Top tips for a stress free house move....

[PorridgeBowlHairCut]

Looks like exchanging in 2 weeks and completing the week after that. But haven’t confirmed yet.

We’re moving round the corner to an empty house. FTB who lives at home moving into ours again from round corner.

We’ve done nothing yet.

Intend to get movers to pack. Though haven’t been in touch with any yet....

Also have a tremendous number of garden plants in pots, some really big pots....

Declutter and start packing NOW!

Fair enough on the decluttering, though we had a big clear out about a year ago., we could still do more. If I’m using a packing service what do I need to pack?

I thought I’d put a few boxes aside for stuff to put in the car like kettle and stuff 8 want to pack myself.

I haven’t moved a house before, always been flats and just my stuff, never had enough to warrant a removal van before.

Your first job is to book the removals van. If you've not already done this you may struggle! Go out and get yourself some packing boxes. We got them from a storage company. Get a skip. Pack up everything you won't need before the move. Throw everything you've not worn or used in the last 12 months into bin bags and either into the skip or charity shop. Go through your kitchen cupboards. It's surprising how much stuff you might have in there that's out of date, broken, or useless! Our movers didn't pack for us, just loaded the van. We labelled all the beds, drawers, wardrobes etc with the room they were going in to in th ends house.

Well you're going to have a stressful time if you haven't even started any kind of declutter/packing AND haven't got movers booked ....

Yes to packers

Yes to packing essentials yourself and keeping in the car: kettle, mugs, spoons, plates, sharp knife etc, toilet roll, bin bags, cleaning supplies.

Also an overnight bag so you have PJs and clean clothes easily to hand.

Start listing address change places now and contact to see if you can do change now. Took us a solid 4 hours both on phone / websites to do ours and we still missed loads.

Post redirection service.

Be ultra organised on your part. Something inevitably always goes wrong on moving day so If you’re in the best possible position, it helps. So get your removal team booked now. We had ours provisionally booked two months in advance.

Keep a box handy of tea, coffee, mugs, kettle and biscuits etc. You’ll be glad of it and your removal team will love you for it.

Keep the Hoover handy too for a last whizz round.

Cable tie hangers together and lay clothes in a box or bin liner so on the other side, you just hang your clothes back up and cut off the tie. Saves SO much time.

Get post redirection set up just to give you breathing space about changing address. But do make sure that your car insurance is done the day before.

I’m moving this Friday and still got LOADS to do we’re doing it ourselves, hiring a van and hopefully doing it all in a day. Houses are 5 mins drive apart and we have an overlap of a month so can do small bits in car if necessary.

I also have never moved a whole house, was a flat previously. I go between majorly stressed to laid back and chill constantly

@00100001 helpful!

Start listing address change places now and contact to see if you can do change now.

I got a full year mail redirect when I moved, and kept a stack of template letters printed. Any time something I'd missed was redirected, I filled in the blanks on the template and sent it off.

If you can book a removal service with full packing, sit back.
Pack a box of important paperwork and valuables. Put it in the car on moving day.
If you have space, pack some cases with everything you will need for the first night - sheets, clothes, pack of paper plates if you have some lying around. Basically so you are not opening g 25 boxes to find the bottom sheet.

Stock up on teabags and packets of biscuits.

If you cant get a packing service at this notice, buy some boxes and bin bags in a couple of colours, and some marker pens.

Put everything for the tip in black bags. Put everything for charity in white bags. Box everything else - AND LABEL IT.

There is no such thing as a stress free move, but you can minimise it. Yes to getting a removal firm, a reputable one, not just a man and a van. Yes to the unpacking service, so you don’t end up with loads of boxes to take back.

You’ll need a tea box certainly and I always pack my jewellery and personal things. I’m a crafter and pack my yarns, kits, knitting needles and all the extras myself. They usually go in a black bag in the car. Sort out paperwork to do with the move and the house and any other paperwork you need to keep at hand.

When you get there, make up the beds and keep one room without boxes, so you can feel that there is a calm space amongst the chaos.

A packing service packs things as they find them, not where the should be (which is why they are so fast). If they find a mug next to your bed it will go in the bedroom box. This completely threw me esp as we had a three year old so nothing was where it was meant to be when we unpacked!!!

We had cleaners into the new house between exchange and completion. House (and over etc) were spotless when we moved in.

We also had a Sainso shop in the evening of the day week moved. It was one less job to do the next day and we didn’t have to eat crap all weekend.

Good luck!

Getting cleaners in is a fab idea, thank you.

As the new house is empty, any chance you can move the garden pots into the new garden the day before?

Possibly. Im sure we could ask.

Don’t worry about the pots, just make sure the removal company know what size they are and where they’re going. Let them worry about the rest.

Cleaners for both houses - I know you shouldn’t have to but that’s what I did so I knew I was leaving a clean house and going into a clean house.

Pack essentials into your car if you have one on the morning of the move - baby/children’s stuff including the most precious toys/blankets. Any valuable jewellery is vulnerable in your car and more likely to be insured through removals so pack it carefully and place in something like a breadbin or basket. Tape down.

Have snacks and tea coffee stuff including plenty of cups ready. We buy our movers fish and chips at lunchtime which ensures cooperation if things get tricky.

Get children out the way if possible - a play date or grandparents?

Same with pets. It’s unsettling for cats and dogs. And frightening for other animals too.

If you get a good company, remember there’s not much they haven’t seen, not many potential problems they haven’t learnt how to navigate. So try not to worry!

Remember to try and secure parking for the van in the morning by asking kind neighbours to park there and move their cars when the van arrives. They need room behind the van too.

If you have carpets in either house in the hallway and it’s wet, perhaps get a piece of that old-fashioned Perspex type roll to protect it as movers are going in and out.

Hope it goes well!

Pay for packing. Definitely.

Get on the phone to some removals companies now for quotes, you may struggle with your dates.

Tell broadband you are moving the minute it's confirmed, it takes a fortnight to switch services.

Yes to deep cleans in both the new place and the old.

Any pets into animal boarding, any DC to a sleepover if possible.

Have a ruthless declutter.

Nuts and bolts on dismantled furniture into sealable bags and labeled.

A take away and alcohol.

Oh yes - I forgot the alcohol! Bottle of champagne and a couple of glasses straight into the fridge as soon as you get the keys!

having just done an international move, go on holiday - give the movers the keys and then come back when it's all done and unpacked for you.

Pack a bag like you are going away for 3 days - that way you are self sufficient.
Declutter - charity and dump runs
Packers
It will all be fine. I did nothing in advance and it was all done in 3 days - 1 day declutter, 1 day packers and I packed 3 day cases- next day move day!

I like the way you think @Yoolyball ! That was kind of the plan, it’s only the two of us and a cat.

Ha - i raise you a 2 and a 4 year old and ton of toys and crap - was still pretty much stress free!