I am sure everyone, including me, is currently stressing over exams, easter holidays and potentially, moving out. That’s why I decided to make this short and easy guide on how to move out, hassle-free.

Here’s what you will need:

1. Boxes and/or bags for packing
2. Tape, lots and lots of it
3. Permanent marker(s)
4. Padlock, if your storage place does not provide one
5. Packing paper and/or bubble wrap
6. A good pair of scissors
7. A planned method of transport
8. A list to keep things in check
9. Patience and time!!!

Here’s how it should go:

• Start researching for the best storage place (if you are not taking you stuff back home), the typical price for a 2.5sqm room is about £8-10 a week. You might have to accommodate the expense of insurance, as some storage units do not include it.
• Create a packing/moving schedule. Do NOT pack everything in one day, it will completely exhaust you and it will be almost impossible to do. Instead, start packing your stuff 2-3 weeks ahead. Start with things that you have lots of (eg. plates, cutlery, clothes), so you won’t necessarily need to use in that time period.
• Schedule a mode of transportation for your stuff. Some storage units provide a moving truck for an additional £20-40. You really don’t want to depend on taxis because that can end up being super expensive and time consuming, since most contents of a flat cannot fit in a single taxi trip. Also be aware that they do charge extra for luggage!
• Make sure to label your boxes (and maybe even number them, so you can create a little list of what’s inside each box, so you can always make sure nothing is lost, or know what exactly got lost!).
• Tape is your best friend, make sure to tape the bottom of the boxes really well, you don’t want heavy stuff just spilling out of your box mid transportation!
• Start moving you stuff into storage about two days before your departure (if not more than two days prior). This will ensure that you still have the time to add something into storage last minute! Also, storage facilities close quite early, so keep that in mind.

Hope this helps, even if just a little bit! Don’t forget to enjoy the process and not stress too much over it 🙂