Tips for moving into an apartment
Apartment living comes with its own set of benefits and challenges, and we suggest you plan to take on any potential challenges in advance. When moving into an apartment, consider the following:
Book the elevator in advance to ensure you aren’t competing with another incoming (or outgoing) resident.
The elevator booking time is often a relatively short window (around two hours). If you can move any smaller items ahead of time—like a suitcase or a plant—take advantage of the opportunity and save the elevator booking for the big furniture. If you’re moving into a walk-up, the more help you have, the better! Measure large items like couches and make sure they’ll be able to take the corners in the stairwell, as well as fit through the door.
Make sure your furniture is going to fit.
Sketch out a floor plan of the apartment and where you want everything to go. If you’re downsizing and you absolutely must keep your sectional, be sure to measure each piece, the apartment door, and its final destination. Opt for easy-to-assemble/disassemble furniture if possible to make it easier to get the item into the elevator and into your new place.
Plan out your storage locker/storage room if you have one.
There’s nothing like moving into a new apartment and throwing any ‘excess’ items haphazardly into a locker or storage room, never to be easily located again. Pick up some shelves and organize your things into bins in advance (tools in the toolbox, hockey equipment in a bin, crafting supplies in another). This way you don’t have to clutter up your new apartment and you can quickly access anything when you need to.
Label boxes clearly, and identify one location in each room to drop them off.
If you’re limited for space, it can be frustrating to bring in a piece of furniture and then have to immediately cover it with boxes. To keep everything accessible and safe, put boxes together in one corner of each room so you can go through them one by one later. Consider labeling the most important boxes with a different colour tape or marker (like red) so you can make sure they go on top and get unpacked first.
Let your moving company know about the points above!
It will help everything go even more smoothly. Inform your movers of the hours you’ve booked the elevator (or if there is no elevator), if there is any awkward-sized furniture, and if you have any special instructions for where boxes or other items should be dropped off. Be sure to clearly label fragile items!
