Tips for Relocating During a Pandemic
Buying a new home or searching for a new apartment can be stressful. Add in a pandemic and it takes that stress to another level. You would think that home buying would be down with COVID-19 and everything else that has been going on, but the reverse is actually true. According to Zillow, home sales growth is the highest it’s been in 40 years.
If you’re moving this year or in the near future, here are some tips for navigating the relocation process during COVID-19.
Expect Competition
Again, the demand for homes hasn’t slowed down because of the pandemic. Zillow forecasted ”a 21.9% annual growth for a total of almost 6.9 million homes sold” in 2020. If you’re getting ready to bid on a home, make sure your offer is close to (or matches) the listing price. You can consider writing a letter to the seller to let them know your circumstances during the pandemic and it’s possible it might help your case.
Store Belongings While You Search
It’s helpful to have flexibility during your pandemic home search and storing your belongings in a secure facility can help you keep your options open. For starters, you get more time to decide on where you want to live and pick the perfect living arrangements. You’re also in a better position for home offers and you have less stress knowing your belongings are secured.
Try to See the Home In Person
Virtual tours are great (especially during a pandemic), but try to see the home in person if you’re really serious about it. Video tours can’t show you everything and you can’t replicate the experience of physically viewing the prospective home yourself. Also keep in mind that the seller’s agent is incentivized to gloss over items in the home that you may consider an issue.
Choose a Flexible Moving Company
This might be the most important tip. The right moving company can make or break your pandemic relocation. The best residential moving companies will be open with communication, flexible with scheduling, friendly when it comes to customer service and experienced with a variety of unexpected scenarios that could pop up.
Start Preparing Now
Finally, start organizing and preparing for your move now opposed to having the burden of this planning as your schedule increasingly becomes more hectic. You never know when a new job offer is going to pop up or other pandemic-related circumstances happen. Try to pack as many unnecessary items as you can and start preparing your labels/spreadsheets. The less you have to worry about as moving day approaches, the better.