When you purchase a new home, it is often a huge milestone. Of course, for those who might be affluent individuals and constantly purchase properties – it might not be a big deal. However, for most people in the world, moving houses is a huge ordeal for the family, which often means a new change of pace with regards to neighbourhood and status. A family might move for certain jobs or for school districts, for example.
Either way, when choosing a moving company in Singapore, you might want to remember some house moving tips that will help your move be as seamless as possible. It takes years of practice and the essential tools to move furniture with ease. You will be entrusting them to handle all your furniture and appliances. You must specifically enquire how they are going to deal with each and every kind of furniture you own.
Moving a piano or safe is not handled in the same way as a couch, which is not dealt with in the same way as a recliner and the queen or king-sized mattress poses its own challenges.
Here are some furniture moving tips that can simplify the whole process and protect your movable goods.
House Moving Tips for Moving Within Singapore
1) Get Organised Early
We know that the average Singaporean is quite the busy bee, but you do need to take the time to plan for the move early. Rushing it through at the last minute increases the chances of the moving causing you all manner of problems. It doesn’t matter if you are only moving a small number of things, you might have put off everything to the point where you have forgotten about important things that you want to bring to the new house
We recommend started to get all your pieces into place at least six weeks before the actual move.
You can start by packing up your things room-by-room, which can help make the entire ordeal more manageable. This is one of the more important house moving tips out there because it can save you a significant amount of time, energy, and money.
2) Make a Checklist for Moving Day
Unless you have a photographic memory, we’re quite sure that most of you will already be doing this (or have done this). How you do it is equally important though.
One of the worst ways to draw up your moving checklist is by using desktop software such as Excel. Remember, your computer will be moved as well and you may not have access to your checklist on moving day itself.
Pen and paper still work well, but it’s quite common to misplace them during or before the move, which will make things more stressful for you. We recommend trying an app such as Evernote, Todo-ist, or any other app that you can use comfortably on your phone or tablet. It may even be useful to find one with a collaboration feature so that you can get everyone on your family contributing their ideas within the app.
3) Properly Research Your Moving Company
Don’t assume that every moving company will provide you with the same level of service. You still need to conduct your due diligence. Check reviews and testimonials from their previous home moving customers. With social media being such a critical communication channel, you may even want to check out their Facebook or Google My Business pages.
You do not need to look for perfect scores (which are suspicious in themselves), but try to get a general feeling of the level of service they typically provide. Additionally, the price may not be the best indication of quality. An expensive moving company may either be providing fantastic customer service or overcharging, while a cheap moving company will either provide you with value for money or are just cutting corners.
4) Request a Site Survey from Your Movers
Be wary whenever you receive a house moving quote from a moving company without having them conduct a site survey. A site survey means that someone from their team actually comes down to your current home to fully scope the move. This could also be done via photos or videos, of course, but the moving company does need to have an indication of how much work is needed to make the move a success.
Some moving companies don’t do this, and will simply send you a standard quote, sight unseen. Also, do not be lulled into a false sense of security by an initial cheap quote. Which brings us to our next point…
5) Understand Your Moving Quote
Look through the quote that you receive from the moving company to make sure that you understand exactly what is included and what is not. There have been many cases where the moving company presents a very cheap initial quote, starts moving the furniture to the van, before demanding increased fees by claiming that there were more items than what was expected. At that point, most customers do not have a choice but to simply pay the increased charges. If you are not sure of the terms, ask the moving company exactly what is covered and what is not. You do not want to be forced to pay hidden charges for your home move.
6) Arrange Moving for Bulky Items Like Pianos & Safes
Not all furniture movers are able to move certain types of items such as pianos and safes. These will require special equipment, training and experience, which in turn will mean additional costs for you. Check with your movers if they have the necessary expertise to move your piano, safe, chandelier or decorative artwork. In most cases, they will need to have a look at both your current home and the one you’re moving to in order to devise a proper moving plan.
7) Arrange for Furniture Disposal
So, you don’t want to move that crusty old couch to your new home? Well, you can’t just leave it there! You need to arrange to have it disposed of properly.
