31 Aug 2022
Everything to Consider When Moving House
So you’ve done it, you’ve completed the mortgage process and have ended up with the home of your dreams.
But now the big move is approaching, and they say that moving is one of the most stressful times in your life, especially if you haven’t done it before.
There can be lots to think about, including things that may have never crossed your mind. This blog will help you see moving as a chance to declutter and potentially save money on some bills.
As online mortgage advisors, we’re there through every step of the process. From your initial mortgage meeting through to completion, we want to continue helping you even once our bit is done. This guide is our way of helping you through the final step.
Here’s everything you need to consider before moving home and to help prepare for the move itself.
Start Decluttering Early
Moving house is the prime opportunity to go through your belongings and decide what to keep and what to bin for good. If you give yourself enough time, this can be a great way of decluttering your home, giving your new home much more space.
If you’re downsizing, this is even more of a must. You don’t want to fill your new home with things you don’t need, especially if you have less room.
A good way to do this is by doing it one room at a time. This way you can spread the job out over a couple of weeks and you can keep things organised, packing bits up so you know exactly what room it needs to go back to.
A place to start can be your wardrobe, giving clothes you haven’t worn for over a year to charity and things like old cups, mugs etc that you no longer use.
This is also the time to decide what furniture you’ll be keeping or whether you’ll be buying anything new.
Book Your Removals
If you have a lot of furniture to move, you may need to get in touch with a removal company. Local companies can get booked up quickly, so avoid phoning last minute and leaving yourselves without any help.
However, hiring a van yourself can sometimes be cheaper, so it’s a good idea to do some research beforehand.
Or for those without much furniture, you might be getting it delivered straight to your new place or you’re renting a furnished property, getting a couple of friends or family members to help might be enough. Plan this in advance so you’re not left stuck on moving day.
Utility Providers
Most utility suppliers require you to provide notice of moving one month in advance, and you’ll need to give them your new address and moving date. This could be one of those tasks that slips your mind, so the earlier you do it the better.
It’s important to update your supplier to make sure you aren’t billed for the new tenant’s energy bill.
You should also take a meter reading at your new place to make sure the first bill is correct.
Label and Categorise Boxes By Room
A helpful hack when packing up your home is by labelling each box by room. This way, you know exactly where each box needs to go in your new house, and it keeps everything together.
Spend some time making sure everything is packed safely, with glass or special pieces wrapped in bubble wrap. Don’t over fill your boxes either, this can cause damage.
Updating Your New Address
When you change address, you’ll have to notify a number of different people. This is very important, and you don’t want to rush around doing it last minute to avoid missing important bills or post.
From redirecting your post for subscriptions, to letting your workplace know, this is the main list of contacts.
- Bank or building society
- HMRC
- School or college
- Doctors
- Electoral roll
- Driver’s License
- The council
- Address book
- Subscription services
- Workplace
- Dentist
- National insurance
- Friends and family members (you want to stay in touch with)
You can either get in touch manually with all of the above, or you can set up the Royal Mail redirection service. For a fixed price of £33.99 for three months, or £47.99 for six, your mail and bills can be automatically redirected to your new property. This helps put your mind at ease that you’re not missing anything important!
Clean Your New House
Before moving day, give your new house a big clean so that you don’t have to juggle moving in with getting out the dustpan and brush.
Whether it’s a new property filled with plaster and dust, or the old tenants left the cupboards filthy, you’ll need to conduct some sort of clean.
You’ll want to clean everything from the cupboards to the windows which can take up a lot of time, so do it a couple of days before you’re planning to move in.
Organisation is Key
To avoid the stress of moving house, the more organised you are the better. As soon as you know the completion date, you can start to put things into place.
This guide should help you plan out what you need to do for when and can be used as a moving house checklist.
If you require any future help with your mortgage, such as remortgaging or buy-to-let, don’t hesitate to give us a call on 03300586058 or email us over at ask@mortgages.online.