Moving house on a budget

[SweetPeaPods]

Apologies if there is a similar thread, I couldn't find one.
Getting inspiration from the frugal threads I thought it might be nice to have a property one too?
Any tips on how to move as cheap as possible please share.
Our house is currently on the market so I haven't got much to add yet apart from negotiating EA fees, I have managed to get a couple of hundred pounds minimum of each EA I contacted.

shop around for solicitors.
Surveyors are a closed shop and need to be local so your shopping around will be limited.
do your own packing - materials from freecycle. Allow weeks!
shop around hard for removers.
get rid of as much stuff as possible - the less you have, the less it costs to shift.

much is not negotiable - stamp duty, searches, etc so hammer down whatever you can.

we asked for (and got) a discount from our solicitors. We are using them for 3 transactions though.
Got boxes and packing paper for free from a FB group.
As above negotiate with estate agents.

Ah I was going to say use an online estate agent but sounds like too late for that? We paid £700 EA fees with Housenetwork instead of thousands otherwise. Spent more on removal men!

I'm going to complete this Friday. I've been acquiring boxes from supermarkets for several weeks. I did shop around for solicitors...huge difference. I've hired my own van to self drive which saves quite a bit.

Rent a van and move yourself - cost us £70 & we did it over two days

Great ideas ladies. Never thought to shop around on solicitors fees.
I've already been acquiring some boxes too, from a local parenting fb group. They have saved us loads. Will need more though

Get quotes for everything the removal men only wanted £140 to pack me. Whilst they were packing I went to work and earned £2K ( self employed) the cheapest answer is not always the most obviously one.

Doing your own removals is not an option if you are in a chain with every link completing on the same day. You have to be out and cannot shuttle back and forth. I think doing your own packing and removals can be a false economy. If you can't afford it then I realise it's Hobson's choice, but do bear in mind you need to be out at completion.

A way round that is to rent a storage unit and be out early, but check that costs and effort are worth it.

storage units can be useful, but be wary, most lure you win with a cheap weekly rate, but this can then double after a given period.

Be wary of cheap online solicitors, you will be dealing with a call handler in a call centre and they often are reactive rather than proactive, so if some piece of paperwork doesn't arrive they don't chase.

I know of people who have ended up having to re-apply for their mortgage as their offer expired due to online solicitors being too slow which incurred more costs than they would have saved.

Oh and yes to negotiate with EAs (I work for one!)

Another EA here. I agree with negotiating on fees for EA and solicitors but beware of going too cheap/online options as the service is often terrible. I was speaking to someone who was selling via an online EA who was pleased they'd got just short of the asking price within a couple of days of going on the market. At that time properties on her street were going massively over the price she got and a good EA would have got another £30k for her, covering their fees and some.

Good points thanks

What wowfudge said. Doing your own moving isn't really an option if you're in a chain, have to be out, and can't do more than one trip.

We intended on doing all our own removal, but as neither me nor DH can drive a lorry it would have had to be a hired transit van, storage, and several trips. By the time I'd costed that up it was almost as cheap to get movers in, and SO much easier.

Cheap solicitors can also be a false economy - I learned this when ours got things wrong every step of the way. The chain almost all collapsed on completion day, and they weren't even that much cheaper than the decent solicitor we'd used previously.

Friends of ours used a licensed conveyancer which was quite a bit cheaper
than a solicitor. They seemed ok -all they do is property law.
However, it did strike me that-unlikely I know- if a major legal problem
occurred a real sols is likely to have other colleagues around to help
ie qualified in litigation (suing) and more used to dealing with contentious issues
But Really I am sure you would be safe and richer with an experienced
LC. I think they charge c£600 (instead of c£1K)

It may be worth doing as suggested upthread and getting a cheap intro deal on a storage unit. That way you can put most of your stuff away in advance, so more room for sorting, clearing, and at the other end, just take in the basics while you clean and prepare the other rooms.
ilovefreegle.org is a good site for packing boxes, etc, and also for curtains, rugs, furniture, etc that you might need in the new place, esp if it is bigger. It's all free, so easy to get and give away when you find something better.