
Moving to a new home often means that you will be parting not only with your current home but with some of your belongings too. And alas, sometimes deciding what to keep and what to part with can be a real challenge. In fact, for some, relocation can be a bit of a maze where every decision seems wrong. Here is how to find your way out, applying some smart moving decisions and optimizing the process.
Smart Moving Decisions: How to choose a destination to relocate?
The main and perhaps most important decision when it comes to relocating is choosing the right location to set up your life. Ask yourself questions related to your goals. Is relocating related to your career or on the contrary, you want to find a peaceful destination where you can dedicate yourself to yourself and your hobbies and interests. Are you a lover of different cultures or are you more of a traditionalist? The answers to these questions will help you determine whether you should move abroad or opt for a destination in your home country. Here are the other criteria involved in deciding where to move:
Working climate
As we have already hinted, in many cases relocation is linked to the pursuit of a dream job. In case you are looking for a prosperous job, research the countries (or cities) offering the best working conditions in the industry you are targeting. Be sure to gather information on salary levels, inflation rates, unemployment, standard of living, prices of basic commodities, and opportunities for benefits such as training, bonuses, supplemental health insurance, and paid time off.
Availability of friends and relatives
Among the smart decisions related to relocation is to head to a destination where your friends or relatives already live. This will make your adaptation much easier. This is especially true when it comes to relocating abroad, which often leads to culture shock, stress, and feelings of isolation. The role of relatives and friends cannot be underestimated when it comes to relocating to a new city, as you will have someone to rely on if necessary.
Culture
Thinking smart about relocating, it's worth mentioning the culture of your chosen country. This includes aspects such as the language, traditions, cuisine and even the way locals communicate and spend their leisure time. Make sure you choose a country where communication with the locals will not be difficult. Or if you're up for a challenge and you've set your sights on a country with a completely unfamiliar language, then roll up your sleeves and start your language courses before the actual move.
Attitude towards expats
Some countries are more expat-friendly and boast large expat communities. Examples include England, Germany, Belgium, and Spain. In other countries (especially smaller ones) the attitude towards expats is more reserved. Make sure that before you plan to relocate, you have familiarised yourself with the conditions for relocation, the length of residency allowed, your rights and obligations as a citizen of another country.
Smart Moving Decisions: Step-by-step planning
Smart relocation decisions are also about planning the individual steps of the process. It will save you time, minimize stress and reduce the risk of mistakes:
Start several months in advance
In the initial stages of relocation planning, we advise you to do your research. Consult friends, read online and, if necessary, contact institutions in your chosen country. Investigate factors such as rent prices, education opportunities and working climate. When you start preparing, we advise you to make a list of the different stages of relocation, including:
- Hiring a relocation company
- Selecting a date for a preliminary consultation with the chosen company (and creating a list of important questions)
- Planning relocation costs
- Considering the options for redecorating the new home
Take the time to sort and clear the belongings
This will optimize the volume of your possessions and save you the effort of disassembling furniture, packing and transporting it.
Don't forget the loved ones
Don't underestimate the time needed to prepare your loved ones (in case you are planning a move with your family). Relocating with young children may require you to plan who will take care of them while you pack. If you have a pet, on the other hand, you should take a few hours to prepare the necessary paperwork to travel with the animal and visit the vet to vaccinate your pet if necessary.
Final touches
The final preparations for the relocation include sourcing suitable packing materials, as well as fixing a date on which you will move. Don't forget aspects such as packing, cleaning, and the administrative details of moving out.
Smart Relocation Decisions: Decluttering
Decluttering before moving into your new home is necessary and advisable for many reasons, including:
You rent a smaller vehicle and save money
Pre-parting with unnecessary, old and unusable items is among the smart moving decisions that will reduce the costs associated with transporting your belongings.
You start fresh
By parting with some of your belongings, you are making a fresh start in life and parting with the items that bring you negative memories and emotions. For the braver of you, we recommend keeping only the truly necessary items and the belongings with sentimental value. That way you can guarantee yourself a whole new life: home, furniture, clothes, etc.
