While moving to a new home brings its fair share of optimism and excitement, for children it can be a challenging process involving leaving their friends, school, and familiar environments behind. As parents, one of the priorities while moving should be to ensure a smooth transition for their child. Additionally, with other responsibilities such as packing and hiring professionals looming over your head, it’s easy to see how this process can quickly become tedious and stressful. The Dallas-Fincham Team is here to help you in this process and explores various simple steps you can take for creating a seamless moving experience for everyone involved. 

Have Clear Communication with your Children 

From the moment you decide on moving, communicate the same to your kid(s). While some kids may take it in their stride, others will require time to make peace with the idea of moving. They may ask multiple questions, be resistant to change, and be visibly frustrated. The key in this scenario is to explain the reason for the move, whether it be for work, moving closer to a family member, etc.

Make a Concrete Moving Plan

An effective way to prepare children for moving is to provide them with fixed timelines. This involves the exact date for moving, location of your new home, who all will be living with them (grandparents, pets, etc.). Additionally, to prepare them for the new environment focus on the positives it will bring, such as:

• Better amenities their new school has, for example, larger playgrounds, sports fields, etc.

• Unique features of the new neighborhood such as parks, malls, movie theatres, etc.

• Different seasons and natural landscapes they will experience.

If possible, take your kids for a site visit to their new home. Give them a tour of the property and help them visualize how it will feel like living there. Show them their new room, drive around the neighborhood, visit a local restaurant and give them reasons to be excited about the move.

Maintain Your Daily Routines

As the moving day looms closer, you will find yourself spending more time packing and getting everything in order. But, during this time it’s important to focus on avoiding disturbances to your child’s routine such as meal times, bedtime routines, play, etc. Following routines will help keep their stress and anxiety levels low, making the process a lot easier for everyone. 

Keep Your Finances in Order

It’s no secret that buying a home is expensive, but that doesn’t mean it has to be complex. Before purchasing your home, create a budget to ascertain how much you can afford from your savings and investments. For the remaining balance, opt to apply for a conventional loan. As reported by PennyMac, conventional loans are low-cost and provide individuals flexibility in choosing their desired down payment amount and interest rates (adjustable/fixed rates).

Additionally, those who provide a 20% downpayment are exempt from buying mortgage insurance and are eligible for favorable mortgage terms. 

Move in an Organized Manner

As reported by ShieldMovers, the fastest and effective way to move is by hiring professional movers. In addition to transporting your belongings, movers also assist in packing and unpacking all your goods. Moreover, movers allow you to ensure your goods and take full responsibility to keep your belongings safe during travel.

Moving day can be a stressful ordeal for kids. If possible, arrange for a babysitter or a family member to take care of them while the movers are at work. Depending on how far you are moving, you can allow your child to stay with a family member until you have completed unpacking and made the house liveable.  

Help Your Kids to Settle In

The first few days in a new home will be challenging for kids. Here are a few ways to help them adjust:

• Use the same linens, curtains, and furniture in their room to provide a sense of familiarity.

• Allow your child to decorate the room by creating paintings, re-adjusting furniture, buying new toys, etc.

• Give extra attention and love helping them to overcome stress.

When moving with children it's important to prioritize their needs and focus on making the process as organized as possible at every step. 

Author: Alexis Hall