Moving into a new home! *update on last page*

barbiedoll

As a previous owner of a one-bedroomed flat, I would just like to say, be careful when people offer you stuff, a small flat can quickly get cluttered. If you have mobility problems, you don't want to be tripping over huge furniture! And don't feel like you can't turn anything down, it's not rude to refuse free stuff that you don't want. I was offered 3 coffee tables, I felt terrible refusing kind offers, although looking back, they probably just wanted to save themselves a trip to the tip! :rotfl:

Same for buying other stuff, it's easy to get carried away and buy dinner sets that have 12 place settings, large amounts of mugs, glasses, cutlery etc etc. When I moved (into a house) I couldn't believe the amount of carp that I had stashed in my cupboard, including two hoovers!

When you buy furniture, make sure that you measure up first. Sofas especially all seem to be made to fit into huge rooms, they look lovely in the showroom or on the website, but you get them home and they completely take over the whole room. And keep the ornaments/knick-knacks to a bare minimum, it's just more to dust and keep clean!

Good luck in your new home!

*max*

I second Ikea for small furniture items, like coffee table, shelves...etc that you may like to buy new, as well as small things like cutlery, plates, bathroom stuff.... Bigger items (bed, sofa...) can be had cheap/free second-hand: check your local freecycle, gumtree, and charity shops. Ebay can also be a good source, there is an option to find local items when you search by distance.

For small electricals, things like bed linens and towels, argos and the big supermarkets are good. Tesco direct also have discount codes very often.

For gas & eletric, check out the comparison websites to get the cheapest providers. Take a meter reading as soon as you move in.

TV licence can be paid by direct debit monthly, that's what I do.

And finally, congratulations! It's a great feeling, isn't it?

pavlovs_dog

LadyMorticia wrote: »

Thank you.

The property is a new build and we'll be the first owners so not sure if the meters will already have readings?

I'd imagine so - the smoke alarm, central heating etc will all be running in the background. The readings should be low but the point is you don't want to pay for stuff you haven't used.

Whilst you're checking meters, remember to check where your stopcock is for the water, just in case of emergencies.

LadyMorticia wrote: »

How high is high?

I used to pay TV license on a DD every month, just because I found it easier that way but I'm not sure if you can still do that.:o[

ours will higher than yours as we're in a 4 bed house, but our gas DD was £54/month initially (low £42 and i expect it will drop further in the new year). Water was £65/month, now we pay £40 something. Tv license was £29.10 (now £12 odd). Council tax wont let us pay over 12 months, so we have 10 payments of £112 instead of the £80 a month we'd anticipated.


And at the other end of the scale, phone, tv and broadband start off cheap where you get so many months free/half price at the start of your contract, and as everything else starts getting cheaper, they start getting more expensive until you can switch deals :cool:


don't want to put you off, but it did throw my budget a bit because I had no idea it was going to happen.

mummyroysof3

Congrats on getting your own place.

the argos book idea is great..its what i did but i think wilkos/ikea might be better value for money and they sell plates etc as singles

have fun though..and dont go too mad with the purple stuff lol

*max*

One more thing! If you are going to get a BB bundle, don't forget to check the cashback sites, as some give good deals! for example, quidco are offering £61.75 cashback for taking out a contract with Virgin Media. Better than a kick in the teeth!

lynzpower

Have you got access to wheels?

I found ebay fantastic for furniture, have had some fab bargains.

neverdespairgirl

We're just about to move into our first owned flat as well, and I find making lists by room really useful. I've divided it into "essential" "really useful" and "nice to have".

For example, for my son's room:

Essential:

Bed
mattress
chest of drawers
shelves
bed linen
curtains

Really useful:

rug (wood floor there, so no carpets)
wardrobe

Nice to have:

toy box
desk & chair

Brighton_belle

Congratulations on getting the flat! That sounds really exciting for you.
I'd like to second the 'don't get too much stuff' before you move in. Sometimes it takes living somewhere to see how you use it to know best what furtniture to really need. If you have mobility problems, then keeping the place uncluttered wil make life easier as well as needing less cleaning etc.
Good storage is a must, (though I am a believer in don't have too much stuff to start with!) Make sure everything to have in flat has a home because then it will be easy to keep clutter free. Clutter free = energy saving for you as well as keeping your home a restful and relaxing place to live in.
Think about lots of shelving; some baskets on shelving can be a simple and attractive way to store little things between the books and what ever else needs a home .
Things like coffee tables - make them earn their keep by having two uses - one as a table and the 2nd as a storage box. Think about storage under the bed too, that is easy for you to use and pull out. Argos have some good ideas for this.
Also , think about how you are going to store your paperwork, all the bills etc: gas,elec,water/sewerage/C.Tax etc Perhaps some A4 files or an expanding folder.

You'll want somewhere to store towels and your spare duvet cover/sheet and pillow cases. Don't have too many spares, just one spare of each is enough especially when you live in a small space.
You'll want something to put dirty laundry and to dry it on too.

You only need a few mugs and a couple of plates and bowls to start with. Fewer dishes means they don't pile up for days.

Hope some of that helps. Have fun planning your new home.:D

Tigsteroonie

To be honest LadyM, you are so well-loved on MSE (particularly in the Arms) and on FB that if you were to publish a "wish list" - on FB of course, as we cannot exchange details on MSE - you'd find that some of us are willing to send you things to help get you started :kisses3:

I'll try to send you a list of what Marley & I had when we moved in together.

LadyMorticia

Thank you so SO much everyone for your help. It's really been helpful (and you've all made me even more excited!). I'm a little foggy and tired to reply to everyone individulally (as is the case alot lately ) but will try to tomorrow when I'm (hopefully) feeling better.:) :grouphug: