Once moving company is under contract, it's time to pare down your belongings. There's no sense moving things you don't really want or need. Question value of your belongings. As you pack your house to move, ask which items are personally valuable to you--sentimentally, aesthetically, or monetarily. Give your possessions two year test. Attics, closets and basements are widely-known "black holes" that collect stuff you don't use but just can't seem to throw out. Do you really need to haul that never-used, three-year-old salad shooter to your new home? Discard things that are broken or beyond repair. Hold a garage sale to get rid of rest (and make some money to help pay for move), and haul unsold "goodies" to charity of your choice (get a receipt for a tax deductible donation).

Order your packing supplies online or from your local mover. These include: strong packing boxes, bubble wrap, ink-free packing paper (not newspaper for your delicate items), wardrobe boxes (not garbage sacks), strapping tape, broad-tip markers to label your boxes, and a knife or scissors to open boxes on other end.

Pack one room at a time, thus keeping similar things together. Label room on outside of box. Pack boxes firmly, protect fragile objects and try to keep each box less than 50 pounds. Keep an inventory of your boxes and contents.

Let kids help pack up their room and give them special attention as they deal with their fears of leaving friends and familiar surroundings. Let them write their name on their boxes. Pack their rooms last so their break in routine is as minimal as possible, and let them pick out a favorite toy to carry with them.

Important tip--Use Form 8822 to inform IRS of your new mailing address. If IRS sends a notice to you at your old address, any delays caused by mail being forwarded may mean that you will miss important IRS deadlines and may have penalities to pay!

6. Keep objects that you and your loved ones are attached to emotionally, like photographs. Emotional clutter is different to physical clutter. Physical clutter has lower value.

7. Keep other cherished objects too: heirlooms and long-term investments, an inherited stamp collection is a good example. Only dispose of such objects if you're sure that they really are clutter and you need space and cash now.

8. Store all of precious objects that you want to keep tidily, in places where you'll be able to find them in future. Buy additional storage (boxes and shelves), if needs be.

9. Only send to landfill sites unwanted possessions that are not recyclable. A large percentage of household 'waste' can be turned into something else. Dispose of hazardous items correctly. If you're unsure, ask a waste expert.

10. Give low value objects to charity shops, so that they can generate cash for good causes. Sell everything else using small adverts in your newspaper or on Internet. In liberating your living space, who knows how much cash you might make!