2026-05-18 · 10 min read · Practical · checklists
Moving home is consistently ranked among the most stressful life events. After 40 years of moving Sussex families we can tell you that almost all of the stress comes from the fifty small decisions that pile up in the last fortnight — not from the actual move day itself. The single biggest predictor of a calm move is doing the right things at the right time in the eight weeks beforehand. This is the same week-by-week plan we give every customer who books a survey, presented for anyone who’s about to move.
This is the “big decisions” week. Three things to handle now:
Also: tell the school. If you’re moving out of catchment, give the new school time. Most Sussex primaries want at least a half-term’s notice; many secondaries want more.
Six weeks out is the optimum decluttering window. Far enough that you can do it without panic; close enough that you remember to. The rule: anything you haven’t used in 18 months is a candidate for sale, donation or recycling.
An eight-week plan only works if it survives contact with reality. We’ve seen the same six mistakes scuttle an otherwise organised move — some of them obvious in hindsight, some of them counter-intuitive enough to catch even experienced movers.
Booking the remover before the survey. Phone quotes for anything beyond a single bedroom are guesswork. A 30–45 minute in-home survey lets the remover see access, count cartons properly, and price accurately. Customers who book a remover off a phone quote almost always pay more on move day, in surcharges and overtime, than they would have on a fixed quote after a survey.
Packing the kitchen and bathroom too early. These are the rooms you genuinely use until the morning of the move. Packing them three weeks out means living out of cardboard for a fortnight, eating takeaways every night, and unpacking again to find a single saucepan. Leave these for last and pack a single ‘first night’ carton clearly labelled.
Underestimating the loft, garage and shed. Almost every survey we do finds the loft contains roughly twice what the customer thought. A weekend of pulling everything down and laying it out on the floor before survey day means the quote reflects reality, not optimism. It’s also the cheapest opportunity to declutter you’ll have all year.
Leaving the change-of-address admin too late. DVLA, GP, dentist, banks, insurers, employer payroll, HMRC, electoral roll. Each is ten minutes online. Doing them all in the week of the move means doing them badly — or forgetting one (it’s almost always the insurer, who then declines a claim two months later because the address wasn’t updated).
Failing to plan the chain’s communication. On the day of completion, four sets of solicitors and three estate agents are trying to release funds and confirm keys. Set up a single WhatsApp group with your conveyancer, agent and remover. One message per hour beats fifteen phone calls from different parties asking the same question. Your remover should be in that loop too — they’re sitting in a lorry waiting for the green light.
Not letting the crew lead on move day. The single biggest day-of-move mistake is the customer trying to direct the loading sequence. The crew knows what goes in first, what needs to be accessible at the other end, and what should never travel touching what. Make tea, point at rooms, answer questions — but trust the crew on the load order. Move day goes 20% faster when the customer stays out of the lorry.
For end-of-month dates in May–September, 6–10 weeks ahead. Mid-week mid-month dates can sometimes be booked 2–3 weeks ahead. The earlier you book, the more choice of slot.
Tell us as soon as you know. We don’t charge for date changes if you give us reasonable notice. See our terms.
Yes for at least the start of the load and the start of the unload. If you can’t, give us a written authority and a key arrangement — common for executor moves.
Don’t pack petrol, paint, gas bottles, ammunition, fireworks or pressurised canisters in the boxes. We can’t legally transport them. Take them yourself or dispose of them at the tip.
If you’ve booked the unpacking service, yes — same day. Otherwise we’ll come back later in the week (free of charge if we’re within range) to collect empty boxes.
Email office@markratcliffemoving.co.uk or call 01323 848 008. Family-run since 1982 · BAR member · 4.9/5 from 120+ reviews.