DAA Residential Q&A – London Property Magazine. October 2011. How can I make moving to a new home a hassle-free experience?

How can I make moving to a new home a hassle-free experience?

According to David Martin, Head of Sales at DAA Residential Ltd, ‘the actual move day does not need to be stressful as long as you have put in place a few simple arrangements to avoid problems on the day.’

As soon as you get the date for your move you can start to get organised: ‘Here are my five top tips for a stress –free move:

  1. Book some time off work for the move. Many Firms now have a ‘moving day’ arrangement for their personnel that does not affect your leave entitlements
  2. Make arrangements with a reputable removal company and start collecting any packing materials that you may need.
  3. Check to see whether you require any special access or parking notices from the Council for parking of large removalist vehicles.
  4. Set-up the new utility accounts to ensure all the services are ‘live’ when you arrive at your new home such as gas and electricity. Don’t forget to set-up or to transfer your telephone, broadband and satellite TV accounts. Remember, some of these companies require a couple of weeks to become active!
  5. Check to see who will be handing over the keys to your new home and set an approximate handover time. Remember, the keys will not be handed over until the seller’s solicitor is in receipt of your Completion funds.

On the day of the move, defrost your fridge and freezer and make sure you leave any instruction booklets for appliances that you have agreed to leave as part of your Sale Pack a bag of essentials for your first twenty four hours so you don’t have to root through boxes for basic items like your toothbrush.

Finally, do take utility meter readings and arrange to pay any outstanding bills and ensure that the removal company know where they are going. After all that, simply close and lock all windows and doors before you leave and enjoy your New Home!

And, before I forget, please leave your keys with your selling agent or solicitor otherwise your purchaser cannot move into your old home!

Property Turbine