15 Ways To Make Moving House Cheaper

Find out how to make your house move cost a little bit less, so you have more money to put towards making memories in your new place.

Moving house has always been costly, and now, as the economy struggles and we feel the repercussions of the pandemic, it’s more expensive than ever before. Luckily, there is a lot that you can do to minimise that cost and make things that little bit easier on your bank balance, including these 15 handy tips:

Self storage costs are affordable, competitive and minimal, providing you with a safe space to utilise whenever you need somewhere neutral for your stuff. This could include slowly moving your things out of your place, and then into your new place, without having to pay removals companies to move everything in one day. Self storage costs are also a lot cheaper than the cost of a bigger home, so if you do want to move house and you can’t afford the biggest place just yet, self storage could fill that gap and give you a place for all kinds of goods like seasonal items, hobby items, sentimental items and more.

1. Book Ahead Of Time

Make sure you book any services that you want to use ahead of time. This will avoid you having to pay extra because the company is busy and they can charge a premium. It also gives you more autonomy over who you choose to hire, because you won’t have to choose from ‘who is left’.

2. Get Free Moving Materials

Free moving materials are readily available from supermarkets who are usually more than happy to give away strong cardboard boxes. Banana boxes, inparticular, are very strong and great for moving items like books. Additionally, you can look on local advertisements online to see if people have moving materials going for free. When people have done a big move they often have a huge amount of boxes and packing materials available for others to have for free.

3. Call In Favours

Save money by calling in favours from everybody you know. Whether they have a van you can borrow, an afternoon of helping you move things, or they can look after your pets for free on moving day, they can help you in return for a favour, which is cheaper than the cost of hiring a person or company to do the jobs that need doing.

4. Avoid Missing Work

Missing work to move house is costly, particularly if the move is going to take longer than a few days. Rather than use those days as holiday, try to move slowly, utilising cheap self storage facilities to slowly move boxes across. That way, you can save your precious holiday hours for days to relax in your new place at some point in the near future.

5. Avoid Injury

Injury is common during house moves because people lift items like boxes incorrectly, straining their backs and hurting themselves. Instead of getting hurt and feeling lots of pain, and maybe even having to take time off work, either have professionals help you lift or take great care lifting heavy items.

6. Move Out Of Season

The main moving seasons are Spring and Summer, so if you can avoid moving during those times you are likely to save money. Instead, move out of season and take the right precautions to protect your things against adverse weather.

7. Prepare Snacks & Drinks

It can cost a lot of money to keep buying takeout drinks and food whilst you are moving house. This is especially true if you are getting refreshments for friends and family members who are helping you. Instead, pack drinks, flasks, snacks and more so that you have lots of refreshments on hand at a much lower cost than a takeout.

8. Pack Well Ahead Of Time Yourself

When you pack well ahead of time you give yourself the ability to take your time and avoid expensive breakages. You also don’t need to have movers help you with the move, which also saves you money.

9. Declutter

Why pay to move items you don’t even want or need at your new place? Instead, have a good clearout giving items away, selling them or throwing them if they have no further use.

10. Sell Your Clutter

If you can, sell the unwanted items you sort out so that you can make a bit of money for your move. This can pay for important services, or just for the takeout you have on the evening you move – it all comes in handy!

11. Watch Out For Fines

An expensive fine could ramp up your moving costs far beyond your budget, so it is important to do what you can to avoid them. The most common reason is parking where you don’t have a permit. Whether you are parking yourself, or have removals people parking outside your new property, do check that you have the correct permits to allow the vehicles to be there without a fine.

12. See What Your Local Self Storage Facility Hires Out

Sometimes self storage facilities hire out equipment like trolleys to help you move items easier, especially if you have a unit with them. They can sometimes also do pickup and drop off services, and they sell packing materials too, in case you need any last minute.

13. Create A Budget

One of the best ways to ensure that you don’t spend too much money during a move is to create a budget. Allow enough money for things like fuel, packing materials (ones you can’t get for free), snacks and any additional costs that might come up. Doing this ensures you don’t blow lots of extra money by accident, and keep the overall costs of the move down.

14. Clean, Clean, Clean

You might get requests for payment if you leave the house you are selling dirty or cluttered. The buyers expect things to be in a reasonable state, and if things are not what they consider to be a reasonable state, you may end up getting a request for compensatory money. To avoid this, do a big clean before you leave just to be sure things are in great condition, and take photos of the way you leave things too, just to be sure.

With the tips above you’re ready to move house with the costs being as low as they possibly can be. It won’t be cheap, of course, but it will be cheaper with the tips above, and these days, every little really does help.