For the lucky few who haven’t bought or sold a house before, you’re set for a rude awakening.
While the purchase price often grabs the headlines, there are also plenty of costs that creep into the equation and send your final bill through the roof. A home that was set to cost £150,000, suddenly costs oh-so much more. Whether it is the taxes (although there have been recent breaks), or some of the more logistical issues in moving home – they all add up.
Unfortunately, additional costs are always going to exist. However, there are some steps you can take which can reduce some of this bloat, which we are going to detail through the course of today’s article.
Align your moving dates
One of the biggest financial surprises for a lot of people is the overlap between moving. Particularly if you are currently renting, before buying a house, you’ll find that you’ll have to align your tenancy dates or risk paying for a full month which you won’t even use. Worse still, you might even be forced to sign up to a longer tenancy, with some landlords stipulating that you have to sign up for 6 months at a time (and give notice at the end of that period).
This means that you sometimes have to get creative. You may have to try searching for storage units near me, before living in a hotel for a few days or with friends. This might seem like drastic action – but it’s certainly cheaper than paying for an unused tenancy.
Some moving days are cheaper than others
Believe it or not, if you move on a Friday or a weekend, it is often much more expensive than other days from a removal company perspective. These are regarded as the ‘peak moving days’ and as such, you’ll often need to pay a premium.
Your freezer can play a part as well
Believe it or not, your freezer can make a difference as well. It’s not been unheard of for movers to buy a whole freezer-full of food, only for it to dethaw and go to waste during the moving process. Sure, you might get lucky and be able to readily transfer it into the freezer awaiting you in your new home – but don’t bank on it.
This example perhaps highlights the sheer level of planning needed to initiate the perfect, cost-efficient house move. Think of everything, and every possibility, to make sure you’re not out of pocket.
Don’t pay for packaging materials
If you are moving yourself, you’ll probably be tempted to buy some of the boxes and packaging materials that you need. However, you should be aware that these are often overpriced.
Instead, you should look to see if you can get your hands on some free boxes. You can ask friends and family if they have any spare boxes, or you can even ask your local supermarket if they have any spare boxes. This latter point is surprisingly popular and most supermarkets are happy for you to request spare boxes – it saves them the hassle of disposing them themselves.