Moving in Singapore: Tips and Tricks to Keep Mamas Sane with Crosstown Moves

Moving in Singapore may seem daunting to some, but fret not mamas! Mama Angelyn shares tried and tested tips from her recent move.

My family has moved houses four times, not including holding up temporarily while waiting for our houses to be renovated. From just the two of us in our first tiny apartment in Kembangan, we moved to Siglap Village, then to Tanjung Rhu after we fell in love with an apartment overlooking the water and park, and finally with two small kids in tow, we have recently relocated to our fourth house in a vibrant enclave in the East, Joo Chiat!

To win, one must becomes ruthless. I am talking about overcoming the mountains of things our family of four has accumulated over the past five years. My children, aged 2 and 5, have many books and toys shared between them which is quite scary. And the sheer amount of my clothing from before the children came along that I still kept – promising myself that I would fit into it once again, soon enough – is even scarier.

I decided to adopt this method of separating everything into three groups – Keep, Donate and Throw. Attempt this in one room at a time when you are fully focused. Play some music if you need to, because it definitely helped me feel happy putting things in the donate and throw bins. It’s time to detach yourself from what you have in the old house, mamas! Sorting things out helps declutter and besides, keeping only those things your family needs will help lessen the amount of things to bring over to your new place.

Read more: Expert Advice on how to create a clutter-free kid’s room

Now that the clothing load is lighter, it is time to organise and transfer, mamas! Consider putting clothes in labelled clear bins. It is easier to identify what’s in the bins apart from labels because you can peep through the plastic. No more pouring things out just to see or find things that are inside cartons. Invest in a good labelling machine to label different sizes of bins, bags of items or bundles of wires and plugs. However, if you only have cartons, consider using different coloured labelling tapes for different people or rooms or categories or purposes for easier identification. Coloured permanent markers can do an equally good job.

Put lighter things in large bins and heavier things in smaller bins if possible. For example, clothing in large bins and heavy books in smaller bins for easier transfer. It is best to coordinate the bins by rooms so that your mover can identify and put them directly where they belong. All you need to do after that is unpack and organise them! These clear bins can be reused in your store room after putting them neatly in shelves.

For wardrobe, mamas, you can use clear clothing covers for easier transfer. Bunching five hanging clothing items still in their hangers in one cover after tying them together with rubber bands proved so much easier for us. Once we were in the new house, we could hang them directly in the wardrobe in batches. You will finish the task before you know it!

Get a reliable mover; check out Sassy Mama’s guide to the best moving companies in Singapore for starters. Believe me, mamas, it will save you a lot of headaches down the road. A professional mover will come to your house before the move to see what you want them to transfer to the new place, and they can also provide packing supplies to help with your packing. They will liaise with your condominium’s management and pay the security deposit. They will also wrap your bulky items and help with dismantling your furniture and putting it all back together again at your new house. To say nothing of all that heavy lifting! Whew! So much load off your shoulders!

Finally, don’t forget to make a list of companies that need to be updated with your new address, such as banks, insurance companies, water and electricity providers as well as your Internet and cable services.

The key to an effective move is to identify the many bins or boxes easily in order to bring them to where they belong. After all, with young children you just want to organise everything as quickly as possible so that you can focus on settling them in and getting them used to the new home. Give yourself a pat on the back because you know you have done well, mama. Good luck!