The cost of moving house is expensive. It doesn’t matter whether you are renting or buying – renting requires a deposit and first month’s rent and buying will often require a substantial mortgage.
Many people don’t feel they can afford to move house because of all the different things they have to consider. There is the general cost of the move, the fees that need to be paid and even having to hire a vehicle or removal company. You should always arrange your move in advance to try to save yourself as much money as possible – it can get very expensive if you leave it until the last minute! Booking early on avoids disappointment, allows you to compare prices and means you may receive lower rates than booking last minute.
There are many ways that you can make a house move cheaper – not just arranging the move in advance. Here are some top tips for saving money on your house move:
Selling? Use An Online Estate Agent
If you are looking to sell your home, using an online only estate agent is a great way to save some money. These estate agents don’t have anywhere near as many overhead costs so offer lower fees for selling your home. This means more money back in your pocket.
Look For Free Packaging Materials
Shops are always getting rid of boxes so be sure to ask your local shops if they have any that they are disposing of. You may as well put them to good use – not only is it a more affordable option, but it is also eco-friendly too.
Sell Some Stuff
Before the move, get rid of anything you no longer want or require. Selling it adds some money to your wallet for the move whilst also reducing the number of items you have to move! Moving house is stressful enough without removing items from place to place that you really don’t have a use for anymore.
As long as your items are in good condition, you should be able to get a decent price for them. You can utilise websites such as eBay or Amazon to sell your used goods but don’t forget your local Facebook groups, Facebook Marketplace, and other local listings to save on shipping fees.
Don’t forget you could also do someone a good turn and donate some of what you don’t need to charity or put it on a reusing or repurposing site. Sometimes the relief from having it gone for free is worth more than the stress it would cause trying to shift it from A to B.
Move Mid-Week
It may seem like weekends would be a better time to move due to less rush hour traffic on the road but mid-week is actually a better time. The reason being is that this is a time removal firms are less busy – weekends are the optimum time for packing or unpacking a move which means Fridays and Mondays are popular days to move. Mid-week does mean you may be sitting surrounded by boxes for a few days until you have time off work to sort them but if it can save you some money, why not?
These slots with removal companies tend to be a lot cheaper than other days. You will also potentially find that you find those days easier to book off work as they are less popular days for annual holiday.
Be Organised
It seems so obvious but so many people are so disorganised when it comes to moving house. To ensure everything goes right on the day and there is no need to pay out for something unexpected, ensure everything is organised.
Be packed and ready to go as soon as the removal firm turns up – no one wants to be waiting around, and you don’t want to be packing things in a rush – it’s bound to be chaos. However, if you have booked an additional packing service from your removal company, then you can leave this up to them!
Factor in potential problems such as getting the keys late – some removal companies charge a fee if you go over your time but this can often be waived if you have discussed the possibility beforehand.
You should also continuously check traffic on the day of your move, so you can avoid any routes which have heavy traffic.
Hire A Removal Company
A removal company or man with a van are a great option if you are looking to save some money. Yes, they will cost money but these ae experts, they are professionals and they know what they are doing. They will have insurance which covers your possessions and have plenty of manpower available so can get you moved quicker. They can also supply the vehicles required.
Using family and friends is great for saving money but if they damage something in the move, you’ve got no way to recoup that money financially. You would also need to factor in the cost of hiring a van plus the insurance on top that the van company may insist you get. This is usually more expensive than using a removals' company so why wouldn’t you want to choose the easier, less expensive option?