Tips to make moving less stressful? (Renting)

[Quirkyme]

Hello,

I'm moving on the Nov 17th and I'm looking for ways to make my move less stressful!
I find it stressful generally, and when I moved last year I was close to tears due to other things happening in my personal life too.

My current contract finishes on the 20th Nov so I have a three day overlap, which I guess will be helpful? I'm planning to get professional cleaners for my current place, should I get them to come on the 17th, 18th or 20th?

I have a few weeks of unexpected A/L at the moment, so will start packing etc, and I'm also off for a few days for the move.

All tips would be welcomed and appreciated! Thanks you x

My niece is moving next weekend. She has a schedule and spreadsheets. That could be described by some as over-kill. I couldn’t possibly comment.

Don’t forget to take dated photos of your meter-readings on hand-over day

I am a serial mover (8 moves in 5 years) and here are my top tips:

• Get ruthless with your decluttering. Anything you haven't worn or used for the last year, any box that hasn't been unpacked since the last move goes to the trash or charity donation.
• Book charity donation pick up so you don't have to deal with this yourself (I use icollect)
• Have a rough limit on how many boxes of personal stuff are allowed for each member of the household. My threshold is somewhere between 10-15 medium size boxes
• Mark each box with where it is going and what is in it. Example "Bedroom - summer clothes"
• As you pack each category, discard anything you don't love, use or need to further cut on clutter.
• Book a moving van in advance as they may be short on last minute bookings
• Get vacuum bags for things like bedding and linen. Again, I usually mark how many sets of bedding I need. 2 for each bedroom plus one set for guests. Two bath towels per person, two hand towels per household + 1 set per guest. Get rid of the rest.
• Sell or donate any kitchen equipment you don't use. Yes, you will never use your steamer and slow cooker coming out once a year isn't going to make it on my list either.
• Replace as many of your physical books with electronic copies. Keep your favourites and anything valuable/sentimental
• Book the cleaners for the day when the flat is going to be empty. If you are planning to move on the 17th, then give yourself a day to catch up just in case.
• Pack a box with all your necessities - kettle, toilet roll, tea mugs, tea bags, toothbrush, phone chargers, a bottle of wine... You'd want to unpack it first and don't want to be looking for these things in the middle of the move.
• Take a whole month to pack systematically. A few boxes at a time makes it less stressful and you are more likely to be disciplined about things you want to keep or get rid of. There is nothing worse than stuffing things into a black bag on the morning before the move.
• There are companies who help you to transfer your mail and utilities to the new address which I have used in the past.

Hey, thank you! I have a Q, to clarify, when you say about booking the cleaners and "give yourself a day to catch up just in case" what do you mean?

I mean don’t assume you’ll be able to move all your stuff on the 17th to have the flat empty for the cleaner. Best to schedule them for the 19th

Gotcha. I'll deffo have all my things move on that day, but I think the issue, if anything, may be more of a time thing (so the time I book them to come on the 17th)as opposed to a day/date thing... so I agree partly about perhaps having them come another day is easiest.

The 17th is a Friday, so I'll perhaps get them to come on the 18th or 20th

Good luck moving OP - I feel your pain!

It depends how far you are moving. Someone will need to let the cleaners in, so will you be around (or have a neighbour etc) to be able to let them in? Remember depending on the cleaner they might need hoover/cleaning products so you can’t pack those if so.

Have you got to move any furniture?

Ask a friend:family member to help. I hate asking people favours but the more hands on deck the better. You can but then a pizza at the end of the day as a thank you and owe them a move.

If you’ve got furniture to move and have the money get a man with a van. But don’t just choose the cheapest - make sure you get one where the guy will actually help!

Hey, thank you! Yes I'll be having movers!
Pizza after my move sounds good though!

Last time we moved we got a full packing service, best money we've ever spent. Avoided weeks of packing and wasn't much more expensive (relatively speaking) then just paying to move

My only concern with this is if feel if someone else packs your stuff, things will definitely get lost haha!

I moved last month and have only just got over the stress of it all. My top tips:

Allow plenty of time for decluttering - sorting, doing charity shop runs etc all takes time. If you run out of time, as a last resort move stuff and sort it later, you are paying for movers anyway.

Get lots of packing tape, double what you think you will need. The cheap stuff is useless, Sellotape brown tape was the best I found (other brands are available).

Get a thick Sharpie and number all the boxes on top and on each side. Keep a list of what's in each numbered box. This way, however the boxes are stacked it makes it easier to find the one you're looking for in a pile.

Get lots of biscuits for the movers. Also tea, coffee, milk, sugar. Leave out enough mugs.

We had a massive 4 bed house and absolutely nothing got lost. They labelled up all the boxes as they went and took them to the appropriate rooms after and even dismantled/rebuilt the beds. Would never move without it again!