Great Cut The Cost Of Moving Home Hunt

aliciamoss

Where do I start?

Yes, I'm a professional remover. If you want the short answer, look at https://www.house-move.com for advice on moving. Look at the British Association of Removers site.

Insurance? Removers are not permitted to sell insurance any more, unless accredited by the FSA. If you think removal "insurance", or the similar protection provided by liability is expensive, consider this; if a remover drops your TV and runs over it, he may be negligent and you may be entitled to compensation - unless your dog tripped him up, for example. And what if a drunk driver rams the lorry and it catches fire. Is that the remover's fault? Should he then compensate you?

Do it yourself? Have you the time, and potentially the money to make good the damage you may do if you or your pals get it wrong? A load shifts because it isn't stowed properly? The van is overloaded? Do you know how to lift properly, and carry? Have you blankets and ties? You pays your money and takes your choice. Cutting costs is not always just spending fewer pounds, it's about value for money. How much do you value your time?

I'll write more if anyone has questions. And no, I'm not touting for business. We're a small firm operating out of and into a home area, not a big national company.

aliciamoss

Sorry, had to rush off before I finished properly.

Remember that moving yourself, or getting a pal with a van, may not be covered by your household contents insurance. And remember that if you want protection, you have to play by the rules. In my experience, forewarned is forearmed - if you know what you are required to do to have protection - you can take the appropriate steps.

To cut the cost of using a remover, be clear what you want the remover to do, and what they expect you to do, and do it. If you are going to pack, do it properly, with proper materials. Otherwise you will hurt yourself, or the remover, or your possessions. Ask the remover, who moves people every day, for advice. Don't assume that because you have moved a couple of times, that you know it all.

There are ways to cut the cost of moving, with and without a remover. Try https://www.house-move.com - no I don't get paid for that, and the B.A.R. website.

the_saint_7

We have just put our house on the market and decided to have a good clear out of all our rubbish, a drawer full of live show programmes, old ornaments, the kids toys from the loft ( they moved out several years ago) most of these items we were just going to throw away, instead i took a few photos and put them on ebay, in a few weeks i have made £460, not bad for a load of old junk.
AS THEY SAY:- "ONE MANS JUNK IS ANOTHER MANS TREASURE"

secretsmiles

Hey guys

I am finally moving after a 2 year wait but I am horrified at some of the costs I have to incur that need a 'specialist'. I need my gas cooker disconnected the day before I move and reconnected the next day as Corgi plumbers dont move the cooker. I have to pay an hourly rate for each even though I have been told by a couple of companies it wil only take about 10-15mins to disconnect!!! I have been quoted various prices with the average being £65 + VAT per hour which means I will have to pay for 2 hrs! I also need to have a dishwasher plumbed in which means another company and cost. AAARRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGHHHHH!!!!!
Please help this little stressed eric as I am going crazy.

P.s I am a single mum and a student on a very tight budget. I dont know if any of these factors can help me get any get any discount?

Secretsmiles x

aliciamoss

Don't forget that what is 15 minutes in your home does not include the time spent travelling to and from your home. Travel time and fuel costs have to be covered as well. The need for "experts" to connect and reconnect is due to the legislation for gas and electricity, and because anyone else does not want to be sued for unplumbing your washing machine and the flood resulting from a worn out washer - yes I've seen that. It's the "sue" mindset that has pushed people into being hyper cautious about doing what used to be common sense, DIY jobs. I'm not including gas in that, although we used to be able to change a plug.

If you want to cut removal costs, reduce the amount you are moving, pack *properly*, sort out rubbish and discards so you don't move what you will later throw away. Look at https://www.house-move.com for packing tips, pick "packing" from the left hand menu. Yes, it's my site, I'm a professional remover, and the information is free. If you want more, come back and ask.

You can "get away" with some short cuts, but remember, it's your back and your belongings if you choose the wrong ones, like rubbishy boxes and string.

theoldtrout

If anyone is thinking of using The Property Shop beware.......in their contract they say all they have to do is find a buyer "who is ready and able to purchase the house" even if they don't buy, you still pay up. Within one hour of signing the contract, a women knocked on my door to say she had just spoken to Property Shop and they had told her my house had just come on the market! She came in and within 4 minutes she said the house was perfect and she wanted it. Of course she never bought it. They never found me another buyer and in fact I sold the house myself eventually unfortunately within the 6 months time span.

A few months ago I found out that the same woman had already put another offer in (and had been accepted by the owners) for a house 6 doors away and had moved in within 3 weeks.

This same women told me that she and family was moving to Italy and just wanted a house to rent out incase things went wrong.

Really don't think that her circumstances can change so quickly and that a sale can be completed so quickly. Also found out that she worked for guess who....the morgage brokers that works along side them.

Coincidence or con..wish I could prove it. A very costly £1500.00.

Moral of this story.....read and negoitate the contract if necessary.

harmonsmith

dustycat wrote: »

If you're using a 'professional' removal company, don't get conned into taking their insurance to cover your belongings during the removal. It is usually very expensive and often unnecessary.

Instead check with your household contents insurer. If you have accidental damage cover this will often include cover for during removals. If it doesn't ask your insurer if you can add the extra cover needed for the couple of days of the move. It often works out far cheaper.

Also, if the removal company damage or lose anything - they should be paying for it - so why would you want insurance?

Also, you can save money by packing yourself rather than have them pack everything for you.

The other saving you can make is in the packing materials. If they supply boxes etc, don't write on the boxes but instead get a pen that will write on the sticky tape. That way, the removal company can take the boxes back and use them for another job - and many will either not charge you for the boxes or charge you a much lower rate.

Time-saving tip - get your removal company to provide 'wardrobes'. These are cardboard packing cases that come with a metal rail across the top. You simply lift your clothes out of the wardrobe on the hangers and hang them in the cases. Then simply rehang in your wardrobe at your new house. No folding everything into bags then reironing and rehanging.

Great advice.Moving is always a difficult job and when it comes suddenly it becomes more difficult. Glad that you are enjoying your move but you need to plan it good to make it smooth. This is a good time to throw away your garbage that you are taking care of and that you don't need any more. My advice is to hire professional movers because it will lighten your burden. When i moved i also hired movers called Box. Specially when moving in short period these professionals feel like God's gift.

Arther_2

Packing and moving is a overwhelming job. I have moved many times (nine times) and the last time I moved my whole house. you can still see the picture of that move in that site http://wolfehousebuildingmovers.com/pastjob.html I know very well the difficulties which can comes during moves but one thing is for sure, hiring professional movers is definitely a wise choice then moving by yourself because they can make your moving experience stress free.

lil'H

I'm buying a house at the moment, and have saved £400 by using a socicitor based up north (I live in London outskirts). Phone a few family up there got a recomendation and she's been great. Like everything else you pay over the odds for solicitors in London.

vwornoutmum

Our car ins was due for renewal 4 weeks before moving so we asked the new company to remove the £25 admin fee for changing address if we took out ins with them 1 said no tried another they said yes and matched other price.
Home contents ins also removed the £25 admin fee for change of address to keep us as a customer.
To cut cost on HIPs shop around our solicitor was £200 cheaper than the EA.
Our local council collected 3 household items for £10 we wanted to throw out old sofa so easy and cheap.