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Original poster

When you order packing service, can you just leave in the morning as usual and come back after everything's moved?

35 replies

meadowquark · 06/03/2015 15:13

I am selling my house. My buyer wants to exchange on the inconvenient dates when either I have 3 family members visiting from abroad, or my partner away. Either way, if I attempt any packing done with two children around, no doubt I will fail. I would prefer to leave for a park/daytrip with my visitors and come back to a packed or empty house.
I don't want to (or, rather, I won't have time with my visitors) spend time uncluttering or wrapping valuables or dismanting wardrobes or uninstalling lightings. I just want everything to be packed and moved, boxes provided for me etc.
This is not to mention that this move is too emotional for me so I just want to painlessly leave the old house and reappear in the new house.

Does such full service exist? Has anyone done it?

OP posts:
reup · 06/03/2015 15:19

We had our stuff packed. It was suprisingly reasonable. They did ours the day before. We spent a night in a travekoidge as we had as 2 yr old and house was tiny & full of boxes. But in retrospect we needn't have. They even got all the stuff from the loft.

CMOTDibbler · 06/03/2015 15:21

yes, we've been packed twice. The first time dh sat in the garden while they packed, the second I was cleaning behind them.

The second time, all I packed was an overnight bag and we hadn't decluttered or anything.
House went from totally normal to on a lorry in 5 hours

Sidge · 06/03/2015 15:31

Packing services are great but you can't usually clear off.

IME you need to be around.

Also they may not lock up the property when they leave, that's your responsibility.

VeryPunny · 06/03/2015 15:35

We went carpet shopping, we were just in the way. Head mover bloke made sure we had important docs and keys with us, they packed everything else (including contents of wastepaper basket), we locked up behind them when they were finished. Worth every penny.

vvviola · 06/03/2015 15:47

Oh god no. Having done this quite a few times, I would never just leave them to it.

Otherwise you will get literally everything packed (just got some things out of storage from when we had packers in when DD2 was 8 weeks old, so my supervision wasn't top notch - have unpacked a hose with water still in it, 2 packets of biscuits and a set of keys we have been looking for for 3 years).

They will invariably have questions about things, and I prefer to supervise a bit (I usually clean behind them, but I do pop in and out over the day, I'm not literally watching their every move).

Although, all of mine have been for major international moves - so I have had to make sure my passport, keys, suitcases for the plane etc didn't get packed. If the stuff is going to be unpacked 2 days later at another house, that's maybe not such a problem.

I still wouldn't do it though.

Devora · 06/03/2015 16:51

I've done this once and they completely underestimated how much stuff we had. Ended up frantically packing alongside them (only they went home and we carried on - all night!). In the morning they realised their van wasn't big enough - luckily my uncle popped in and we used his van as well.

They didn't offer a reduction, and I was too exhausted to haggle.

Clearly we weren't lucky, but I would feel uneasy about just clearing off.

FunMitFlags · 06/03/2015 19:32

No they'll have lots of questions and will appreciate lots of tea and biscuits.

I'd get them in the day before the move to do all but the essentials.

GiddyOnZackHunt · 06/03/2015 19:48

I've always been frantically cleaning behind them, making copious cups of tea, answering questions and generally organising things.

minipie · 06/03/2015 20:16

We went out and left our packers to it. All done when we got back and in the van.

however I had done quite a lot of prep in advance to make sure all items were in the right room, I'd thrown out anything I didn't want packed, clearly separated anything I wanted kept accessible till last minute, put post it notes on anything that needed etc.

minipie · 06/03/2015 20:17

needed instructions

SolomanDaisy · 06/03/2015 20:19

I went to work while packers packed. No problems. I'm planning to go out soon after they get here this time. The whole point of paying is to take the hassle out of it!

InsertUsernameHere · 06/03/2015 20:55

If you really don't want to be around maybe get them to pack up the day before - so you can pop in and check and lock up/ clean. Give clear instructions about what needs to remain (is what has been negotiated with buyers). They need you more at the new place. You (not the removers) will need to collect keys. You will also need to tell them which room is which and where stuff goes in the new place. This is probably an could of hours in the hallway directing traffic. In my experience they are pretty self sufficient packing - but less so unloading.

MissAMinton · 07/03/2015 20:50

We did a fully packed move and I walked out of the door in the morning with my baby and toddler and walked in the door of the new place the following day. The movers packed everything, dirty washing up, contents of the bin...

Stuff was packed in some odd places but it all came to the new house and I eventually found it in a box somewhere!

This was White and Co about 8 yrs ago

specialsubject · 07/03/2015 21:14

you said 'exchange'. This is not the same day as completion, except in mumnset land.

if you do mean 'exchange' then fine, set completion for a day you can do.

if you mean completion, visitors will have to step up, go to a hotel and amuse themselves for the day.

