Moving Home for Less!

Table of Contents

The average student moves three times while at University, so Homes for Students have compiled our six easy P’s to save your pennies when moving property.

Prioritise

It might sound obvious but it’s surprising how often people lug items with them to their new abode, only to wish they hadn’t! You’ll save time, hassle and money by ensuring you’re only taking what you really want!

To get it right you need to give yourself plenty of time to prioritise your items and avoid hasty split decisions, so start thinking about what you’re taking 4-6 weeks before the move.

Put your items into 3 categories, ‘Keep’, ‘Don’t Keep’, and ‘Maybe’. You can either do this by putting items into piles, by tagging them with post-it notes or listing them in a spreadsheet.

Go back to the Maybe category several times, and it will eventually become clear what you can and can’t live without.

Pack

In the run up to the move, think about keeping any boxes and asking friends and family to do the same. Use these boxes along with any luggage, holdalls and rucksacks to transfer what you can.

If you’re still short of boxes ask at your local supermarket, restaurants, book shops and hardware stores, who usually have these in abundance.

If you have room to store them afterwards, fold them flat and keep them for next time you have to move.

Profit

Books, clothes, stationary, they can all add up, and one man’s junk is another man’s treasure. Consider selling what you don’t need to create space and make some extra pennies.

As well as listing items on sites such as eBay, Gumtree and amazon, you can advertise items on local forums, Facebook groups or on University notice boards.

Prepare

The last thing you want after the move is to be replacing things that didn’t survive the upheaval. The key here is in the preparation; ensure your items are effectively wrapped and protected.

Put cotton wool in your make up compacts, wrap items in newspaper, old magazines or even curtains, cut handles into large boxes to avoid dropping them and make sure fragile items are bubble wrapped and clearly marked.

Park

Always try and get there early, especially if you’re going to be living in a busy student area and you’re moving in at the start of term when those around you will also be moving in. On moving days traffic can become congested, parking limited and you may be forced to park far from the property, meaning multiple trips with heavy goods!

Research the parking situation at the property beforehand and use free car parks and on street parking if possible. If there’s pay and display, ensure you bring change with you, and if using a removal company, check parking costs are included in the price that you’re paying.

Protect

Take a good look around the property as soon as you arrive and make a log of any damage that you spot, in case you have to protect your deposit at a later date.

Take a photo of any marks, scratches or breakages and report them to the staff to ensure that you won’t be left with a dint in your deposit when you leave.