Andrea, a teacher, have fallen for California.

“We both like California a lot, we like to do stuff outdoors, we like all the opportunities California offers, oceans and mountains and stuff like that,” Pletcher said the day before Oakley’s company came to take his stuff away.

Of course, that’s all common sense. But did you know you don’t have to go down the post office to get the change of address form? Read over the following tips to make sure that when you move your mail will be moving with you:

Before you’ve even begun your relocation, head down the post office and take a minute to fill out the US postal service’s official change of address form (also known as PS form 3575; if you don’t see them out, just ask a clerk).

The most important part of filling out the US postal service’s change of address card is including your old address and your new address. However, it’s also vital you remember to include the names of anyone else who is moving with you. If you only include your name, your husband / wife’s mail won’t follow you.

If you don’t feel like waiting in line at the post office you can have your mail forwarded from the comfort of your own computer by completing a short form at the US postal service’s address change webpage .

Think you’re done? Sorry, nothing involving official government documents is ever that easy. Turning in your change of address form to the post office only means that your mail will be forwarded for a limited time. First class mail – letters and such – are forwarded for one year. Periodicals – newspapers and magazines – are only forwarded for 60 days. After the forwarding period expires, anything that arrives for you will either be sent to the post office’s dead-letter room or stay with whoever’s moved into your old place.

If you’re a college student who is relocating to a new school (either for the summer or for good) check with the campus mail service to see what their mail forwarding policies are. Colleges and universities have their own delivery systems, separate from the post office, and usually their own forwarding policies.

To keep receiving your mail after the US postal service stops forwarding it, you need to send out change of address cards to everyone you do business with. These change of address cards are available at the post office for free.

Most of the bills you receive – from your utilities, your credit card company, your insurance carrier – have a section where you can update your address information. Take advantage of it and you’ll save yourself a little trouble down the road.

Keeping track of who you’ve given your new address to and who still needs it can get pretty confusing pretty quickly. Make a checklist of all the companies that need your address (don’t forget the IRS) and all the friends and relatives you want to keep in touch with before you start mailing anything out. Keep your change of address checklist after you’ve moved into your new home, so if a few months down the road you can’t find your current phone bill, you’ll know exactly why.

Every dining room is set up differently. If you follow packing procedures, you could save yourself a headache and a ton of money.

Here is what you will need to get started:

• Bubble wrap
• Tape
• Marker
• Furniture blankets
• Stretch wrap
• Old newspapers
• Assortment of Boxes
• Packing Paper
• Wrapping Paper

Now that you have all your supplies, let’s get started!

Packing the Dining Table
Packing the dining table is probably one of the first pieces of furniture that you should get out of the way. It will provide you with more space to maneuver and while providing you with a sense of accomplishment. Start with furniture blankets and bubble wrap for the dining table. These supplies will help you to avoid scratches and dents during the moving process.

Packing the Chairs
Now that you have taken care of the dining room table, it is time to move on to the dining room chairs. Packing chairs can be complicated because the legs are typically the easiest part to break. Make sure to wrap extensions, rails or bars from chairs with bubble wrap. These parts of the chair are most vulnerable to getting caught between doors or even worse, broken during travel. You can now wrap the rest of the chair with stretch wrap to prevent any marks from the main part of the chair.

Packing Plates and Utensils
Packing dinnerware should be lightest part of packing the dining room. It may not take a lot of heavy lifting, but if not handled properly, it could cause some havoc. Keep in mind, you are packing a box full fragile items that can be easily broken.

When you are loading silverware and glass, it is essential to make sure you fill all sides of the box with bubble wrap and paper padding. Securing each side of the box will protect any type of impact that may occur before, during, or after the move.  Individually wrap plates and glasses to avoid breakage during the move. When loading the boxes, remember to pack heavy to light. Heavier items on the bottom will prevent crushing lighter items but more importantly, items falling out from under you.

Congratulations! You’ve finished the dining room. Hopefully you’ve taken a moment to account for each box by labeling it “Fragile”. Although every dining room is different, understanding the basics of packing up will help with other items that were not discussed.

Texas may be holding on to the Magnet State title, but the Allied Van Lines’ 44th Annual Magnet States Report released today shows California enjoying a position on the inbound list after more than a decade on the outbound.

