You’ve signed the papers, you have the keys. Now all you need is to take that final step and move all your belongings to your new place. It’s easy to get caught up in the excitement but before you begin, take some time to make sure you have everything covered.

1. Lists are your friends
Create checklists of all the stuff you’re taking with you. The last thing you want is to have to take multiple trips just because you forgot an item or two. To save on paper, you can keep an electronic checklist but it might be worth having a printed copy for convenience. Your phone could run out of battery or you might want a spare to give to your movers.

As a visual aid, consider printing out your floor plan and marking which boxes or furniture go where prior to moving. It’s a great time-saver and ensures less chaos later once you start unpacking everything.

2. Sort out subscriptions and bills
Before you leave, make sure utilities are paid and that you have disconnected your Internet, phone and cable TV at the old place. Don’t leave it too late and have to keep sorting it out after you’ve moved.

3. Take advantage of the move to declutter
With the time and expense involved, consider whether you really need to take everything with you. Recycle broken items, gift or sell working items that you haven’t used in years. By sticking to the essentials, you also lessen the stress and hassle of moving.

4. Take time to pack and label
It’s tempting to just dump things into bags and suitcases, but make the time to sort and arrange items by where they’re supposed to go. Rather than have items for different rooms in one box, pack them by destination: so you can just move the boxes into the requisite rooms, unpacking later.

Don’t forget to label the boxes with more fragile items, to ensure they don’t get roughhoused in the move. You don’t want to unpack your dinner set only to find it in pieces.

Get good quality boxes; don’t skimp on them. There are services that provide boxes for moving. For further peace of mind, reinforce the sides of the boxes to ensure they remain sturdy.

5. Hire professional movers
Unless all your worldly items can fit into one duffel bag or suitcase, hire professional movers who have both the manpower and a lorry to cart your items. Yes, you can probably dismantle your queen-sized bed and fit it into your car somehow but do you really want to? Let the movers take care of it and you can be free to supervise.

Hiring a big lorry also means you can make fewer trips back and forth, perhaps even needing just one trip instead of several. This is especially convenient if your new place is quite a distance from your old one.

Rent a lorry for your next move at thelorry.com.

6. Be prepared for emergencies
Make sure you have enough cash on hand to handle anything that might come up. Have snacks and drinks handy, ensure that needed medication and first-aid items are easily accessible. You should have one bag with your essentials close by you at all times.

Do your homework, begin planning in advance and by the time your moving day arrives, you can have some peace of mind. That way you can concentrate on just getting the items onto transport without worrying about all the other things you might have forgotten about or still need to handle.

Moving doesn’t need to be stressful if you’re prepared and you hire the right people to help you on your journey to your new home.