Moving is a Special Event

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May 22, 2018

We all need help at times with big and complicated events. Many people, for example, hire a wedding planner to organize and manage a wedding. Or they seek help from a catering company for a splashy event that requires food and entertainment. Now, they are discovering they can obtain expert help with one of life’s toughest challenges – the complicated and stressful task of moving, or downsizing – by enlisting the services of a professional moving concierge.

Moving is a special event – and hiring a moving concierge to organize and orchestrate this event is the best way to reduce the strain of getting ready for the big day, while keeping “all the balls in the air” during the actual move. Unaware of this service, some people hire interior designers to help them pack and move, or used their cleaning staff. Designers and cleaning staff may be terrific — but they are not professionally, insured packers and they are not professionally trained to manage special events and life-altering transitions. A moving concierge is a trained professional, insured and bonded, who is a specialist in helping to organize all items for a move and to orchestrate the entire moving event.

Who hires a moving concierge? Couples, families and older individuals, to name a few. Busy working professionals and second-home owners who are too busy to coordinate all the ins and outs of getting the second home ready benefit from professional moving concierge services.

Some moving concierge companies, like mine, are members of the National Association of Senior Move Managers. The National Association of Senior Move Managers (www.NASMM.org) and their members specialize in the needs of moving seniors and in helping their families with all that is involved in a life transition.

In future Moving Concierge columns, I’ll introduce you to people who have used moving concierge services. I’ll share some secrets about how my clients are able to sell things that they no longer want – with options including estate sales, consignment shops, live auctions, online auctions and buy-outs. I’ll offer expert insights about appraising things for sale and for insurance purposes. You will learn the kinds of clothing, jewelry and accessories that are perfect to sell as “vintage,” and what designers and items are most sought-after by boutique consignment clothing shops. I will share with you the insights of wine experts on the challenges of moving expensive fine wine, and we will explore different ways to sell gun collections. Of course, each move is unique and presents its own special challenges!

You will meet May and Bob, from South County, Rhode Island, who moved from a large family estate in Narragansett to a lovely condo in South County and to a “new” second home near Charlestown, South Carolina. After weeks of organizing, I successfully used an online auction to help them sell the many treasures they no longer needed, while having what they truly wanted packed and moved to two locations.

You will read about Sharon, who in her full and interesting home had a collection of obscure but highly valuable movie posters. Now, after she received my help in sorting out, organizing and packing her belongs before moving from the Boston area to Chicago, her posters are successfully getting top dollar through an Internet auction.

In future issues, I’ll share my insights on where to begin when thinking about moving out of a home of many years. Where does one start when a family has been in a house 40, 50 or 60 years?! I’ll talk about the challenges of moving, all the sorting and organizing, after the death of a spouse. I will explore ways a moving concierge service could help in a divorce situation.

The next time you hear someone talking about a move say, “We don’t even know where to begin!,” you will know what to suggest – that they talk to a moving concierge.

By Valerie Achorn
President of Simplified Lives

By Valerie Achorn

Valerie Achorn, M.P.A., President of Simplified Lives has many years of experience managing moves for clients around the country. Holding a Master’s Degree in Public Administration (M.P.A.) from Harvard University, Valerie brings a broad management background and savvy networking skills to Simplified Lives.

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