For the seventh year in a row, Texas eclipsed every other state and took the lead as the No. 1 magnet state in 2011 based on Allied’s report, which tracks U.S. migration patterns.

Texas realized the highest net relocation gain (inbound moves minus outbound moves performed by Allied Van Lines, one of the world’s largest moving companies but its momentum is slowing. In 2009, Texas attracted nearly 2,000 families; in 2010, that number dropped to 1,640. Last year, the margin narrowed again as its total net gain dropped again to 1,556.

Florida moved higher in the rankings with a net gain of 809 moves, capturing second place from last year’s title holder, Colorado. South Carolina, Colorado and newcomer Oregon rounded out the top five states.

The biggest surprise on the inbound list clocks in at number seven – California. With about a decade on the outbound list (and as the No. 1 outbound state in 2006 and 2004), California has made a strong leap to the inbound list.

“It’s not surprising that California has made such a dramatic turnaround and has once again become a strong inbound state,” said Brook Taylor, Deputy Director at the California Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development. “California has seen an increase in company expansions, resulting in strong overall job growth. In the last year, one out of every 6 new jobs created in the U.S. was created in California which is more than any other state in the nation.”
Allied Van Lines agents have seen the shift as well. “People are realizing that living in California is finally affordable and they’re jumping on that bandwagon. We’ve had customers that we’ve moved out of state that have called us back to say, ‘I want to come home,’” said Linda Oakley, vice president of Atlas Transfer and Storage, an Allied Van Lines agent.

California also secured its title once again as “most mobile state,” as well, with more than 12,000 interstate moves with the highest volume of inbound and outbound shipments by international mover Allied Van Lines.

“2011 is certainly a turning point year for California,” said Bill Lyon, Vice President and General Manager, Allied Van Lines. “Overall, Allied Van Lines has seen modest growth this year, and we see the news from California as a bellwether for positive movement in the future for states that have seen hard times in this economy.”

Outbound States
Illinois usurped the title of top outbound state with the highest net relocation losses (more outbound than inbound shipments), followed by Pennsylvania, Michigan, New Jersey and New York – all part of the top 5 outbound states in 2010. Illinois lost ground this year, with a net loss of 1,198 moves out of state, versus 2010 losses of 1,050. Michigan, the No. 1 outbound state in 2010, had a net loss of 900 moves, an improvement over last year’s 1,149 outbound moves. Pennsylvania, New Jersey and New York rounded out the bottom five, with net relocation losses of 940, 841 and 669, respectively.

In the process of searching for a moving company, movers are often asked if they are moving interstate or intrastate and not everyone knows how to respond. The benefit of being educated when it comes to your move is avoiding possible scams and more importantly knowing your rights during your move. Knowing what type of move you are performing accompanied with the laws and regulations can save you so much time, energy, and money.  If you are not sure between the two types of moves, we’ve broken down both moves.

What is an Interstate Move? – When you are performing an interstate move, you are essentially moving or transporting goods in and out of state lines not excluding international moves.

Interstate moves are governed by FMCSA (Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration) rules and regulations. It is considered an interstate move if it involves a long distance moving company crossing a state line at any point during the move. Although the actual moving truck or van doesn’t cross state lines, it is still considered an interstate move because your goods have.

What is an Intrastate Move? – Intrastate moves consist of movers completing a move without crossing the border of another state.

Intrastate or local movers are not regulated by the FMCSA. Rules that apply to interstate moves are completely different from intrastate. Moving within a state means that you will have to understand the terms and conditions of moving as they change based on the state you reside in. Rules and regulations are outlined by the individual states and should be researched properly. Some states have more stringent licensing and monitoring guidelines than others.

Although you may be completing an intrastate move, your moving company can charge a long distance fee. Before choosing a licensed mover, make sure you aren’t hit with fees you weren’t made aware of. Understand your rights and verify licensing with each moving company before choosing. For more information on state guidelines, contact your state agency.

The relocation went extremely well.  The gentlemen Johnny that delivered my belongings in Richmond, CA was one of the most courteous, willing to do whatever it took to make the customer-happy-type individual.  I have extremely high praises for him and I hope you can pass along this recognition.  Eddie & his group were a pleasure to work with as well.

I appreciate your team’s professionalism and excellent service.  I hope to use you in the future should another move arise.

Best Regards,

Anand Vairavan