When you learn that your neighbors are getting ready to move away, you can either get rather sad (in case those individuals also happen to be friends of yours) or you can rejoice at the news (in case you don’t like or even hate the folks next door for various reasons).
But no matter how you get to feel when you learn that your neighbors are moving away, you’ll have plenty of choices when it comes to what you actually do before they move out. Basically speaking, your actions will depend mainly on the concrete relationship with the people who are moving away.
If you like those folks and you’re on good terms with them, then it’s only natural that you’ll be willing to assist them in any way you can even though you won’t want them to move away.
It’s no secret that moving to a new home is one of the most stressful things a person can experience in life for a number of good reasons. Therefore, your neighbors will probably need all the help they can get during their house move.
On the other hand, if you can’t stand those people or you feel perfectly indifferent to them, then you’re likely to be compelled to do nothing but wait impatiently for them to go away.
To help you respond appropriately to the big relocation news, here are the top 10 things you should do when your neighbors are moving away:
1. Recommend trustworthy movers to your neighbors
Here’s the thing – when you’re on friendly terms with the folks next door, then it’s your moral duty to assist them with whatever you can. It’s fair to assume that they would do the same thing if roles were reversed and you were the one getting ready to move out, right?
One of the best ways to help your neighbors when they are moving away is to recommend a moving company they can actually trust with their belongings. Reliable movers are not easy to find these days, so if you know about a mover that’s really good in terms of dependability, experience, and of course – affordability, then you should definitely recommend the said moving company to the friends who live next door.
In case you can’t recommend an excellent moving company to your neighbors, you should still help them out by telling them what steps they need to follow to find one.
2. Give your neighbors packing supplies you don’t need
As mentioned above, any help your neighbors get during their preparations to move out should be highly appreciated and welcomed by them. Moving to a new place is usually a tough period accompanied by a potent cocktail of strong emotions that can make the whole relocation affair even more challenging than necessary.
When your neighbors are moving out, one nice gesture you can do for them is to offer them any packing materials you may happen to have in your home but you don’t need at that moment in time.
In most cases, they will need cardboard boxes in good condition, preferably in various sizes as well. A single box is not overly expensive but considering that the average number of boxes needed for a house move is 60, then the total price for moving boxes alone can quickly become serious for anyone’s budget.
In addition to packing boxes, feel free to offer your friends next door any amount of bubble wrap or packing paper you may be keeping in storage just in case.
You probably know from personal experience that packing for a move is the most time-consuming task of them all. Basically, the job of packing up a house for a move often starts right after the move is confirmed and ends the day before Moving day or on the Big day itself.
See if your neighbors need some help with packing, especially if you know they are moving in a hurry.
Therefore, if you really wish to help your neighbors during the pre-move preparation period, ask them whether they would like you to help them pack up their things.
Such an offer for packing assistance will be really appreciated in case the people living next to you are performing an emergency move with very little time for proper preparation.
It’s important to note that your neighbors will most certainly decline your kind offer to help them pack unless they are really pressed for time. As a general rule, most people don’t fancy the idea of other people touching their stuff, so they prefer to pack up their things on their own
4. Offer your neighbors help with moving heavy furniture
Unless the neighbors that are moving away are really good friends of yours, you won’t usually be too eager to help them move simply because you’re going to have to invest plenty of time and effort to do so.
But if they are dear friends, then you’ll want to make sure you help them in any way you can. Yes, it’ll be a tough time for everyone since you’ll be losing your friends, but you’ll also be compelled to give them a hand the way they’d do the same for you in a similar situation.
See if the folks next door will need any help lifting, moving, and loading any big and heavy furniture pieces. That’s usually the case when they are moving locally and have decided to organize a self-move rather than rely on professional moving services.
Moving furniture is a tough and dangerous job and that’s exactly why your neighbors will need more people to get it done safely. Just be sure you’re up to the heavy task before you offer your furniture moving services to the friends next door.
5. Offer your neighbors to look after their pets or children on Moving day
Moving days tend to be rather chaotic in nature so one of the ways you can help your neighbors move out (if you’re willing to help them at all) is to ask them whether they need to have somebody to look after their pets or young children on the move-out date.
