They say on average we will move every 23 years in our lifetime. Moving is a stressful process. But have no fear – this House Move Storage guide will help you to make it as stress-free as possible. 

Before moving

Made the decision to move? Congratulations! You will want to start getting your home ready for viewings, it is well known that a decluttered home is likely to sell more quickly. 

Self storage is the perfect solution to this – simply move anything that you don’t need at home into your storage unit and watch the home offers roll in! 

Some estate agents will want to stage your home with their furniture in order to help your potential buyers view themselves living there – but what do you do with all of your furniture? Move it into your storage unit of course! 

We have house move storage units available that range from storing a few boxes to the entire contents of a home.  

Make sure your belongings are safe when people are viewing your home

When the viewings begin, you want peace of mind that your belongings are safe and aren’t going to get damaged. 

Consider moving your most treasured possessions into your storage unit, so you can be certain that no harm will come to them during the viewing process.

First things first, confirm your move date 

You’ve got an offer? Amazing! Now, you need to confirm when you need to move out by and when you can move into your new home (if you’ve found one). If you haven’t found your new home yet we can help you – simply move your belongings in with us until you do find your dream home. 

All of our contracts are flexible, so you don’t have to worry about being locked in a long-term contract that you then can’t get out of. 

How self storage can help if you are stuck in a chain

With our flexible contracts you can move your boxes in with us until you get the green light to move in to your new home.

We understand that move-in dates get moved and plans change, so we ensure we work with you to help alleviate the stresses of moving. 

All we need is 14 days notice and then you are free to leave! 

Have a clear out (with self storage you don’t have to throw anything away!

We know it’s hard to part with your belongings and with all the stress of moving, the last thing you want is the pressure of having to decide what to throw away and what to keep. 

You can instead move everything in to your house move storage unit and then go through all of your belongings at your own pace, with no pressure to part with any of it!

Research & book your removal company

Research your local removal companies, look for ones who are BAR (British Association of Removers) members and get quotes from a few options. 

Ask for your quote to be put in writing so that it is clear exactly what is included. Ideally you should book your chosen firm 3-4 weeks in advance of your moving date. 

If you need to move your things into storage before you move into your new home our Cinch Storage Vans can help – you can hire them for FREE to help you move-in to your storage unit. Find out more here. 

Notify your utility company

At least 28 days ahead of your moving date you will need to inform your utility companies that you are moving and of your new address to where they should send the bills to. 

Make sure to note down all of your meter readings so that you can keep track of your usage and ensure you aren’t paying for the new home owner’s consumption. 

Contact your suppliers and give them your up-to-date meter readings. 

Begin the packing process

The beauty of using self storage? You can begin your packing process EARLY! This is one of the top tips for alleviating stress when moving. 

Take your time in packing up your belongings and ensure to label them thoroughly, keep items that you know you will need out and then when you do finally come to pack those items, ensure they are on the top within your house move storage unit and the most accessible. 

We have everything you need at our stores, including cardboard boxes, tape, packing blankets, foam corners and more. 

What can I store?

Apart from the items listed on our prohibited items list, the list about what you can store is endless!

Our friendly team will help you find your perfect house move storage unit – whether you want to store a few key pieces of furniture or your entire home contents, we have the perfect storage unit for you. 

How does it work?

We love local. So firstly, find one of our local stores to you and then get in touch with our team or get an online quote. 

Our team will be so happy to help and discuss all of your options with you. We like to make self storage easy and stress-free. 

The simple self storage process is 6 simple steps: 

1. Choose your space
2. Reserve your room
3. Transport your belongings (our Cinch Van is FREE to hire when you move in can help with this) 
4. Move your items into your storage unit 
5. Check-in and lock up your unit
6. Leave your unit in our safe hands

Our flexible contracts mean that we work with you and only need 14 days notice for you to leave your storage unit. So whether you need short-term storage or long-term storage we have got you covered. 

How to pack your storage unit 

Pack logically! Anything you know you are going to need first, put this as the last thing into your storage unit and closest to the door for ease of access. 

Before you start, wipe down your furniture with warm soapy water and allow it to dry. Disassemble your furniture if possible and wrap the pieces in dust blankets or protective wrapping. 

Put the heaviest pieces on the bottom and don’t stack anything on top that can damage the pieces below. Be especially careful to not stack things on top of leather furniture as this can create indents and ruin your pieces. 

It’s important to leave space between your items so that the air flow can circulate within your storage unit. You can get a quote here.

Inform people you are moving

Make sure your doctors, local authorities, family, friends and other key people know that you are moving. 

Such as: 

• GP 
• Dentist 
• Bank
• Card companies
• Insurance company
• Employer
• Local council and authorities
• Electoral roll 
• TV licensing and subscriptions
• DVLA
• National insurance 

And don’t forget to update those addresses on your online shopping!

Make your own survey of your new home

It’s a good idea to walk around your new home and make a list of where all your key items are such as the stopcock, energy meters and fuse boxes. 

If you haven’t already, now is the time to make a list of all of the appliances in your new home and decide if these need to be replaced. 

Deep clean your new home

When you first move in, you will want to do a deep or ‘sparkle’ clean. 

Do this before you start unpacking so that you can get to everything easily and give it a thorough cleaning. 

All of this can seem overwhelming, but take your time! There’s no rush when your belongings are safely stored with us. 

Carry out your DIY

If you can, before unpacking is an ideal time to do all the immediate DIY that you have planned – with no items to get in your way and no fear of damaging your belongings whilst they are in storage or in their boxes, now is the perfect time to do your DIY. 

Unpack your belongings

So, you’ve worked so hard to get to this stage and now it’s time for the main event – unpacking!

Start slow, with our easily accessible local storage units, you can take a box-by-box approach to stop the overwhelm. 

Having labelled your boxes clearly, it should be a breeze to know where everything needs to go!

Finally, enjoy your new home!

Congratulations! You did it! Now, it’s time to do what you moved for and enjoy your new home!