Three Key Tips for Moving to a New Area in the UK
There are numerous reasons that households pick up and move across the country. Whether younger people moving to a city for study or a new career, couples moving out into the sticks in order to raise a family, or simply a household looking for a fresh start in a new environment, cross-regional moves are an essential part of the housing market – and some of the core reasons that the UK has the fourth-largest percentage of inter-regional movers in the world. But doing so presents more of a challenge than simply moving down the road, or to the next town over. To that end, the following tips offer up a basic guide to simplifying a prospective move to a new region.
Research the Area in Advance
Moving to a completely new region is a daunting process, however familiar you are with the place to which you’d like to move. But the more you know, the more assured you can be in your decision – and the smoother your eventual move. Make regular trips to the region of your choice, in order to familiarise yourself with its neighbourhoods, public transport, road infrastructure, and, if you have a young one in your family, schools. It’s also handy to keep track of the house prices relative to that region; different areas of the UK see massive disparities in the average cost of a home, which could be a benefit or a challenge depending on how your area measures up.
Create a Moving Budget
Moving to a new area is a large endeavour, which could well be met with an enlarged cost if not budgeted well in advance of your move. For example, certain removal companies may charge by the mile as well as by the volume of belongings that require moving. Sorting a removal company ahead of time can prevent additional charges from emerging – though completion dates can be difficult to nail down at times. With that in mind – and also to potentially lessen the initial load to be moved to your new home – you might factor in an alternative storage solution between your old and new home. If you were moving to a northern city such as Liverpool from the South, for example, you might look to using self-storage units in Liverpool to hold less-essential boxes and furniture until your completion date, or until you deign to collect them in your own time.
Pack Exhaustively
Moving house within the confines of a local area can breed complacency when it comes to the physical act of moving your belongings. Short hops from A to B mean you can generally keep track of where everything is, making for lazy packing and innumerable “everything” boxes for you to sort through. But with the possibility of your life’s possessions making an overnight stay in self-storage during your move, judicious and careful packing becomes an invaluable way for you to keep track of everything. Even if packing costs a little more and takes twice as long, you’ll be thankful on the other end, after a long drive and with little remaining energy.
Before you pack anything, pack a “first night” rucksack with everything you’ll need when you get to your new home: bedding, crockery and cutlery enough for one meal, toiletries and chargers.
These are the items you’ll be ransacking boxes for if you arrive without proper preparation. With your bag packed, you can start to pack room by room, with ample boxes and protective packing such as bubble-wrap and polystyrene void fill chips. Clear labelling will make it easy for you to put the boxes in the room they belong straight away.
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