Managing a Move During the Pandemic

While slowing the spread of COVID-19 has required Americans to stay at home for more than year, where their homes are is changing rapidly. Since the start of the #pandemic, millions of people have pulled up stakes and #moved permanently.

Some people lost their jobs and were forced to move to save on expenses. Others want to find more space for their new #remote offices and classrooms. And some just want to get out of congested city centers and pursue a more socially distanced lifestyle every day.

If you’re looking at a move in the near future, be forewarned that the coronavirus has (of course) complicated the process. “Every task is just a little bit harder during the pandemic,” says USA Today.

To start, you’ll have to observe the proper sanitizing, masking and distancing precautions with any number of new people, including realtors or leasing agents, movers and storage facilities, and contractors and delivery personnel. And you’ll need them to take antiviral protocols seriously, too.

Look for “companies that require employees and customers to wear masks, detail how they practice social distancing, and can explain what steps they are taking to screen and protect their employees from becoming sick,” The New York Times says.

If you are in the market for a new home, rental and real estate agents are offering video tours to help people scope things out from a distance before they commit. Google’s Street View can also offer a preview of the new neighborhood.

Moving also means packing everything you own into boxes. Whether you’re purposely #downsizing or just trying to #streamline the moving process, weed out the things you won’t need in your new home; there’s no reason to move them.

As the disused clothing, books, small appliances and other household items start to pile up, set them aside in separate boxes and bags and contact ClothingDonations.org for a free, #contactless #donation #pickup. A masked driver will arrive on the appointed day to relieve you of that extra stuff.

Moving is never easy, but moving in pandemic times is that much more difficult. Let ClothingDonations.org help you strike at least one item off your long to-do list — and help you resettle happily in a new location as the pandemic slowly recedes.

The Difference Between Decluttering and Storage

#Decluttering isn’t easy. Even when you find the time to do it and prepare yourself to keep, donate or trash all of the clothes that don’t fit, tchotchkes and other #junk, you can quickly get bogged down in the decision-making.

Many of your possessions will carry memories that make you linger over the decision or leave it for another day. After a few of these quandaries, you may just throw in the towel, shove a bunch of random items in a box and “store” it out of sight.

That is not decluttering — nor is it storage. It’s simply putting off the inevitable.

Storage is for things you use. You may use such things infrequently but regularly, like holiday decorations. You can keep these things from adding to #clutter by sorting it into dedicated, labeled bins and putting the bins in a predictable out-of-the way location.

You also have things you use frequently that need to be stored. Think of your kitchen cabinets and closets; they already hold any number of items that you’ll usse this week, maybe multiple times.

When you have #stuff that doesn’t have a “home,” however (meaning its own drawer, shelf, bin, box or display), you have #clutter. And as a result, any serious decluttering is going to involve a lot of #organizing.

So your goal in decluttering is really twofold: to weed out anything that you don’t use, and to make sure that anything you do use has a place. This is a tall order, the Organizing Blog is well aware.

Start small with a single closet, kitchen cabinet or desk drawer. Figure out what kinds of things should “live” there, and separate out anything that’s broken, disused or just in the wrong place. You can toss, donate, and relocate or store these items, respectively.

Leave only what you know you use frequently in immediate-access locations — and if you don’t use something frequently in its current location, find a place where it can stay until you need it. Otherwise, it will just get in the way.

Once you’ve organized and/or stored the #stuff you use, contact ClothingDonations.org for a free, contactless #donation #pickup if — er, when — you want to get rid of the lightly used clothing and household items you don’t. We’ll help find them new homes, and help veterans at the same time.

Donation Pickups Continue

ClothingDonations.org had to temporarily suspend #donation #pickups early in the #pandemic, but we’re back and better than ever! You can still donate your extra clothing, baby items, small appliances, kitchenware, furniture and electronics from the comfort and safety of your home. Just schedule a contactless pickup online and place the boxed and bagged items in the designated location that morning. A masked driver will collect your extra stuff and leave a receipt for your records.

Wash Clothing Before Donating

The #coronavirus is thought to have a lifespan of less than one day on porous surfaces such as fabrics, according to epidemiologists. But if you wish to #donate lightly used clothing and are concerned that your items could be contaminated with #COVID-19, Best Life says you should wash them before #donating. Use regular detergent and the warmest washer and dryer settings you can safely use on the items, then bag them up and contact ClothingDonations.org for a free, contactless #donation pickup.

Surfaces No Longer of Great Concern

Scientists have learned a lot in the year since COVID-19 first began to spread in the United States. For one thing, the coronavirus doesn’t last very long on hard surfaces, Nature says, so the risk of catching it through touch is low. That means you can safely #donate clothing, books and household goods to a #charity like you did before the #pandemic. And pickups are safer than ever; when you schedule ClothingDonations.org, a masked driver will collect your used goods from your porch with a free, contactless pickup.