Don’t let the stress of moving house put you off the prospect of buying a new home. These moving tips will help you simplify the process.
Article summary
- Donate, sell or get rid of possessions you no longer make much use of, such as old books, in order to lighten the workload.
- You can simplify the moving process by labelling boxes in a systematic way, and keeping a record of what each box contains.
- Ensure you are covered by insurance during the moving process so you can claim for any lost or damaged items.
The stress of moving is enough to put many people off buying a new home in the first place. Here, we simplify the moving process so as to make it less intimidating, removing a potential psychological hurdle to finding your dream home.
First question: Do I use a moving company?
You can save costs by moving items yourself, but for long-distance moves you really should get the professionals in. Moving companies not only save you the effort, but minimise the chances of your possessions getting damaged or lost during the moving process.
Insurance
Before moving, check with your insurance company to see whether your insurance will cover you during the move.
At O-YES Home Loans, we offer insurance packages such as buildings insurance and household contents insurance. You should consider taking advantage of these packages when undertaking a move, so you’ll have the option to claim for any lost or damaged items.
Tips for moving
- Label boxes according to room
Label boxes according to which room the items need to go to, so the boxes can be taken straight to the corresponding room when being unpacked. - Set aside boxes for the most important items
The items you want to unpack immediately should be stored in their own special box, so you don’t have to search for them once you arrive at your new home. - Use a spreadsheet
Labelling boxes helps, but you won’t be able to write all the information you need on the side of the box. So make a spreadsheet listing all the boxes (by box number if you prefer to label them that way) along with their contents. - Reduce the workload
Consider what items you can discard before commencing the move, so as to reduce the workload.This includes not only junk, but things you have hoarded over time but don’t really make much use of anymore.For example, if there are a lot of books you would rather just get on Kindle than lug around physically, you can give those books to family or friends, or donate them to a second hand book store. - Pack an overnight bag
Put the items you’ll need immediate access to, such as toiletries, additional clothing and tablets or laptops, into an overnight bag as if you were going travelling for a short period. So you’ll have some convenient items to hand while the rest are being unpacked. - Put fragile items in temporary storage
Items that are extremely valuable or extremely fragile, such as a wine collection, should be temporarily stored somewhere else, maybe with a family member, while the moving process is underway. It’s better to move them by hand, which you can do over the course of several trips if there are a lot of items. - Keep boxes lighter
Piles of books are usually the main culprit in making boxes much heavier than they need to be. Try to avoid filling up more than half a box with books, and save the other half for lighter items.
Finding a new home to move to
Once you’ve gotten over your fear of moving, the prospect of buying a new home becomes exciting rather than intimidating. If you’ve found your new dream home, ooba Home Loans can assist you with the home loan application process by submitting your application to multiple banks, allowing you to compare deals and choose the one with the lowest interest rates.
If you are just thinking about buying a home, or are ready to put in an offer, O-YES Home Loans gets you the best deal on your home loan – for free. To make the home-buying process that much easier, O-YES Home Loans also offers a range of home loan calculators O-YES Home Loans, then, when you’re ready, you can apply for a home loan with O-YES Home Loans.