When do you start packing to move

youth_leader

I recommend www.kitepackaging.co.uk boxes.  I had to pack on my own, and can't lift huge boxes, so bought double walled 18 x 12 x 12, a tape dispenser and the tapes.  Managed to pack a lot beforehand but not enough, it was frantic on the day.  I'd recommend doing the shed and garage first, I left it till last and it nearly killed me.

iampetesmith

We started packing before we put the offer in as we knew we were moving. The first to be boxed up was stuff that's hardly used and stuff that we knew wasn't going to be needed, such as the xmas decorations. We also cleared out a lot of stuff we didn't need as well, so this made it a lot easier when packing later on towards the end as a lot of it was already done.

hazyjo

I'd get the removal bods to pack and wouldn't pack a thing before exchange.

How will you feel having to unpack it all if it falls through?

DairyQueen

We have have learned from painful experience never to assume the move is on until exchange of contracts. One vendor pulled-out the night before exchange and, on another occasion, the buyer pulled on the actual day of exchange. If the property has to be re-marketed then the last thing you need is a property in a state of chaos.

We declutter before listing and then keep the house pristine until exchange. We allow at least two weeks between exchange and completion and ensure that the removal company is provisionally booked before confirming a completion date. You need every moment of two weeks to pack if you are DIY-ing but, for us, the extra cost of having the removal company pack is worth every penny.

There is no way I would add to the stress of moving by packing a single thing until after exchange. The trend to exchange and complete on the same day is new and ill-advised. Whose interest is served is difficult to establish. I shudder at the thought of a house completely packed when the call comes in that a buyer/vendor somewhere in the chain has pulled-out.

Robin9

We moved in early Jan. Online order for a few days after the move.
Stopped grocery shopping a month before and ran the freezer and kitchen storage  right down.  Cleared the loft and garage.

mm1985

DairyQueen said:

We have have learned from painful experience never to assume the move is on until exchange of contracts. One vendor pulled-out the night before exchange and, on another occasion, the buyer pulled on the actual day of exchange. If the property has to be re-marketed then the last thing you need is a property in a state of chaos.

We declutter before listing and then keep the house pristine until exchange. We allow at least two weeks between exchange and completion and ensure that the removal company is provisionally booked before confirming a completion date. You need every moment of two weeks to pack if you are DIY-ing but, for us, the extra cost of having the removal company pack is worth every penny.

There is no way I would add to the stress of moving by packing a single thing until after exchange. The trend to exchange and complete on the same day is new and ill-advised. Whose interest is served is difficult to establish. I shudder at the thought of a house completely packed when the call comes in that a buyer/vendor somewhere in the chain has pulled-out.

In the ideal world we would exchange around 2 weeks before completion but unfortunately none of the solicitors in the chain will agree to this at the moment and due to Covid the current practice is to exchange on the day of or a couple of days before completion. I will explore the idea of getting a moving company in to pack for us but even then there is still stuff we would need to do before exchange to be able to move on completion day 

amandacat

We’re expecting exchange at the end of January but no dates are confirmed yet and buyers can pull out at any point until exchange so we’re conscious of that. 
We decluttered before going on the market but after Christmas we plan to:
Further declutter/ do more tip runs. 
Clear out the shed- we have accumulated a lot of junk in there’s so that will be a big job. 
Clear out kitchen cupboards which I know have things we won’t take. 
Clear out the airing cupboard of old bedding and towels. 
Start boxing things we won’t need to access such as old photos etc. 
We will only leave things we use on a regular basis and will pack that after exchange. It’ll be a bit easier for us as we are having 2 weeks between exchange and completion. When these happen on the same day or close together it’s a bit more difficult and you will always risk needing to unpack again if things fall through. 
The biggest error I made last time I moved and will not do again is leaving packing until the last minute. As a result I got so fed up of rushing and packing that I ended up packing boxes of stuff that really needed throwing away and it ended up staying in boxes in a cupboard for 10 years in my current house before finally I threw it away. 
Packing becomes tedious so it’s better done over a period of time in my opinion and means you leave yourself time to go to the tip with stuff you’re not taking. 

mm1985

amandacat said:

We’re expecting exchange at the end of January but no dates are confirmed yet and buyers can pull out at any point until exchange so we’re conscious of that. 
We decluttered before going on the market but after Christmas we plan to:
Further declutter/ do more tip runs. 
Clear out the shed- we have accumulated a lot of junk in there’s so that will be a big job. 
Clear out kitchen cupboards which I know have things we won’t take. 
Clear out the airing cupboard of old bedding and towels. 
Start boxing things we won’t need to access such as old photos etc. 
We will only leave things we use on a regular basis and will pack that after exchange. It’ll be a bit easier for us as we are having 2 weeks between exchange and completion. When these happen on the same day or close together it’s a bit more difficult and you will always risk needing to unpack again if things fall through. 
The biggest error I made last time I moved and will not do again is leaving packing until the last minute. As a result I got so fed up of rushing and packing that I ended up packing boxes of stuff that really needed throwing away and it ended up staying in boxes in a cupboard for 10 years in my current house before finally I threw it away. 
Packing becomes tedious so it’s better done over a period of time in my opinion and means you leave yourself time to go to the tip with stuff you’re not taking. 

@amandacat thank you, the only
house we’ve owned is the one we live in now and we were first time buyers with no kids and very little belongings so this is all new to us. I think it seems the best thing we can do is pack up the things we don’t need and hope all goes well and then in the worst case we will have to unpack where we currently live but in the best we will be prepared for a smooth moving day. 

DairyQueen

mm1985 said:

DairyQueen said:

We have have learned from painful experience never to assume the move is on until exchange of contracts. One vendor pulled-out the night before exchange and, on another occasion, the buyer pulled on the actual day of exchange. If the property has to be re-marketed then the last thing you need is a property in a state of chaos.

We declutter before listing and then keep the house pristine until exchange. We allow at least two weeks between exchange and completion and ensure that the removal company is provisionally booked before confirming a completion date. You need every moment of two weeks to pack if you are DIY-ing but, for us, the extra cost of having the removal company pack is worth every penny.

There is no way I would add to the stress of moving by packing a single thing until after exchange. The trend to exchange and complete on the same day is new and ill-advised. Whose interest is served is difficult to establish. I shudder at the thought of a house completely packed when the call comes in that a buyer/vendor somewhere in the chain has pulled-out.

In the ideal world we would exchange around 2 weeks before completion but unfortunately none of the solicitors in the chain will agree to this at the moment and due to Covid the current practice is to exchange on the day of or a couple of days before completion. I will explore the idea of getting a moving company in to pack for us but even then there is still stuff we would need to do before exchange to be able to move on completion day 

You have my sympathy. Clients instruct solicitors - not the reverse. Our buyer's solicitor suggested exchange/completion on the same day with less than a week's notice. She had been useless throughout the process. We contacted the buyer and arranged things between ourselves. It seems to me that the only people served by this exchange/completion on the same day are conveyance solicitors. Perhaps they are attempting to save on their costs at your expense?

mm1985

I’m hoping EA can get in touch with our buyers tomorrow and give us an update on where everything is. I don’t expect much to happen this week with solicitors dealing with final completions before Christmas but I would like buyers to confirm that survey results are all fine and To possibly find out when search results are expected. If for example search results are not due to be returned until end of jan then our suggested completion date goes out the window