5 TIPS FOR COUPLES MOVING IN TOGETHER FOR THE FIRST TIME

Moving in with your partner can be incredibly exciting but also a little nerve-wracking! Each of you has your own physical belongings to fit together, but also your own separate personality, lifestyles, and habits (good and bad) and you may learn that yours may not perfectly match theirs in the same home! While communication will always be key, sometimes it’s challenging to navigate those differences in lifestyle, especially if it’s with someone you love.

Moving in with your partner is a big life transition. We’ve helped so many couples navigate this step and thought we would share a bit of our expertise to help make this process a smooth one for everyone involved! Read on to learn a few tips if you’re about to take the big leap by moving in with your partner for the first time...

1. Purge first!

This is a step we advise for every move and/or life transition. Editing through your personal belongings before any type of move can save you from paying additional moving costs to move the items you realistically don't love or care about. You also don’t want to bring all your extra, unnecessary things, especially if you are moving in with someone new. You may not have the space for it in the new place, and all it does is take up room you could use for growing into with your partner. More importantly, you are starting an exciting new chapter of your life and stuff from your past may not be relevant to this new life you’re building. You will want a fresh start for you (and your partner!) and purging the old and irrelevant things will allow you to have a refreshing, new beginning in your new space!

2. Set up designated spaces for each partner

You may think it might make sense to mix your stuff together, depending on what your new space looks like. If it’s a small home, it may only have one closet in the master. Or one side of the closet might be significantly larger than the other. However, don’t let these obstacles fool you into mixing your belongings together (most importantly in the closet spaces). Having your own designated space in the closet or in the dresser will help keep everything streamlined and separated. When you do this, you only have to go through your own stuff when you are looking for something to wear, which minimizes the time spent on getting dressed everyday and increases the feeling of ‘calm’ during this process.. It also means that if you and your partner have different organizing styles, you can do what works best for you without having to worry about it working for them too!

3. Have a conversation about different living styles + your ideal environments

This might be an obvious item but having open lines of communication will be key before, during, and after the big move. You should both be able to communicate your highest priorities for your space. Typically, if you’re moving in with your partner, you’ve already spent a lot of time together and probably have an idea of how they are and how they live. But remember that it’s not going to change when they move in with you. If they’re very sentimental and hold onto everything, understand that won’t change. Instead, try to find ways to mitigate and have discussions so that the space is comfortable and efficient for both of you.

4. Don’t be afraid to have a conversation about how their behavior and/or habits in the space might affect you

Again, open lines of communication are vital for couples making this big step! You have to be able to bring up how their spaces or lifestyle might be affecting you, especially if it’s causing you stress or overwhelm. If you are someone who is heavily affected by clutter, and your partner creates clutter, you have to have an honest conversation with them about it and work to find positive, actionable ways for both of you to make it work. Bringing positive recommendations about how you can both work to make the space liveable will only help your partnership grow as you find ways and things to work on together.

5. Ask for professional help!

If you’ve done all these steps, nothing is working, and your living environment is still a stress factor, come up with a resolution with your partner that might include outsourcing help. Hiring someone to clean once a month or hiring a team of professional organizers to help you navigate these challenges can make a huge difference. We have the expertise to help you come up with solutions that will work for you and your partner to help create a peaceful space that will work for both of you!

Sometimes having someone from the outside to mediate, with no bias or personal connection to the couple, can show both partners a brand new point of view. This new perspective can set up the couple for success and can make the solutions more practical and less emotional.

Moving in with your partner is a big life step and can be exciting and amazing! But this transition can also be chaotic, stressful and chock full of anxiety. Keeping your things separate can help you maintain your own sense of organization, especially when it might differ from your partner’s/their standards. Being able to talk openly with your partner about your differences in lifestyle and routine, as well as how their space/habits might be affecting you, is incredibly important. If you follow these tips, we guarantee you will have a smoother transition. But, if you find you just can’t navigate this on your own, have no fear! We are here to help. We have years of experience helping clients start this exciting chapter of life and would love to help you too. :)

If you are planning to move in with a partner soon and fear you might run into some issues, let us know how we can help!

Contact us!