How to Prepare For a Full House Move

Moving house is considered as being one of the most stressful events that occurs during a person’s life. With the chaos of conveyancing and the uncertainty that both selling and purchasing a home can entail, it is important to put steps in place to mitigate the stress this can cause. Whilst there are always issues and instances that pop up out of the blue that can throw your move off course, good preparation can help you to feel a sense of control over the situation and allow you to track your move’s progress. This preparation should begin once your move is confirmed with your moving company and estate agent.

Starting With a Declutter

When you’re moving home, you want to provide your movers with an itemised inventory of all the items and furniture you want to move to your new property. This can cause issues for many customers as they often find their property contains many items and furniture pieces, they do not want to take with them. We advise customers thus to declutter this will not only simplify their move but also prevent them from paying extra to move things they will eventually throw away.

Registered Waste Removal & Charity Donations

Here at Hampson & Mealey, as we are registered waste carriers, we offer a clearance service alongside our home removals so you can use us from start to finish of your move. If you book a clearance with us, we most often seek to donate your unwanted items and furniture that are in good condition to a multitude of charities in the UK. By doing so, we can reduce the cost of the clearance for you, lessen the impact of waste onto the environment by preventing donatable items and furniture from going to landfill, and make sure we as a company can support charities and provide their customers with good quality second-hand items and furniture.

Garden, Shed, Attic, Storage & Removals

When decluttering, it is important that you clear items from everywhere – this includes the attic, all the rooms, the shed, the garden, and any storage cupboards. Whilst this process sounds daunting, breaking the process up into chunks and tackling one area at a time can make it more manageable. If you do choose to package your items up for us to clear, make sure you use either strong boxes or bags, as from our experience bin bags never stand up to the job.

Furniture Plan: Take Only What You Need

One of the main issues we have found during many of our customer’s home removals has been furniture fitting into the new property. Whilst your old furniture may suit and fit into your old home, take the time to think whether you are certain it will have a place in the new home you’re moving into.

It is often customary for the previous owner of the property you are moving into to provide a floor plan off which you can gather the measurements of the space to then work out whether your furniture will fit. To make sure these measurements are correct when you view the new property, take a tape measure and a notebook with you. This will allow you to double-check that the measurements are accurate and that there is space for your sofa, appliances, dining table, etc.

Time to Start Packing

No matter the size of the property you are moving from, you must start packing as efficiently as you can to ensure that everything goes smoothly on the day of the move.

You should begin packing as early as possible, putting non-essential items such as seasonal, clothing, and décor items into moving boxes. The most difficult rooms should be prioritised, first with places like the attic, garages, and sheds proving to be those that are often the most cluttered and disorganised. It is important to realise that packing an entire household is not a one-man job, so get some help from friends or hire professionals.

Tips to Make it Simple

When it comes to packing and unpacking your belongings, this must be done most efficiently, so here are some tips to help you make the task easier:

• Make sure you stock up on packing materials that are of good quality. You will need bubble wrap, boxes (plastic or cardboard), scrap paper (newspaper), packing tape, permanent markers, labels, etc.
• If you are packing any fragile items, we advise you to wrap these in multiple layers of bubble wrap and pack them in one clearly labelled FRAGILE) box with scrunched paper filling the gaps.
• Heavier items should be divided between boxes. Please do not fill boxes to the brim with books, as this makes the boxes too heavy and weakens the boxes, especially if they are cardboard.
• Do not overfill boxes as they will be too heavy, unable to stack properly, and risk breaking and your goods spilling out.
• Each box you pack should indicate the right way up with an arrow.
• Write on each box the location of the items in it so that when the day of the move comes, everything can be placed in the correct room.

As this all can be rather overwhelming, you should consider whether it would be worth you getting us to handle the packing of your goods. Hampson & Mealey offers a packing service which can be completed either a few weeks or a couple of days before your moving date. It is important to note that if you select a packing service, this will usually take between half a day to two days to complete depending, on the number of items and size of your property.

What Do I Do With My Plants During a Removal?

Most removal companies approach the transportation of plants with caution. This is because plants are delicate and break easily, with issues of contamination also proving tricky. As with any precious or fragile belonging, we advise you that it’s best to move the plants yourself.

If we have agreed to collect and transport your plants, it is important to inspect them for any bugs and diseases to prevent any contamination. To prevent any leakage or excess weight it is advised that you avoid watering your plants up to three days before the move. You may also want to prune any bulkier plants to prevent any longer branches breaking off.

