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How to save money when you move house

Okay, so you’re going to have to shell out when it comes time to move your precious possessions to their new home in some way, shape or form. But you needn’t become overwhelmed unnecessarily by the long list of things to do prior to moving day. Easier said than done, right? True, but there’s certain things you can do to avoid the stresses of moving pads.

What’s more, through panic or disorganisation, many of us tend to overlook easy and obvious steps that can help save hundreds or even thousands of dollars. Don’t believe it? Check out these quick tips to make moving house as light on your pocket as possible.

De-clutter

Got a wardrobe full of clothes from a bygone era? Don’t get sentimental about it – turf them! Seriously, being charitable and donating these, and other items you no longer need, can help out someone less fortunate. Take them down to your local op shop and be happy you’ve done your good deed for the day.

Most of us also have furniture and other items that are no longer getting attention. Moving house is the perfect time to get organised and de-clutter your home. Another idea is to hold a garage sale and claw back some money that you’ll no doubt be putting into your move. You’ll thank yourself when the time comes to pack all those boxes.

Don’t go with the cheapest removalists

This is especially important if you’re moving interstate or overseas. And when it comes to removalists, sometimes there’s a good reason why one moving company offers a significantly lower price than others. Do your research. Is your removal company accredited? Are there any other additional costs? Watch out for those nasty hidden fees … ask up front and know what you’re in for.

Decent movers will follow a strict code of conduct in all aspects of your move. And when you think about it, it’s in their best interests to do this, right? Word travels like wildfire when there’s bad customer service, so again … do some digging. The advantage of using an accredited removalist is that when it comes to the wrapping, packing and transporting of your precious possessions, you’ll be in the safest hands. There’s nothing worse than arriving at your new digs with smashed up or broken items in the truck, followed by the inevitable “Sorry, but we’re not at fault”. So while the temptation is to go with the cheapest, spare some thought for what it could cost you should the worst happen.

Bundle

If you’ve decided to either partially or fully pack your household items yourself, be sure to use the proper stuff like packing cartons, wrapping materials and tape etc. While this won’t be the most expensive part of moving, you can save on buying all these separately by picking up the packing materials from your removalists at a reduced cost.  Often even things cleaning and utility connections can also be arranged by your professional removalists at a reduced rate, so this can end up being cheaper and save you the hassle of doing the comparisons yourself.

Plan ahead

Give yourself plenty of time to arrange a removalist. If you know that you are moving house in few months, don’t wait until a few days day beforehand to book a removalist. Jump online or start phoning removal companies to compare their services offerings and costs. Leaving it too late could mean less availability and higher prices for the day and time slots you need. Further still, you might have to make do with a moving date that you don’t actually want.

Tell your removalist what you’re moving

Need to move any large or specialty items such as a piano, treadmill, spa, safe, or pool table? Be sure to let your moving company know so that they can factor this into your moving costs and prepare the appropriate removalists and vehicles on the day. If your removalists arrive on moving day and find out that there is something there that they cannot move, this may incur an additional charge for you.

While some of this is a no-brainer, there’s no denying that as unexciting as moving can be, you can minimise both the stress and cost of the effort with a little forethought and creative planning. And like we say…if you can’t be bothered organising your stuff before the big day, bribe, bribe, bribe!

This article first appeared on SuperBiz.

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