A NEW RELATIONSHIP:
Are you moving in with your partner?
Your projects and life as a couple will involve a lot of planning and joint projects, such as making a budget, finding a new place to live, sorting your belongings and your partner’s, packing them, moving them, then setting up and decorating your new home.
There are lots of good reasons why you should move in together—like mutual support, wanting to spend more time together, and cutting down on the time and expense of commuting. There are financial advantages too, like saving money on rent and basic expenses.
Here’s an outline of the steps you’ll likely have to follow when you move in together.
Inventory
The first step is inventorying the contents of your two apartments. Keep in mind that all the unessential things you’re keeping will increase the cost of your move, plus take up space in your new home. Start by listing any duplicates—items that you both have. Then figure out what you can get rid of—what you’d like to sell and what you can give away. You can consider storing duplicates for a few months: long enough to realize whether you’re enjoying your new living arrangement. Advertise any furniture or articles you want to sell as soon as possible so that they’re more likely to be sold before you move.
Then determine whether you have any furniture that might be too big to fit into your new home.
Also make sure that the things you’re both taking along look good together. You may have different tastes and different opinions about what you should keep or get rid of. Let’s just say that this can be a thorny issue, so try to be tactful!
Sort Your Belongings
Though it’s tedious and time-consuming, this is a necessary evil. It’s actually the perfect opportunity for you to sort through things and get rid of all those objects and souvenirs you’ve needlessly accumulated over the years. You’ll find you and your partner have a lot of the same things, like kitchenware and bedclothes, in both of your apartments.
Make a Budget
Drawing up a budget is an essential step so you know what you can afford to spend on rent or a mortgage. The budget you make with your partner can include the rent (or mortgage), electricity, Internet, groceries, the car(s), insurance (home and automobile), and a given amount for a vacation.
Don’t get blindsided by all the other costs related to your move or to fixing up your new home: curtains, blinds, lamps, paint, taxes on your home’s purchase price, etc.
Figure Out How Much Space You Need
Is you partner moving into your place, are you moving into theirs, or are the two of you moving somewhere else? There are several things to consider, such as the commute involved for either or both of you, neighbourhood amenities (a park, daycare, schools, grocery stores, drugstores, the distance to public transportation and/or bike paths). Find a place you feel is right for you in a neighbourhood that you like. When you visit your potential new home, take the time to wander around the area it’s in.
Ultimately, determine the maximum amount you can or want to spend and make it clear what your priorities are. Also decide what minimal conditions your new living space has to satisfy.
Plan Your Move(s)
Whether you’re moving into your partner’s home or they’re moving into yours, you’ll have to deal with one person moving all their stuff. If you’ve found a new place, then you’ll have to coordinate the two moves. You can rent a truck and ask your friends and/or family for help, or you can hire professional movers.
Settle In & Decorate Your New Pad!
Once the moving is done, you’ll still have to unpack your things and figure out how to combine your belongings, arrange the furniture and decide which decorations go where.
Contact Us
Call us or fill out our online questionnaire. Our team can recommend solutions so you can store everything that doesn’t fit into your new shared home. We have units ranging in size from 25 to 200 square feet.
1215 Mini-Entrepôts is the biggest self-storage facility on the South Shore of Montreal. We offer very competitive rates, starting at just $50 a month. Our facilities are equipped with a hi-tech security system and state-of-the-art surveillance cameras. With your key card, you can safely access your belongings around the clock, 7 days a week, every day of the year. Our storage facilities are heated and pest-free.