Sunnyshores · 08/03/2015 15:32

They will pack the day before you move, so its unlikely you'll be able to sleep at your house that final night. (you could opt to have boxes put on the lorry now and left on lorry overnight).

On moving day it ill be an early start, moving the full boxes, sofas, beds, white goods, garden stuff etc to the lorry will still take several hours, generally you have to leave by 12. You need to spend a few hours cleaning

Then removal van then arrives at new house, (IME clean this house too) unload, unpack its going to be at least 7pm.

Your visitors if they cant help you, will have to entertain themselves for 2 days.

SolomanDaisy · 08/03/2015 15:44

We have had them pack on the same day as we move and we are doing the same this time. This is a short distance move though, which means it can all be fitted into one day. You can also hire cleaners to do both houses, so you don't need to worry about that. She wants a no hassle move, not to spend six hours cleaning!

clam · 08/03/2015 15:46

I too was confused by the term 'exchange.' Surely you mean 'complete?' Either way, don't you have some say in it? It's not just for them to pick a date that you have to go along with. Negotiate one that suits you too.

Artistic · 09/03/2015 10:29

I would suggest you take the pains of packing any important stuff (documents, jewellery, stationary that you may quickly need, toiletries, clothes for a few days, sugar/salt etc) and keep these aside in clearly marked boxes/suitcases.
Apart from this you can get everything done by the movers. Ours even dismantled large furniture pieces, bagged the screws & stuck it on the furniture so they don't lose it. They were fantastic!
But they underestimated the volume of stuff. But we knew they were wrong so we negotiated a day of packing & a seperate day of moving with the move including as many number of trips back & forth as it takes to get ALL the stuff. They had to do 4 trips!! Luckily both houses were only a few miles apart.

I wouldn't do it if my DH were not around. It's not a job for 1 person if you can help it!

Original poster
meadowquark · 13/03/2015 23:08

My belated thank you. Surely I meant completion. And after some haggle with my buyer, they did not leave me an option - completion day set when my visitors will be in. Now I have to organize everything as best as I can....

full packers, possibly cleaners etc. Thank goodness I am only moving 2 miles away, and my buyer is not moving in on the same day, and my vendor is, hrrrmmm, dead. So hopefully no one stepping on our toes. I can send my visitors away for most of the day, but probably will have to supervise the movers. I don't think we have a lot of stuff, but it may seem differently once we start packing.

OP posts:
UniS · 13/03/2015 23:17

Ish . We have moved with packing service twice. 1st time we tried to leave them to it, but ended up joining in to speed it up as I knew we could only block eth narrow lane with the truck till 3pm or life would get messy.
2nd time I had 3 yr old, so took him to play group etc as normal , home for fish n chip lunch, then off to the park for a bit, then back to see how they were doing and had given instructions that DS's bike was NOT To be put on truck till he was there to do it, which he did , so he was happy his bike would move to the new house. We went over to new house played football and had packed tea in the living room till truck arrived, they unpacked DS's room first ( as per instructions) , I put DS to bed and the chaps unpacked the truck, rebuilt our wardrobe and bed and were lovely and quiet.

UniS · 13/03/2015 23:17

It was expensive tho....

ChablisTyrant · 14/03/2015 00:19

We didn't see ours. Got a friend to let them in. We were on holiday abroad. Cleaner booked to arrive from midday onwards. Got family to meet them at new house with floor plan for large items. Drove straight from airport to new house. Sure, the boxes are packed slightly chaotically, but who cares!

GiddyOnZackHunt · 14/03/2015 00:22

Ask if you can send professional cleaners into your new house between exchange and completion. Then you know you are going in to a clean house and you can unload the van happily.

toomuchtooold · 14/03/2015 05:48

Yes, would second a professional clean both at the old house and the new house (and a supermarket online order to the new place) and tidy as much as possible before the packers come. Tidy as much as possible because IME like other posters I've had e.g sippy cups of water packed in with books because they were on the same shelf! Also when the guy comes and looks round your house to cost the move, try and get him to overestimate the amounts, because then they'll have more time and be less likely to just start slinging things in boxes randomly. And if you can on the day, designate a room or a cupboard for the stuff that isn't getting packed, and make sure they ALL know that stuff isn't to be packed.

I've found that in the first half hour they usually need you around for paperwork/guidance but after that they just get on with it, and they'll fill the house so there's nowhere to sit really, so you're actually better clearing out as long as you don't go far.

MrsFlorrick · 14/03/2015 13:02

Yes. Have used Bournes in the past.
Have had the full packing moving and unpacking service. Fantastic and faultless.

Because they were unpacking at the other end they were told during a quick walk through with me which rooms it was all going into at the other end. Took about 15mins and they were left to their own devices last time because I was 36 weeks pregnant with DS and went into early labour.
They locked up and dropped off keys to estate agent, and when I got out of hospital everything was unpacked and spik and span in the new house.

Can't recommend them enough. Next time we move they will be my first call. And I will be paying for the full service again.

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