How long to pack a house??

[NavyNails2]

I feel like it won't take that long, am I being delusional? We don't have a set in stone move date yet but a provisional date has been given within the next 2-3 weeks. I just keep walking around the house not knowing what to do. I also have the fear it could all still fall through so almost reluctant to do anything. I'm normally so organised but with two young children I feel like I'm going to need almost everything until the last minute. Any advice?

I’m paying £500 to pack a 4 bed house (admittedly it is decluttered to within an inch of its life, since we are downsizing). The move is £800 (about 20 miles, both ends with difficult access).

Thanks everyone who gave a price for packing. I will just have to persuade DH, but it would probably be worth it, the last couple of moves were SO stressful. I will try to declutter first though!

It took four men ten hours to pack up our house - working at speed and very well packed. There was no way we'd have found at least 40 hours to do it, with work and kid.

It cost about 10% of the move cost - so about £400 for packing service, £4k for the move itself.

That's a big 4 bed house, shed and garage contents and garden furniture moving 200 miles.

We are doing it now! Moving on Friday. Two kids and a lot of stuff, a lot of mess. DH started on the loft a couple of weekends ago.
I started last Friday on the kitchen stuff, just leaving us the bare minimum of bowls, plates, etc.
DH did the sheds and dump trips last weekend and we started with a vengeance on all the other stuff on Sunday.
It’s going fine, but I had a day off work today and we both have a day off tomorrow to take the beds apart, last minute stuff, etc.

But we’re only moving 5 minutes away! That makes a difference.

It really is worth asking them. Just ask for a packing quote, you can unpack at leisure once you've moved. 5 years ago we moved a largeish 3 bed house. Moving was £800 with packing only £200 more. They provide all the boxes and packing materials, literally swoop in the day before and pack everything like a swarm of locusts. They label all the boxes so you know what's where. House moving is so expensive, an extra couple of hundred pounds, you really won't regret it.

Those of you who paid for a packing service do you literally not pack anything yourself? And do they do things like dismantle beds and take the TV off the wall etc?

It took two of us 2 weeks to do a 3 bed house, getting rid of stuff, going to the tip, packing everything.

Just get started!

But I agree packing service is good value.

Your movers should bring boxes though, even if they don’t pack.

We filled 130 boxes.

Professional movers did our 4 bed, massive garage , shed in 1 day packing and the move day. Team of about 8 packers and 3 lorries. We were only moving 12 miles so they went back and forth on move day.

I packed up my 3 bed stuffed to the gunnels house in 2 days. Ex DH was working so it was all on me to pack up and dismantle furniture etc.
We got 7days notice to move and due to work I only had 2 days. It was full on, up at 6 and still on the go at after midnight for the 2 days. DH only did the garden shed and 2tips runs.
My work were arseholes and would not give any time off, I even had to move house then go out and do a nightshift only to find out I was "spare" how I stayed awake I'll never know.

I would clear and pack the attic and garage straight away. Have you a room in the house you can start putting boxes in?

Then, before the move date (with two young children), I did one room per day. The only things left out were enough food, kitchen stuff and clothes for a week or so. These were all shoved into a box last minute.

Clean each room as you go, and then hoover again at the end.

We are moving in a couple of weeks. £1600 for a 4 bed, £350 of it is to be packed and £160 is insurance.

movers arrive the day before and will leave us with the absolute minimum, and finish on the morning of. I’ve moved yearly and it never days days for the professionals to do it.

I only packed essentials (kettle, mugs, tea, coffee, cleaning materials) underwear and important documents. They did everything else and it all gets packed without discussion. Friend used packers and they wrapped the pans from their last cooked breakfast before they had chance to wash up.

It's really unsettling the day before as nothing is ready to go but it's amazing only having to stand vack and just keep the drinks and biscuits coming. They were so efficient and nothing got broken.

All I packed was personal things I would prefer no one else handle (e.g. underwear) in a suitcase with stuff I would need straight away, like spare clothes and wash stuff.

I then did up a bag of other stuff it's useful to have immediately. Mainly the things to make a cup of tea, a bit of lunch, feed the dog, cook some pasta, that kind of thing.

A bag of cleaning products so I could start any cleaning required.

I then put my bedding straight in the car (duvet still on cover etc) that morning, so it could go straight on my bed in the new house. ALWAYS GET YOUR BED READY FIRST.

They dismantled everything then remantled the main furniture at the other end.

Friend used packers and they wrapped the pans from their last cooked breakfast before they had chance to wash up.

Yeah, they are literally like a swarm, running through the house packing every single item as they go. It's really very impressive to watch!

Start as soon as you can, we downsized last year from a 5bed to a 3bed, we had so much stuff, seriously decluttered, and only moved stuff we needed and loved. Not point in moving stuff that you neither need or has not so good memories associated to it.

If you can afford it, pay for packing. They'll come in a day or two before moving day and pack. It's worth every penny. After you've moved they come and collect the boxes a few days later.

And I meant to say you can then concentrate on decluttering and the admin around moving instead of spending all your free time overloading boxes and tripling over them.

I've always had movers but packed myself and I start as soon as the house is sold. I moved from a 3 bed house to a 2 bed apartment and got rid of so much stuff. I was determined to only have one van.

I packed stuff we were not using first. I always pack an essentials box, a suitcase with bed linen, toiletries, towels and some outfits so we have these to hand and my work bag with important papers. These go in the car with me.

My movers will take apart the dining tables and beds and put them back together.

Professional packers are amazing, worth every penny! My friend didn't pack a single thing other than an overnight bag and they were through a 2 bedroom house including 2 well packed sheds and the loft with 2 vans loaded before lunchtime. Meanwhile the house she was moving into were still stuffing random items into cars and vans after the money had been transferred!
I've done a small move myself and you also have to somewhere to put everything you pack in advance which isn't that easy unless you have a big empty garage to leave it all in. You could be dancing around boxes for weeks.

Pack away winter bedding, books and kitchen equipment that is only used once in a blue moon.

It's one of thoes jobs that takes as long as you need it too
If you pack too far out you have to keep most stuff out anyway
I'd say it took us a week to pack (we booked 3 days before our move and after our move to speed pack and unpack) it was fine

Well I have started now, with not very much structure to it at all, but a pile of boxes are beginning to form so I must be getting somewhere, even if they house does now feel like utter chaos.