Notify The Relevant Companies

Before moving to your new home, you need to inform certain companies, amenities, and services that your location is about to change. These include:

1. Utility providers (gas, electric, water)
2. Your local council (council tax liabilities and electoral role)
3. Your bank, insurance, pension, and credit card companies
4. Student Loan Company
5. Your employer (make sure you give the correct notice if you are leaving thecompany!)
6. Doctor, dentist, optician (make sure you have a way of getting prescriptions if you aremoving to a new area!)
7. HMRC/DSS offices
8. DVLA

Last Second Preparations: The Day Before

As you approach the day of the move, remain focused on your final checklist to ensure that everything is in order before the movers arrive.

Here are the key tasks that need to be done before your movers arrive:

• Unplug and disconnect all electronics 24 hours before moving day.
• If TVs are on the wall ensure they have been removed before your movers arrive.
• Defrost the fridge and ensure it is cleaned and drained.
• Defrost any freezers and ensure it is cleaned and drained.
• Drain down washing machines and disconnect.
• If you have not selected a packing service, ensure that all items are packed and sealed in labelled good-quality boxes so your movers can efficiently place your items into your new home.
• If you have not selected a dismantling service, ensure that all the pieces of furniture that require dismantling have been done ahead of your mover’s arrival Make sure you place all screws and fixtures into a zip lock bag and label the bag with the name of the item of furniture. Make sure you securely attach the zip bag to the underside of the furniture to make it easy to reassemble.

Pack The Essentials Seperately

As your items and personal effects will most likely remain unpackaged for a couple of days after your move, you must prepare a kit of all the essentials you will need. This box should be kept separate from those the movers remove, and you should keep this box on your person.

It should include:

• Medicine
• Essential electronics – laptop, mobile phone, tablet, Wi-Fi router
• Snacks
• Beverages
• Essential baby items – nappies, formula, steriliser, etc
• Pet food
• Clothes
• Toiletries – especially toilet roll!
• Clean towels
• Cleaning supplies
• Passports and documents
• Sentimental items (items such as ashes, jewellery, inherited items)

Moving Day!

Moving day has arrived, and your movers will begin to load their vans ready for unloading at your new property. Just like the process of buying and selling a house, moving into a new property is never easy, as issues can arise. One of these issues is regarding the key release, as many estate agents often tell their clients that keys will be released at noon on moving day. However, from our experience, most key releases occur between 2 pm and 4 pm, with some unfortunate customers not receiving them till the day after their booked move.

This can cause issues regarding waiting times, resulting in many moving companies charging extra fees. Here at Hampson & Mealey, we do everything in our power to ensure this does not happen. For example, we charge a fixed cost for our services and only charge extra for cancellations and postponements, as stated in our Terms and Conditions. We also can offer storage solutions at a competitive price compared to the market alternative if you have to reschedule your move and store your items and furniture in the meantime.

To make moving day go as smoothly as possible, here are some tips to help you get into your new home.

1. Wake up ahead of schedule

On the day of the move, wake up as early as possible so that you can go through your checklist, making sure nothing slips through the cracks.

2. Pack away any items that have been left out

The final stages of packing should include toiletries, dishes, snacks, or clothes. If anything will spoil on the journey to your new home, ensure you throw it away.

3. Double check every corner of your home

Before the movers arrive, go into each room, storage cupboards, pantries, sheds and outbuildings, attics, and wardrobes and drawers and check that they are cleared of everything.

4. Your movers arrive

When your movers arrive, it is best to first walk them through the property and indicate which pieces of furniture need to be dismantled (if you have selected this service) and any items which need to be packed (if you have selected this service). Please indicate any boxes which are fragile and require special treatment. They will then discuss with you how the boxes will be loaded into the van and the arrangement of the furniture. Feel free to offer your movers a drink and show them where the toilet is.

Time to Leave

Once your movers have loaded everything into the van, make sure you go back into the property and do one more check of the property for any leftover items or furniture.

Tidy up any rubbish left over and make sure the property is in a clean presentable state.

Make sure you lock the door on your way out and drop off any keys at the estate agents.

Whilst you are travelling to your new home, ensure you maintain communication with your movers in transit. Both parties could be delayed due to traffic or misdirection, so having an updated ETA is best.

Arrival

Once you have arrived at your new home, you should give your movers a walkthrough of the property and let them know where you want items and furniture. Again, it is always an appreciated gesture to provide snacks and water, especially in the summer months.

After your movers have unloaded and reassembled your furniture and items, if you feel we've gone above and beyond, you can show your gratitude by leaving a tip. This isn’t necessary but is appreciated after a day of manual labour. Any bonuses will be divided amongst the staff on the move.

Once your movers have finished, you can finally settle in to your new home.