Tag: moving house

What should your first purchases be for your new home?

What should your first purchases be for your new home?

You may have signed the paperwork and secured your mortgage but knowing where to start when buying those first few purchases for your new home can prove to be tricky. Whatever your end goal, whether you plan to settle there or use it as an investment property to sell on, these pointers will help you decide on what to invest in first.

Prep in advance

Lucky enough to have time on your side? You can minimise the number of last-minute shopping trips by picking up a few items in advance. From cutlery to soft furnishings, gathering smaller items will mean you can transfer them straight into your new property to make the place instantly feel more homely.

This is also a more cost-effective option if you want to avoid having to splash out in bigger batches later down the line. By boxing up a few items beforehand, you can save yourself money and time.

Security

No one wants to be at risk of theft while settling into a new home. Simple habits like remembering to lock the doors and keeping valuables hidden will put you in a better position; however, many opt for a quality home security system.

Although this is a heftier investment, it will give you peace of mind. To make this purchase more accessible you could pay through instalments. Alternatively, you could use finance and simultaneously boost your credit score, assuming you’re able to manage the repayments.

White goods

White goods, otherwise known as domestic items like fridges, freezers and washing machines are essentials. It can be a struggle to maintain your usual household routine without them.

By ensuring these items are installed as soon as possible, you’ll be able to get your first food shop done and get your clothes washed straight away – both things that will help you to feel more settled in your new home.

Furnishings

There’s nothing more frustrating than waiting for large furnishings, such as a bed or sofa to arrive. Items like these can take months to turn up, so getting an order in sooner rather than later is crucial.

A bed is especially important to maintain a regular and healthy sleep cycle. Moving is stressful enough without having a poor sleeping pattern from an unsatisfactory, temporary bed arrangement.

Décor

Making your house a home is a big project and assembling pieces of décor in the lead up to moving will help you put your stamp on the place sooner rather than later. Deciding on themes for rooms will help you coordinate items that will bring the space to life.

Rugs, artwork and lighting will make a big difference when it comes to creating the right mood in your space. Alongside your personal touches such as photographs and other accessories, you’ll soon feel right at home after adding additional décor details.

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What to pack (first & last) for your upcoming move

What to pack (first & last) for your upcoming move

Moving to a new home can be exciting. Not everyone gets the opportunity to start anew in another place. However, before you can start thinking about life in your future residence, you have to first clear out the stuff from your old one.

Many people dread the idea of packing in readiness for a move. It’s physically draining and involves weeks of planning. In fact, many home-owners don’t even know where to begin. Fortunately, it’s not as confusing as it looks. When packing items, you only need to remember two things: size and frequency of usage.

To further help you, read this list of items for your upcoming move. Packing them in order will make your move to your new home as stress-free as possible.

Storage boxes

Items in any storage container should be on the top of your list. They’re one of the easiest to pack as they’re already stored in boxes. Thus, you won’t need to package each individual thing. However, if you’ve stuffed items randomly in those containers, you may have to organise them first. Once you’ve done that, remember to label each box to easily find and unpack the things you need after you’ve arrived at your destination.

Don’t forget about your wardrobes, cabinets and chests of drawers. Even if you’ve emptied them, you must secure them properly to transport them to your new home. You’ll need ropes, bubble and plastic wrap and packing tape. As you’re preparing to move, you may already have these. If not, you could have a reliable moving company help you. Click here for more info on movers that’ll happily assist and provide tools and materials to pack and store your possessions efficiently.

Garage, basement and attic items

Next on your list should be the things from your least-used rooms. These would be your garage, basement and attic. You’ll find many items here that you probably rarely use; like camping gear, power tools and holiday decorations. So long as you won’t need to use them shortly after you move, you can pack them right after your storage boxes.

As many of these items are fragile, you must pack them carefully. Use as much bubble wrap and packing boxes as you need.

Out-of-season clothes and jewellery

If you’re moving to a new home in the spring or summer, you can pack your seasonal clothing like coats and sweaters in advance. On the other hand, store your summer outfits and beach wear instead if you’re moving during autumn or winter. You’re also  unlikely to wear any expensive jewellery while preparing for the move. Therefore, you can store these accessories immediately and keep them safe.

