Congratulations! You’re off to a brand-new start. Your slate is clean, and you are ready to come at life with a new outlook! The view from your front door is as fresh as you feel. The movers have finally finished hauling and unloading every bit of your life from across Bryan-College Station and you’re set to begin arranging your new home. But where to start?

1. The Run Down!

Give your new space a good once-over. Check the appliances, the light fixtures, the doors, and the trim. If you’re renting, writing down, photographing, and dating any malfunction or damage to the property can save you a lot of headache when it comes time to move out. Properly documenting (and having your new landlord repair!) damages to the property as soon as you move in can save you the hassle of fighting to get your security deposit back later on.

2. General cleaning

Now is the time to get the floors clean, wash any surfaces in the kitchen, bathroom, and bedrooms that you will soon be arranging your belongings on top of. Depending on how long your new place had been vacant (and how well it was cleaned up before your move-in date) this can take time, but it’s easier to clean an empty room than to clean up after you’ve already unpacked.

3. Prepare your bed!

Moving can wear you out, no matter how much help you have during the process. Relocating your entire life can be both physically and mentally exhausting, and at the end of the day, youre going to want to fall into bed! Save yourself the hassle of struggling to get your bed ready after unpacking-do it first! That way, you can go to bed right as you feel completely exhausted (and it will save you from sleeping on a pile of boxes if you’re too tired to put your bed together at the end of the night!)

4. Unpack room by room!

While it may be tempting to just start ripping into boxes as soon as you see them, unpacking your (hopefully labeled) boxes room by room can keep your organized and prevent you from getting overwhelmed with the unpacking process.