Have you just retired and are ready to enjoy the rest of your years free of the daily grind? Maybe you’ve decided you’re in your “golden years” and are ready to take it easy. Perhaps it’s time to escape the harsh winters and live somewhere warm and comfortable. Retiring can open a whole new world of adventures for you if you’re willing to embrace them. Some of these adventures may mean moving, though. Is that a step you’re ready to take? If so, this guide will help you embrace your retirement and prepare to move.

Changes that Come with Retirement

Of course, many changes come when you retire from your job in North Texas. Suddenly, your days are wide open. You don’t have to get up and spend eight hours or more at the office or other job site. For many, this can be a little disorienting at first. You may not know what to do with your time. You may feel listless, bored, and uncertain. 

These are all valid feelings, but you don’t have to let them take over your life. Now is the perfect time to embrace your hobbies or pick up new ones. You can reconnect with friends or make new friends. If you’re married, retirement is the perfect time to rekindle some of your romance. Go out on lunch dates, visit the park, or enjoy doing mundane tasks like shopping together. You’ll find that there are plenty of things you can do during the day, even if it doesn’t seem like it at first.

You’ve spent most of your life working to enrich the various companies you’ve worked for. Now, in your retirement, it’s time to enrich yourself. Many seniors fall back on the old saying of “you can’t teach an old dog new tricks,” but who says that’s true? Why not learn something new now that you have the time? Pick up an instrument, learn to paint, or take classes in literature or history if that interests you. Many colleges will let people audit courses for a small fee, plus some community centers, museums, and other organizations offer classes and seminars. Retirement is the perfect time to jump in and try something new.

Do You Want to Move?

One major change that could come with retirement is moving. Do you want to? Is there any incentive to move now, or do you love your home so much you want to remain in it for as long as you can? There’s no right or wrong answer here. You may decide to stay in your home but, several years later, realize you do want to move. On the other hand, of course, you could make a hasty move and then realize it wasn’t the right decision. Take your time and think about it. 

There are some pros to moving. If all of your children have moved out, your home may simply have too much space. You may want to downsize so there’s less to take care of. If you have a two-story home, you may find that it’s getting more and more difficult to go up and down the stairs. Moving to a single-story home may help take some of the stress off your body. You may even want to look at a retirement community so you don’t have to deal with maintenance or yard work. 

Some people retire and move closer to their families. This can be a great way to play a larger part in your grandchildren’s lives. On the other hand, some actually move farther away. You may decide that North Texas isn’t where you want to spend the rest of your life. Even if it is, you may want to get out of the city and live in a quiet suburban home. 

Moving as a Senior

Moving during your golden years is a little bit different than moving while still raising a family or as a young person. If you’ve lived in your home for a number of years, you may have accumulated a lot of stuff. Some of your possessions may now include furniture and other items you’ve inherited, while some of them may be things your kids left behind when they moved out. Regardless of why it’s in your home, you now have to make the decision: do you move it with you, or do you get rid of it?

The first thing you should do with these items is to decide what you want to keep. This may mean determining where you’re going to move first. If you’re going from a 2500-square-foot home to an 1100-square-foot apartment, you’re going to have to leave a lot behind. On the other hand, if you’re moving to a house that’s comparable in size to the one you currently have, you may have more freedom to pick and choose. You may still decide to replace some things and get rid of others, but you don’t have to worry about everything fitting in your new home.

If you do decide you want to get rid of some things, the first step would be to ask friends and family. Your kids may decide they do want the things they left behind, or they may need some items for their children. If you have pieces you’ve inherited, other family members may like to have them.

What about stuff you don’t want or that is no longer in good condition? For that, you need a junk hauling service. Junk King North Texas can quickly and promptly haul away any old furniture, appliances, or other items you don’t need or want. You can focus on moving the things you want to keep while we get rid of all the stuff that’s not coming with you to your new home.

What Do You Keep?

You may find the first step of deciding what to keep is a little overwhelming. You may have a lot of fond memories attached to many of the things in your home or have kept things for years because you might need them one day. If you try to sort items into a keep and donate pile and only have a few items to donate, you may need a different approach.

First, you can use the one-year rule. If you haven’t used an item or thought about it in a year, do you really need it? Many people use this approach to cleaning out their closets. Any article of clothing they haven’t worn in a year, with some exceptions, can go in the donate pile. Exceptions may be things like a heavy coat if it was unseasonably warm this past year. However, if you’re moving to a warmer area, you may not need to take winter gear with you. Keep that in mind. 

Second, think about whether or not something will be useful to you in your new home. You may have several chairs you want to take, but how often do people actually sit in them? Maybe you have a sofa and multiple armchairs in your living room, but no one ever really sits in one of the chairs. Should it really take up space in your new house? 

Third, do your best to avoid moving items to a storage unit. While that may be a short-term solution if you’ve sold your home and have to move out by a specific date, it can become a money sink over time. If you never deal with the items in the storage unit, you’ll simply be paying every month to keep them somewhere where you don’t even have easy access to them. This can stress your budget, especially if you have a limited retirement income. 

What Junk King Does to Help Your Move

Junk King can assist you in your move by providing a quick, easy solution to junk hauling. If you decide to get rid of some stuff on your own, you really only have two options: you can put it at the curb for the city’s bulk trash pickup or take it to the landfill yourself. The city will often only pick up a few items, and they may only do so once a month. You may have too much to make that an option. 

Taking things to the landfill yourself can also be very difficult. First, you have to have a vehicle big enough to carry furniture and appliances. Second, you have to be able to get the items out to the vehicle and then unload them at the dump. This can be more than you’re capable of, especially if you don’t have anyone to help. 

Junk King handles all of this. We will take items out of your home for you, so all you have to do is point out what you want us to take. As long as it isn’t something classified as hazardous waste, we can get rid of it for you. 

Call Junk King North Texas Today

Want to know more or need a free, no-obligation quote? Call Junk King North Texas today at 1-888-888-JUNK or send us a text to 1-737-888-5865. You can also book online.