You appreciate that you don't need a lot of stuff
Often, as we declutter, we realize that we have more items than we need. For example, we find brand new items that we completely forgot about and ended up not using. Parting with some of the items when relocating can inspire you to lead a more minimalist and simplified life.
Give the objects to people who will truly appreciate them
Whether you give your belongings to friends or relatives, or donate them to those in need, one thing is certain—they will be utilized and appreciated.

Smart Relocation Decisions: How to decide what stays and what goes?
Clearing out your items before a move can be laborious and time consuming. Despite the benefits already mentioned, few would part with their belongings lightly. Here's how to make a confident decision regarding what stays and what goes:
Make a checklist with questions: By answering the questions, you can decide whether to part with the item in question. These may include:
- Does it have sentimental value?
- How often do I use it in my daily life?
- Can I use it in different ways/for different purposes?
- Is it easy to find a substitute for the object in question?
- Can I resell it?
- Is it hard to transport?
Your personal belongings
Deciding what to keep and what to part with, in terms of your personal belongings, you can start by cleaning out your closet. Traditionally, clothes are among the items we change most often. As you sort through them, think about which ones are hard to maintain, which ones don't fit you anymore and which ones are out of style. The same goes for your accessories and shoes. When it comes to cosmetics, be especially vigilant about the expiration dates of products and better part with the makeup you've had for years.
Your kid's belongings
Clearing out children's toys and clothes usually happens periodically and not necessarily when you change house. However, before throwing away broken or old toys, make sure the youngest family members don't mind. As for clothes you won't use, make sure you either dispose of them in designated containers or donate them to children in need (or to victims of natural disasters).
Furniture
Smart moving decisions are all about whether you're going to redecorate all or part of your new home. In this respect, you can replace old furniture with new multifunctional furniture or with furniture made of special materials (such as eco fabrics). Or if you decide to transport all your furniture, one of the most practical steps is to rent a large van which you can share with another customer if necessary. This way you will minimize transportation costs, trusting expert help and reducing the risk of damage to the furniture.
Office supplies (office move)
Regarding the transportation of office furniture, we advise you to stock up on a sufficient amount of packing materials. Less is more, but not when it comes to transporting fragile items such as machinery, stationery and office furniture. If you own a small office and are responsible for carrying smaller loads, you could do well with different types of equipment. But when it comes to offices with more than five employees, we recommend that you choose specialists to assist you with relocation.
Smart Moving Decisions: How to reuse the things you no longer need?
Parting with unwanted items doesn't necessarily mean you have to throw them away. In fact, you can use them in a variety of ways, including:
Organize a garage sale
This is an excellent way to say goodbye to your current neighbours by letting them know you're planning a move. Another alternative is to even give the items that are in good condition to people who need them and could use them as part of their furnishings.
Recycle them
Sort the items you have decided to part with according to their material and dispose of them in the containers provided. Take the time to hand in non-working electronics at the designated points. Information on where it is possible to recycle your accessories is available in special mobile apps showing the recycling points.
Use old textiles for cleaning
Old T-shirts and shorts can be useful when cleaning both your new and old home. The same goes for items like pillowcases and sheets.
Reuse old bottles
Turn glass bottles into pots or innovative lighting. In the first option, you need to put soil and seeds in them and then take care of the plant. In the second case, you can put small lights in the bottles and use them to decorate a garden or terrace, for example. You can also use them to make a reading corner.
Hopefully, you can now confidently decide which is worth keeping and which is better to part with. In case you are looking for more smart moving decisions to make your upcoming relocation easier, the Movega Removals team is ready to offer you a personal consultation based on years of experience, more than 2,100 satisfied customers, and working in as many as 33 European countries. Find out more about the services we offer and direct your questions to us now via the available online chatbot feature and our contact form.