So, you’re jetting off into the sun to sit on the beach as the sea laps at your feet whilst drinking fruity cocktails. Well, kind of, because this isn’t a holiday – you’re actually packing up all your belongings and moving your whole life to start a fresh in a new country.
Packing for a holiday can be difficult enough, but it is nothing compared to packing for a move. You have a house full of belongings, and you are changing countries not postcodes – what are you going to do with it all?
1.Take it with you
Your first option is, of course, to take it with you. But, do you really need everything? Obviously there will be items that you wouldn’t dream of parting with – your beloved pet or collection of sports equipment, perhaps – but moving all your belongings from A to B will be incredibly expensive, so ideally you want to take as little as possible.
Airlines will normally charge you on the weight of your combined items whilst sea carriers charge by container. This, therefore, is the perfect time to have a clear out – there is no point moving things you don’t need.
Why not take advantage of a storage unit? A storage provider such as RSS will enable you to store a large amount until you decide what to do with it. This can then be moved to join you at a later date, or if you are able to replace it there and realise moving it would have been a waste of money – you have the option to do one of the below.
Selling items of furniture, you know you definitely don’t want to take with you, will provide you with extra pennies to purchase new furniture once you arrive in your new home. You could attend a car boot sale for smaller items and put the larger ones on sites such as eBay.
You don’t have to sell everything – perhaps it is getting close to the moving date and you haven’t been able to sell it – then give it away! Firstly, pop this up on your social media – you might be able to hand items over to friends or family. If not, sites such as Preloved or Freeads offer you the opportunity to earn a small sum (without a charge) or enable you to give it away for free.
If you are renting out your home, why not leave some of your belongings in there? A furnished rental can be much more appealing than an unfurnished one and it buys you some extra time whilst you decide what you want to do with everything. This also provides you with an extra income, from the rent and the option to easily return to your old life, if for any reason, the new one doesn’t work out.
Some items just need to be thrown away – if you aren’t taking it with you or putting it into storage and it isn’t worth selling or giving away – then throw it out! There is no point moving, what is essentially rubbish, halfway across the world.
Just make sure you start organising your belongings early – that way you have plenty of time to decide what you are going to do with everything and if one option doesn’t work for something, you can turn to another. Don’t forget to recycle what you can.
