Let's be honest, moving is one heck of a big job. This fact doubles if you are moving out of state or (shudder) out of country. Most people that have been established for any length of time have likely accrued a fair amount of stuff that is not entirely necessary, but nice to have all the same. The question is: "Do you need to move it?" Even a cross town move can be a big job if you are moving an entire home worth of things. Movers don't come cheap and good movers are even more expensive. Unless you have a lot of friends with a lot of trucks you will likely have to look into hiring some movers.
So the idea here is to pare down the things that you actually have to move.
Most movers will give you an estimate based on how much they have to take and the less they have to deal with the less you pay. Another good way of keeping the costs down is to do the packing yourself. This can also be helpful in the long run as you know where everything is and don't have to spend time ransacking boxes to find things when you arrive at the new home. If it is possible take some time walking around the new home and plan where things are going to be unloaded to. It's good to have a location in mind for everything as this will make unpacking much easier and less time-consuming.
Another thing that you may want to consider is ensuring the cleanliness of the home you are moving into. If the home is local then the process will be much easier. You can't always count on the old owners to clean the place before you move in as they are likely bust with their own moving preparations and the quality of their new home. If the home is a fair distance away then the best course to take is to arrange a cleaning service through the realtor that assisted in the home purchase. They should have no trouble granting access to cleaners if the need is there. Remember that the process of moving your family and belongings is a process that should be planned and executed with as little conflict as possible. If the whole process has planned steps then it should make everything easier to handle and much smoother.
