Moving house is one of the biggest projects that people will ever take on outside of work. It requires oodles of work and long-term preparation.
Without this forward planning, things can quickly spiral out of control and you’ll be stuck in one of those house move nightmares that you’ve heard so much about… So we spoke to the professionals at Kent Removals and Storage for their advise and they put together this moving house checklist to help the people of Geelong plan their move and ensure they day goes off without a hitch.
START RIGHT NOW
You need to start planning and preparing your move months from the date, with about two months to go you can start by:
- Ringing around and getting some quotes from moving companies in the Geelong area. You need to ask questions about what they offer and what they charge but never believe a quote unless it is based on an in-home visit and volume estimate. There’s no way a quote can be accurate until the company have seen how much you’re moving.
- Jotting down an itemised list of expenses. Expenses can add up quickly and if you’re not taking notice you’ll spend a lot more than you wanted to.
- Do a big spring clean and get rid of as much as you can. Only keep things that you absolutely love or use regularly, everything else will just add to your moving expenses and take up space in your new home.
- Decide if you need storage and book it now. Good spaces book out quickly and you don’t want to store your belongings in a less-than-perfect facility.
PACK LIKE A PROFESSIONAL
If you want your treasures to make it out the other side of your move you need to be packing like a pro and that means:
- Investing in good quality packing material, such as packing tape, bubble wrap and new boxes. Recycling old boxes and using newspaper may save you money in the short term but it puts your treasures at risk of breakage during transit and that’s going to cost you a lot in the long term.
- It’s a good idea to get custom-made boxes for things like your flat screen TV. Again it’s all about investing now to save in the long run.
- Overfilled boxes are a great way to damage your items. Only fill them to the point where one person can easily lift them, anymore and you’re likely to cause damage to your items or your removalists back.
KEEP CHIPPING AWAY
If you do a little bit over a long time you’ll be in a far better position than if you try and do everything at once, with one week to go you should be:
- Booking in a final inspection of your new address and making sure everything is up to the agreed standard.
- Calling your solicitor or agent to make sure they keys will be ready for moving day. You may also want to book in a locksmith so change the locks at your new address.
- Making sure that all specifics – addresses, access details, contact numbers, payment options and insurance details – have been confirmed with your moving provider.
- Creating an essentials box and setting this aside. Essentials include remotes, keys, and chargers.
- Finishing the remainder of the packing so all you have to do on moving day is load the boxes onto the truck.
Tick off each item on the list and you’re assured of a stress-free moving day and the perfect start to your new life.