By Susan Elise Campbell
When time comes for a senior citizen to downsize or enter assisted living, the physical and emotional aspects are more taxing than for someone who had fewer memories connected to their home.
Regardless of age or time spent at their address, many people desire a smooth transition between their current residence and the next place they’ll call home. That is what Barbara Morris set out to provide when she started Smooth Transitions locally in 1998, now a national company with 44 offices.
Keith Reed is president of one—the New York licensee of the company Morris originally incorporated as Moving for Seniors. He said the name was changed to reflect both the broader demographic served and the types of assistance the company has evolved to provide.
Like the company’s founder, Reed said, “My philosophy, too, is to help folks out. With five counties in the Capital District, there are enough people to help around the area.”
His area includes Saratoga and Warren counties and he can also provide service in Washington County if situations arise.
Help can come in many forms depending on what the client’s goals are. Many are downsizing within the area, moving in to be closer to children and grandchildren, or entering an apartment or care facility. And they are looking to people like Reed to assess needs and make the transition happen.
“I can sit across the kitchen table with an individual and their family and explain our full turnkey approach,” Reed said. “We can do the packing, get a mover if the client didn’t hire one, unpack and arrange their furniture,”
“Even the cable and electricity is hooked up and ready the same day with our service,” he said. “Clients do not have to stay overnight in a hotel while the staff sets up.”
He said while “that’s the goal,” the company doesn’t have control over everything.
“A client in Albany was very nervous and had penciled in moving day on a Friday,” he said. “I changed that to Tuesday. If something goes wrong, I told him, we cannot get help over the weekend.”
It is also comforting to have staff like Reed’s help re-organize homes and stage them for the eventual sale.
“If you have 40 years of stuff in the basement, we can sort through and take care of that,” he said. “We know pickers and antique buyers all over New York who will purchase it.”
Whatever is not taken with the client or purchased might be given to charity. Reed said it’s important to people which charities receive their donations.
“We are looking for partnerships with nonprofits, as well real estate brokers, short-term and long-term care and senior communities who are looking for support,” he said. “They can get a discount on movers, for example. We support each other, whatever it takes.”
Smooth Transitions also has two interior designers available to set up a new home or stage the former one to make it look more attractive and functional to prospective buyers, he said.
The company also offers a Design-A-Gram service that helps clients visualize what their new spaces will look like when the pieces they select are all in place.
Sometimes in the process of downsizing people will be attached to some items, but those experienced in the senior market can help take some of the emotion out of parting with things.
“We might say, ‘I know you really love that oversized armoire, but we will find a place for it if you really want to,’” Reed said. “The next day they’ve decided they didn’t like it that much after all.”
Visit www.smoothtransitions.com for more information about the company’s services and capabilities. Reed can be reached at (518) 376-5790 or kreed@smoothtransitions.com.