Moving house is one of the most stressful life events. It is said that a person will move house an average of 13 times in their lifetime – therefore it is a really good idea to make use of some (or all) of the following tips to reduce your stress during a move and make the experience a little more bearable.
If you can afford it, opt to outsource and pay an expert to do one or more of packing, cleaning, moving your possessions and unpacking. If you are going to engage a company to perform any of these jobs for you, ask for itemised quotes from a few vendors, so that you know exactly what you will be paying for and exactly what service you will be receiving. Ask whether there are any additional charges – ie if the move takes longer than expected, and if there are any access issues at either end.
Don’t forget about insurance – will your goods be insured and under what conditions? Always go through the terms and conditions offered by the vendor, to ensure that you know what you are dealing with.
You should also check the condition of your goods before they are removed from
Your old home and after they are delivered to your new home. Take photos of expensive and/or sentimental pieces before the move,
Don’t plan to pack everything that you own. This is an excellent opportunity to go through your possessions and cull what you don’t need or want. This will save effort (and cost) in moving and unpacking. Give to charity, or friends – or even put items into storage if you need more time to decide.
It is a good idea to start packing six to seven weeks ahead of the move. Start in rooms that you don’t use often – spare bedrooms for example. You can then move on to other rooms, packing items that are not in everyday use. Plan to leave the basic kitchen, bathroom and bedroom everyday items last.
Don’t be tempted to use supermarket boxes – they won’t be strong enough. If you are using a removal company, they can supply you with boxes, or you can buy suitable boxes from storage companies.
List the contents of each box, and identify the room in the new house that they need to go into. If the contents list is long – number your boxes and keep a separate index of contents per box number.
Buy clean butcher’s paper to wrap your crockery and breakables – newspaper leaves you with black hands and the newsprint will also come off onto the surface of some items.
Pack an essentials box with all the items that you will need for the first night – your linen, medications, kettle, food staples, some toiletries and a change of clothes.
On the day, try to not be packing when the movers arrive – plan to have mostly everything packed the night before, with only the last minute items/essentials left to quickly box on the morning of the move.
If you can, ask family of friends to look after your pets or children – leaving you free to direct the movers.
If your move runs over a meal time, it’s a good idea to feed the movers – they will certainly appreciate this.
Good luck for a well planned and smooth move!
