So, you’ve made the big decision to move house? Excited? Or terrified?
Moving house can be a big stress, often put alongside bereavement and divorce. But it doesn’t have to be such a headache. Not if you plan and plan and take advantage of these useful lifehacks…
Temporarily downsize to save up money
If you’re buying your first property and need to save up a deposit, it may pay to downsize temporarily. Either rent somewhere very cheaply or sweet-talk a family member or friend into staying with them whilst you save up. Don’t try squeezing all your belongings into that temporary property – look up storage units and put the furniture that you won’t need during that interim period there.
When packing boxes takes pictures so that you know what’s inside each box
Take a picture on your phone of the contents of each box you pack, seal up the lid and mark it and then take another picture. That way, when you reach your new property, you won’t be faced with a daunting mountain of mystery crates and you can get the important stuff unpacked first.
Notify all the right people
If you’ve been at your previous address a while, you may have to notify a lot of people of your new location. Some of these important people include banks, insurance companies, loan providers, council tax, employers, schools, doctors and opticians. You can find a useful checklist here. Inevitably you’ll forget to tell your twice-removed uncle and aunt, who will forever send Christmas cards with cheques in to your old address even after correcting them. But don’t stress yourself over them right now – anyone likely to send disclosed financial information is your main focus.
This site is very useful for notifying people last minute, allowing you to notify over 1500 companies of your change of address.
Hire a skip
Moving home can also be the perfect time for decluttering. You’ll probably find a lot of junk around your house that isn’t worth moving to your new property, especially hidden away in the attic or buried at the back of a cupboard. Hiring a skip will save on the multiple trips to a dump.
Obviously you’re already an organisation freak you may not have much to chuck out, in which case a skip won’t be worth forking over money for.
Hire cleaners to do the dirty work
For most people, cleaning their old property comes as an afterthought. Faced with your bare, empty old house – you then have the job of clearing every carpet stain and cobweb. Why not hire professionals to do it for you, so that you can focus on the transition to your new property.
Again, if you’re a cleaning freak this may not be much of a chore.
Don’t overspend on delivery men
If you haven’t got too much to move, several trips in a van could work out cheaper than hiring a lorry. Alternatively, don’t go overboard and try and strap a grand piano to the top of your car. Shop around to find the best removals company for you!
