When Mary, who is 87, decided to move to a senior living community, she knew she would need help. She had been in her condominium for 40 years. Once the condo was listed for sale, there was an accepted offer within days.
Mary had 40 years worth of belongings to sort and a month in which to do it. She hired A Bridge Forward to help with the downsizing, move coordination, packing, unpacking and setting up of her new apartment. “I never could have done this without A Bridge Forward,” she says.
Here’s what the Bridge Forward team did help Mary achieve a successful move:
Timeline: Collaborate with Mary and the senior community to determine the move date and then schedule all premove activities.
Inventory: Create a detailed Inventory of the furniture, household items and decor that will be moved to the new home
Floor plan: Take apartment measurements and make a floor plan to make sure everything being moved will fit in the new space.
Sort and downsize: Label and sort items to be moved, donated, given to family or friends or sold.
Sell: Work with partners to determine the best option for selling furniture, collectibles and artwork that won’t be moved. Select movers: Using the detailed inventory, obtain price estimates for the move and schedule the selected mover. Take the first move of the day so that Mary can be moved and unpacked the same day, minimizing disruption to her schedule.
Pack: The day before the move, prep and pack all items to be moved.
Move: On the day of the move, pack any last minute items, oversee the loading and unloading of the truck. Supervise placement of furniture in Mary’s new apartment.
Set Up: Unpack all boxes, put belongings away so that they are as similar as possible to the way they were arranged in the former home. Make the bed. Hang the shower curtain. Set up the coffee pot. Make sure the cable and Wi-Fi is connected. Break down the moving boxes and remove all packing materials.
Donate: Work with charitable organizations to determine which items left behind can be donated and schedule the pick up.
Final Clean-Out: Coordinate with partners to pick up all remaining items that were not moved, sold or donated.
There often are other details along the way that the move management team handles to make sure the move is as stress free as possible. While many clients need support throughout the entire process, some clients only want help with some of the steps. A Bridge Forward offers customized solutions to meet each client’s needs. To learn more about our approach to senior move management, check out our website: bridgeforwardmoving.com.