As a precaution, leave out a fleece or jumper and a waterproof coat for each person. You never know when you’ll hit a cold or wet spell on the journey. It’s better to be prepared rather than packing every stitch of clothing and ending up shivering or drenched due to an unexpected turn in the weather.

Fine china

You may have already sent invitations to your new home to friends & family. Or perhaps you’re planning to invite your new neighbours for dinner after you’ve settled in. If that’s the case, you may want to bring out your best, fine china and cutlery. If this isn’t the case, it’s best that you pack your delicate crockery early.

When you arrive at your new place, you’ll spend the first few days arranging the furniture and doing some initial cosmetic touch-ups. Consider hosting your house-warming party a week or so after you’ve finished unpacking and fixing up the place.

Decorative accessories

Other everyday household items that can be packed in advance are decorative homewares. As many of them are small and often go unnoticed, you may forget to gather them. In addition, vases, framed photos and other knick-knacks can be fragile. Hence, they must be carefully packaged to avoid breakages en route. Wrapping them takes time, so it’s better to start them early.

One of the first moving-in activities you’ll likely do is to bring in your larger pieces of furniture. Therefore, it’s fine to keep your secondary decorative items in their boxes in the meantime. When the beds, wardrobes, sofa, tables & chairs etc are in place, that’s the time to unpack your decorative items and accessories.

Extra bedding and towels

Packing for a move can take days or even weeks. You’re probably not going to change the bed linen (especially in spare/guest rooms) or use that many towels prior to your big move. So, box up these surplus, bulky items well in advance to save yourself the task of doing it the day before you leave.

Photo albums and books

Photo albums are a must-bring to your new place. You may also have a sizeable book collection. They’re not everyday items, so pack these early and carefully to ensure you don’t forget any of them behind. You can store them in plastic storage containers or cardboard boxes. If you use the latter, line the inside and cover the outside with bubble wrap so the contents don’t accidentally get wet and damaged.

Games and toys

Game consoles and toys should be another one of the things to pack in advance. Many children have their own phones or tablets nowadays, so they have something else to keep them busy. Additionally, if you have young kids, leave out just a couple of their favourite toys to play with during the move; the rest you can pack away.

Setting up your cable TV and wi-fi connection will also take some time in your new place. TV aerial installation can be an option too if you had one in your previous place. Hence, you may want to hand-carry a few of your family’s favourite board games to have something fun to do together during your first few days after the move.

Kitchen appliances

Rarely-used kitchen appliances such as blenders, mixers and waffle makers can be packed up way before your fridge-freezer, microwave and stove. In addition, you can pack tablecloths, napkins and tableware reserved for special occasions early. Set aside your day-to-day kitchenware for now and box them up the day before your move.

Documents

Whether you work from home or not, you’re bound to have piles of important paperwork and essential documents. These include insurance certificates, utility bills, warranties and passports. Like your books, ensure that these files stay safe and dry throughout the moving process. Store them in box files, preferably waterproof ones or accordion folders. Meanwhile, keep documents like photo ID and cheque books within easy reach if they’re needed for change of address purposes.

Shoes and other clothing

Lastly, pack the clothing and accessories you wear most often. These may include comfy sweatshirts, tracksuit bottoms, socks, slippers and underwear. Sort them by type so that it’s easier to find the individual pieces you need once you’ve arrive in your new home.

Before moving to a new place, some people use the occasion to sort their clothes into those they’ll still use and those they won’t. While this is a great way to get rid of unused items, you may not have the spare time to do it at this point. Focus on packing everything first, then do your decluttering after the move.

Conclusion

Packing all your stuff for a move isn’t quick or easy, but it really shouldn’t stress you out. You’ll find the process much less complicated if you plan and pack your things in order of importance and necessity. If you’re still at a loss even after preparing in advance, coordinate with a reputable moving service. They help make your move to a new home more seamless and comfortable.

