"Our job is definitely not over once the sold sign goes up. If repairs are to be done before the close of escrow then I am the one that must coordinate all the parties, including the sellers. That's true especially if the property is to be fumigated and the sellers have to pack up and get out early," said Kim Richman of Coldwell Banker in Los Gatos.

Richman goes the extra mile for her clients by providing the necessary information to help the move go smoothly.

"I have done all the research in the past for my clients' storage facility and scheduled the movers. I am currently hiring the estate liquidators for an elderly client who has moved into a care facility and left a lot of stuff behind that I have to dispose of. Either we get it done before the close of escrow or we have a big headache after everybody else has moved on," Richman said.

Jeff Stricker, a broker and attorney with Alain Pinel Realtors, advises clients to start planning their move when he is hired to sell their home.

"We refer them the names of very high quality moving professionals and, if necessary, estate liquidators to assign value to the things they might be selling. Once a home is listed, the sellers are, unfortunately, bombarded with moving offers, so it is important they be given references, as the quality of movers varies hugely. We have been referring our moving pro for about 10 years," Stricker said.

Realtor John W. King of Allhouse King Realty in Palo Alto also refers moving companies to his clients and provides a list of helpful hints for moving with a checklist of things that they should do prior to, during and after a move.

"We refer a reputable moving company and a reputable cleaning service and provide a list of phone numbers for utilities. We also follow up with our clients one week after close and then one month after close to make sure things have gone smoothly," King said.

To get a head start on the moving process, Realtor Dante Drummond of Coldwell Banker tells her clients to start packing way before the for sale sign goes up.

"When preparing the property for sale, go through the house, closets and garage and start packing now, because once the house is sold you will have so many other things to do," Drummond said. "Throw away or give away all that stored stuff that may have been stored for decades and could be more valuable to someone else at this stage."

Going through years of accumulated treasures can be an emotional task since the seller will likely relive years of memories.

"Prepare to get emotional because moving is a big transition, a letting go of the old, of history, of a part of you, and stepping out into the uncertainty of something new," Drummond said.

Although sorting and packing can be emotional, it can go much easier with the proper packing materials and a packing plan. Most movers will provide boxes, but they can also be found at local moving or shipping companies.

Tips for how to pack for the move are available from www.homefair.com. It's a good idea to pack one room at a time and label boxes appropriately with a description of the contents and where the box belongs in the new house. Make sure that sentimental and breakable items are labeled, and keep a detailed list of what items are packed in each box to make unpacking go much faster.

Pack items that will go into storage at the new house by seasons so that they can be easily sorted through when needed. When loading the truck, make sure to put boxes with the items needed first into the truck last. These boxes might contain telephones, kitchen items, toys or baby items, medications, clothing for the first few days or anything that will be useful during the unpacking process, which could stretch to several days.