Top tips for decluttering before you move house

For many people, one of the most challenging parts of moving home is the packing, especially if you’ve lived in the same property for a number of years and have accumulated all manner of belongings. Having worked on many house and flat moves, we can certainly understand this!

So, it’s only natural that you might want to declutter before you get to the stage where you’re packing boxes! Decluttering will also mean you have fewer possessions to move with, which can not only make the process a little easier, but also reduce your quote as you’ll have fewer items that need to be packed and transported to your new abode.

An article for the Metro also pointed out that decluttering is a good activity to go through before you put your home on the market if you’re selling it.

The newspaper shared some top tips to help you declutter effectively, such as giving yourself dedicated time slots to go through your belongings, and to make sure that you start this process well ahead of the move itself.

It’s also important that you work through your home room by room, because if you try to tackle everything in one go it can feel overwhelming. Another piece of advice if you’re unsure whether you should keep certain items is to ask yourself when you last used or wore the item in question.

If the answer to that question is months or even years ago, consider whether it is just taking up valuable space and could therefore be better off being donated, sold or given away. If you have multiples of certain items (how many phone chargers and cables do you have tucked away in cupboards or drawers?!) it can be helpful to put them all in one place so you can easily spot duplicates.

Here at Removals Unlimited, we understand that the process of decluttering and packing for a house or flat move can be emotional. Our team are always sensitive to the fact that, while a move can be exciting, it can also be challenging.

We will do all we can on moving day to help the process go as smoothly as possible. If you make use of our full packing service, we can also take care of packing the belongings you do keep after your decluttering process to ensure they arrive safe and sound at your new home.

If you’re finding that decluttering is a challenge, you might find the following tip from Homes & Gardens useful: use the 20/20 rule. This simply means that if you can replace something in less than 20 minutes for less than $20 (or £20 in this country!) then you don’t need to keep it. The idea is to help you get rid of those items that you’ve kept “just in case”, but that in reality you rarely (if ever) use.

Do you have any decluttering tips you’d like to share? Or perhaps you’re getting ready for a move and want some help with your packing. If so, get in touch with our friendly team to receive a free, no obligation quote for your move. We pack, move and store, so if you’re not quite ready to say goodbye to some of your belongings permanently, you can always use our secure storage facility to keep them safe until you are ready to make that decision.