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Things to do when moving home

Things to do when moving home

Moving home can be very exciting, it’s a new chapter of your life and something to which you can look forward. That said, added to the anticipation, as the weeks and days approach to your move, there are bound to be moments of stress – this is perfectly normal and happens to everyone. To reduce how tense these moments are, try to be as organised as possible before the move.

There are many things that you can do to be organised. You can begin to declutter your current home and get rid of all the junk that has built up over time. You can look into hiring a locksmith as you’ll want to change the locks as soon as you move into your new place. Other things to consider is hiring a removal company and getting all the important documents together and enlisting friends and family members who can help you with your move.

To help reduce the stress, below are a few of our packing tips for your move.

Declutter

Let’s be honest, we’re all hoarders in our own way. The longer we’ve lived in our current home, the more clutter we’ll have collected over time. Now you’re moving, this is the perfect time to go through all your things and start to throw out anything you think you’ll no longer need. Go through your old clothes, sort through your cupboards and take a note of any accessories that haven’t been touched for a while – we’re sure there’s a cupboard containing stuff you’ve not touched since you moved to your current home.

Hire a removal company

In the weeks leading up to the move, start to contact various removal companies in order to get some quotes. Ask them what the different services are that they offer and choose which one is best for you. Some will pack all your boxes for you or help you unpack when you move – they’ll all help with the move itself. By getting various quotes, you can compare them to make sure they’re not overcharging you. Moving is expensive, and you want to keep it all within your budget.

There are some great companies out there, so take a good look at each moving company to see what they offer, especially if you need storage in the interim.

Think about the changes you’d like in your new home

What changes are you going to make when you’ve finally moved to your new home? Are you going to repaint any of the rooms? Will you be getting a new kitchen fitted? A new bathroom? Does anything need to be done to the garden? Doing a little research beforehand can help you make your decisions quicker. Visit some of your local interiors stores and use websites like Pinterest or Instagram to see what other people have been doing. If you know someone who lives in a home similar to the one you’re buying, you could pop around to theirs to see what changes they’ve made to their place. You want to make your home as peaceful as possible.

What things would you recommend you do when moving home? Which of the above tips did you find most useful? Is there anything you’d like to share? Let us know in the comments section below.

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These money-saving tips will help you to move house on a budget

These money-saving tips will help you to move house on a budgetcredit

Buying a property is quite possibly one of the biggest purchases you could ever hope to make. That being said, you also have to make sure that you cut down on your expenses elsewhere, so you do not end up burning through your budget too soon. Moving house can cost a lot of money too. After all, you have to pay for surveys, conveyancing, removals and more. When moving into your new home, there are a few ways to make sure that you are not throwing your money away. If you want to find out more, then simply read on.

Clear clutter

First things first, you have to make sure that you’re doing what you can to cut down on the number of packaging boxes you need. This will cut down on the number of removal services you’ll need, and it will also help you to cut down on costs if you know that you need to put some of your items into storage as well. As a general rule, the less you have overall, the less you’ll have to pay. Not only this, but you may find that you’re able to make some money by simply selling your items online too.

Find a removal team

When it comes to removals, the first thing you should do is compare prices. This will help you to make sure that you’re getting the best value for money. If possible, try to hire someone local. If you can choose someone who’s nearby and reputable, and if you can get quotes from a range of different removal companies, then this will help to ensure that you’re getting the best experience at a price you know you can afford. If you don’t need to move a large amount of stuff, you may find that a man and van is enough.

Book promptly

If you can give a lot of notice when moving house, then this will help you out a lot in the future. Removals teams can easily get booked up super quick, and this is especially the case if you’re moving during peak season. This could include if you’re moving during the summer or over a bank holiday weekend. If you book in advance, this means that you can budget, and it also means you can let everyone know about any last-minute changes too. If you’re able to move during a quieter period, you may be able to save even more money.

Do you get a discount?

Some removal companies will give you a discount if you’re a student, a key worker or a member of the armed forces. If you can, you should look to see if you can get a discount so you can then get the best result out of your experience. Now would also be the time for you to see if you can get some extra help from your removals company. Sometimes you may find that you do not have to move as much as you think, and this can save you a lot of money overall.

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