Moving gradually. Has anyone else done this?

[Rooners]

Or are we weird?

We're moving from rented to owned in a few months, and it's taking me ages to pack as we have a lot of children and a lot of stuff, including a fair amount of DIY materials, tools, etc etc.

I'm thinking that as soon as we exchange, and have the keys, I'll start taking boxes over myself - not to unpack, as we need to do decorating and some gas/electric work is being done, but just to ease the burden on the actual move.

I will leave most of it and the furniture to the removal people, but is it wise do you think, if I take the fragile stuff, odd stuff I can't think of a way to pack safely, and so on, myself?

Has anyone else done this?

Also worried about whether they will be able/willing to bring large garden items such as rabbit hutches etc. and how this will work.

I have a garage I'm using as a sort of depository for the DIY stuff, things like sinks and fireplaces and tiles.

Also I have packed nearly everything and most of the cupboards are empty now so it is very crowded here with boxes piled up everywhere. I will need to do some work here when it's all gone, as it's rented, so I'm thinking it's best to get as much out of the way as I can really.

Any tips gratefully heard!

[HappyAsEyeAm]

Will you be paying rent during the time between completion and you actually properly moving in? As, if you will, I think that the money you will pay in rent will end up being more than what you would pay to a good removals firm.

We have moved twice. Once rfom a 2 bed flat to a 4 bed house, and then once from that 4 bed house to our current home. I thought we had a lot of stuff in our two bed flat, but I realised when we moved for the second time how much more we had accummulated! Removals firms ar(rather than a man with a van type outfits) are used to moving garden things, shed contents, animals (sometimes) and masses and masses of perishable, fragile and standard stuff. i think you had a bad experience with your previous removals firm, but ours have been fantastic.

Why don't you get a quote from a national firm like Pickfords and then a quote from a recommended firm local to you, and see?

And I would receommend taking a couple of days off work after you move in to unpack. Or look into options to have your stuff packed up and then unpacked, if its too daunting for you. Lots of removals firms offer these options. We had our stuff packed for our second move but I unpacked it at the other end.

[Rooners]

Thank you for all these great ideas. Yes I think you're right - something like Pickfords would be far more capable than the 2 men and large van we had last time. I am worried they would be very, very expensive though.

The rent isn't something I can really do anything about, as I'm going to need this place empty for a week or two so I can clean it properly and tidy up any remaining small things I haven't had a chance to sort out when it was full of stuff.

It isn't quite clear how much of it the landlord is willing to sort out and how much I will have to do - and I don't want to lose our deposit.

Ironically it was in an awful, awful state when we moved in 6 years ago and I have done a great deal to the property, so we shouldn't have to pay out for anything really - he ought to pay for a decorator etc, and he said he will - but I need to make it all very clear with the agents.

Think I will try and get some quotes asap.

[MyICDiscalledsparky]

We did this. We owned two houses for a period of about 4 weeks and started sleeping in the new house about 8 days of owning both houses. I shifted carloads of boxes and unpacked them in the new house (kitchen stuff I didn't need everyday etc) before we moved in. We also did the main move ourselves with a hired van rented for the weekend and friends so it was good to have less to move.

After we had moved out I went back a few times and got some small stuff that was still there and cleaned and filled holes and painted over them in the walls etc. I also had to keep going back to water the garden as it was in the heatwave last Summer and I didn't want all the plants to die before the new people moved in.

Luckily it wasn't that far between the two houses (about 8 miles)

[Rooners]

Oh wow - Pickfords online estimate is about 735 (have put 3 bed house, as we are in a 2 bed flat but have so much crap) and so I rang them - that included packing which I have already done - and they said, actually, it'll be about 950!

I asked why - apparently it's because the new place is on the first floor - so it involves an extra guy to stand by the truck, while two others are inside the property.

I said surely most houses have a staircase? She wasn't very clear on why a flat costs so much more. Security apparently. It's not a tower block FGS, it's a first and second floor maisonette with its own entrance.

I don't want to sound like a cheapskate but honestly, I don't understand why it is so much more without the packing.

[Rooners]

MyICD - thank you - that's really helpful, that's the same sort of distance as we are doing. You were very kind to water the plants!

That is one of the first things I want to do, to move some plants from here to there. Will be hard trying to organise all the pets as well.

[MyICDiscalledsparky]

We actually left the cats there for the night of the move and went back and got them the next day. They were fine alone in the empty house (with a cat flap and food and water down) for one night. I didn't want them to escape in the move.

The insurance were fine about everything too. We had both houses insured for the four weeks which didn't cost that much.

[ToFollowJulie]

We moved last month and had the keys for the new house for 4 days before our removal was booked. I brought up the contents of the kitchen in 2 or 3 car loads and worked out where I wanted to put everything. It was very helpful and I think it made a huge difference to have the kitchen up and running straight away. It also enabled me to reuse boxes, as we kept running out!

Our removal company moved all the furniture and dozens of boxes (and a rabbit run) and the cost was about £800 to move from a 4 bed to another 4 bed and a distance of about 20 miles.