If you’re living in a HDB flat, then you can contact your town council to have them remove your bulky items for free. Do note that there is a restriction to the number of items that you can dispose of each month. Here is some information on the disposal services from the Jurong-Clementi Town Council for your reference.
If you’re living in private property such as a condominium or bungalow, then you will have to arrange for furniture disposal services in Singapore on your own.
8) Inform Your Management Office about Your Move
This is more relevant for condominiums rather than HDB (Housing Development Board) flats. Most condos in Singapore will have rules regarding moving in or moving out. The more common ones include not being able to move homes during the weekends and placing a deposit the office in case something gets damaged. If you fail to do this, you may not be allowed to move on that day. You need to inform the condo management for both the building you’re moving out of and the one you’re moving into.
9) Inform Your Landlord
If you’re renting, inform your landlord when you’re planning to move out. This may be important especially when it comes to reclaiming your security deposit.
10) Pay All Your Outstanding Bills
Make sure that all your outstanding bills for your current house have been paid so that you won’t suddenly be slapped with a fine or late payment charges.
11) Get Your Mail Redirected
It goes without saying that you need to change the address for your electricity and utilities (that invariably means SP Group in Singapore), cable, telephone and other major services. At the same time, don’t forget about the smaller stuff.
Contact your insurance company, banks, government agencies and the clubs you join to make sure that they know how to reach you at your new address. Trust us, you do not want your sensitive banking details to be mailed to the new occupant of your previous home.
12) Change Your Address for Your Online Services
This is the same thing as the previous point, but for your online services instead. Change your delivery addresses for services such as Amazon or Lazada as soon as you can. You don’t want to spend a fortune on that new shirt online only to have it shipped to the wrong address because you forgot to change it.
13) Delay Deliveries
If you have a delivery due on moving day, try to change the delivery date. You will have quite a lot to deal with and these are unnecessary distractions on moving day.
14) Take Pictures & Videos of Your Electrical Appliances
Take photos of all your important electrical appliances such as your TV, oven or washing machine. Also, we would advise you to take a video of them being turned on or used a day before the move. For one thing, in case there is some unfortunate damage during the move, this is to use as proof that your TV or other appliance was working fine prior to it. This will also give you the added advantage of reminding you how to fix the cables properly again later. Those cables can get messy.
15) Throw Out Things that Don’t Give You Pleasure
Use this as a chance to clean out your home. As the de-cluttering phenomenon, Marie Kondo, would say, discard anything that doesn’t give pleasure. This will leave you with fewer things to move over, less to unpack, and more space at your new home.
Bonus Tip: Sell Some, Donate Some
The truth is that moving can be a cathartic process, where you can feel a lot better about entering the new house. The truth is that some of your old belongings don’t need to make the transition.
There is definitely a satisfying feeling when it comes to getting rid of things that you don’t need, and one of the ways that you can do this is by selling some of your valuables that you might be tired of. This also can be an opportunity to donate old clothes and objects to charities.
Thanks to technology, all it takes is taking a screenshot of products and uploading it to the Internet to gain some interest. Carousell is a great place to do this.
16) Consider Putting Things in Temporary Storage
Space is a much sought-after commodity in Singapore and home sizes are not getting bigger. It is usually the case where you discover that you may not need some of your items immediately, but they may be too valuable to throw away. You should consider putting them in temporary storage by renting a storage space in Singapore. This will help you free up space in your new home until you decide what you want to do with them.
17) Defrost Your Fridge
Defrost your refrigerator one day before your move. It can get wet and messy if you don’t.
18) Check Utilities for New Place
Ensure that there are no problems with your water and electricity at your new house. You do not want to end up moving there only to not have either water or electricity.
19) Separate Your Valuables
Pack your valuables such as jewellery or family heirlooms separately and always keep track of where they are.
20) Wrap Your Cupboards
This will help ensure that they won’t come open during the move and hurt someone. You can simply wrap plastic around it or use a child-proof latch.