Remember that young children and pets have no business being around adults when large and heavy furniture pieces are being taken out of the home. It’s a dangerous time for them to be near the epicenter of all move-related action during the most unpredictable period throughout the move.
Basically, there are a couple of scenarios if your neighbors do agree to accept your help: either you go to their place and look after their loved ones in a room away from the house moving activities or you keep an eye on their kids or/and pets in your own place.
That way, your neighbors will be able to focus on the move without having to worry about the safety of their children and pets.
6. Take home-made food to your neighbors on Moving day
Your good neighbors are moving away and that’s a reason enough to make you sad. Not only are you losing precious friends (if they happen to be just that) but you never know exactly who will move into their place and that’s likely to make you anxious as well.
Your neighbors should really appreciate it if you cook something delicious for them on Moving day.
Another way you can help your neighbors on the day of the move is to cook some delicious food and take it to their home so that they can have a proper meal on that crazy-busy day.
They should really appreciate your thoughtful gesture since they will need the energy to survive the move day without any personal injuries or property damage.
The thing is that the friendly neighbors who live next to you won’t have time to prepare any nutritious food on the day of the move. And let’s face it – junk food is not the best “fuel” for a day when a tremendous amount of physical effort and stamina will be needed.
7. Agree to forward your neighbors’ mail, if necessary
As we discussed above, your neighbors are likely to accept any type of help that is offered to them, and that’s quite normal. During a stressful house move, any amount of assistance can make a difference and will contribute to a more successful relocation in general.
Another way you can help your neighbors – provided that you’re on friendly terms with them, of course – is to offer to forward their mail to their new address until the change of address procedure is complete and they no longer receive any pieces of mail to their current place – the place they’re about to leave soon.
Needless to say, if your neighbors remember to change their address prior to moving out, there won’t be a reason for you to have to forward their mail to their new address. But if it turns out that you have to do it for them for a while, then it’s customary that they give you some money in advance to cover the inevitable postage costs.
When your friends next door are getting ready to move out, there won’t be any reason for you to be happy about it. On the contrary, you will most likely feel rather miserable due to the fact that you’re losing your great neighbors.
Their decision to move away is nothing to be cheerful about… but there won’t be anything you can do to change their decision and you probably shouldn’t interfere either. What you can do when your neighbors are moving away is to organize a farewell party for them in your home so that you can have one more fun evening together before they go away.
There are many ways you go about throwing a moving party for your neighbors, including having a lovely BBQ evening in your garden, if possible. The main idea is to have fun together and create happy memories before your paths separate. After all, who knows when you’re going to see each other again, right?
Don’t forget to promise to stay in touch with your friends after the move, even if you suspect it’s unlikely to happen for various reasons.
If you’ve become really good friends with your neighbors over the years and the news of their move has saddened you deeply, then you may want to consider giving them a meaningful farewell gift that they will keep and cherish long after they have moved away.
Thank your neighbors for being terrific by giving them a hand-made farewell gift.
Ideally, the gift should be something you’ve created with your own hands. For example, it can be a painting if you can paint well or it can be another piece of art such as a sculpture or a piece of tapestry.
Also, you can always buy something and personalize it to fit the occasion. Whatever it is that you choose to give your neighbors as a token of your friendship, it must be something that you know they will enjoy and hopefully cherish for years to come.
If you can’t think of anything special to give your neighbors, just find an appropriate postcard – or better yet, create one yourself – and write farewell wishes to your friends.
10. Do absolutely nothing if you can’t stand your neighbors
Sometimes the news that your neighbors are moving away may be the best thing you’ve heard in a long time. This is especially true when you really, really, really dislike your current neighbors simply because they are bad neighbors – rude, ill-mannered, noisy, gossipy, nosy, negligent, stupid, or even dangerous at times.
Nobody has said that you have to like your neighbors. It’s great if you do, but in some cases, you can go as far as hate those people for a number of valid reasons. So, the fact that the folks next door are moving away can be a huge relief for you.
Thus said, if your bad neighbors have decided to leave the neighborhood or the town or city altogether, then you don’t really need to do anything but wait for them to be gone. The thing is that you can only hope that the next people to move in there are not going to be even worse.
Once your bad neighbors are gone, feel free to celebrate the happy occasion the way only you can. Or perhaps it’s better to wait and see who’s going to move into their place before you open up that special bottle of champagne.
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