21) Label/Number Your Boxes
Place a label on each box that provides a rough description of its contents. You may also want to number the boxes. This makes it easy to spot if you’re missing a box. Avoid double work by stating where these boxes are supposed to be placed in your new home. It can be just as simple as putting ‘living room’, ‘bedroom’, ‘kitchen’ etc on the label and we’re sure that your movers will happily place them in the correct location.
22) Pack Plates Vertically
This protects them better than stacking them. For additional protection, you may want to wrap them in cloth or bubble wrap.
23) Vacuum Seal Your Out-of-Season Clothing
We get it, you went a bit crazy during Uniqlo’s last winter sale and ended up with a little too many clothes more suitable for the cool Swiss Alps rather than the tropics. We suggest vacuum sealing clothes that you don’t regularly wear to make it easier to move. They take up less space and are easier to place into storage once you are in your new place.
24) Get Someone to Care for Your Pets
Moving to a new home is supposed to be fun and exciting (albeit perhaps a bit hectic) and would be heartbreaking to have your pet injured during your big move. Small dogs like Shih Tzus or Pomeranians can get overly excited by all the activity and get in the way of all the moving and accidents may happen. Have a dedicated person assigned to taking care of your pets. You may even want to consider placing them in a pet daycare for the duration of the move (especially if they have a tendency to get stressed by strangers).
25) Wrap Breakables in Cloth to Save on Bubble Wrap
Bubble wrap is expensive. There is definitely a need to ensure adequate protection for your furniture during a home move but you may want to try saving money on the expensive bubble wrap by using some of your clothes to the more fragile items. For example, you can wrap clean socks around your glasses and stemware.
26) Pack an Overnight Bag with Your Essentials
Trust us, you’re going to be quite tired after moving home. You will probably not have any energy left for unpacking during the day itself. We suggest that you prepare an overnight bag that contains everything you need to have a comfortable first night in your new home.
Some of the things you might want to include in your overnight bag would be:
- Change of fresh clothes
- Spare batteries, phone chargers and extra cables
- Toothpaste, toothbrush and mouthwash
- Toilet paper
- Essential medicine
- Coffee or tea
- Small tools such as Allen Keys and a Swiss Army knife
- Your identity card (IC) and other important documents
27) Avoid Packing with Trash Bags
Trash bags might seem like cheap and convenient packing materials, but they may cause more trouble. A well-meaning mover could accidentally throw it away instead of bringing it over to your new home. Some moving companies may also only move items packed in boxes and refuse to transport your trash bag. Try to use boxes when possible.
28) Disassemble the Furniture that can be Easily Reassembled
While you may find that furniture disassembling and reassembling may be among most companies’ moving services in Singapore, this usually entails an additional charge. From our experience, most customers prefer to manage the furniture disassembling themselves rather than outsource it.
Some furniture tends to have detachable parts but the process can be quite difficult. If they are not particularly large or quaintly shaped and hence complicated to handle, you should move them as they are. You should also ensure that you have the necessary help to reassemble the furniture that you disassemble so setting everything up does not take a long time. Not everyone has the tools to reassemble or reinstall all kinds of furniture.
29) Remove Potential Blockages
If there are blockages en route that make furniture moving difficult, considering getting rid of those obstructions. For instance, some properties have door stop moulding. You can get rid of it temporarily so you can easily move the furniture out. If it is a rented property, you may need permission from the landlord. Such permissions are not hard to secure. The moving company you hire should be able to remove the moulding.
30) Make Nice with Your Neighbours
This may not seem like a big priority to you, but you’re moving to a new community and it’s great to start off your relationships with your neighbours on the right foot. It does not have to be something elaborate like throwing a block party. Just let your neighbours know that you’re moving in that day and apologise for any noise you and your movers might make. A small pack of cookies or crackers would also go over quite well. It might not be much, but it’s a good symbol of friendship.
Do You Have Any House Moving Tips for Moving in Singapore?
Share them with us in the comments below! We would love to hear from you 😉
