Siyakuhalalisela (congratulations!) It's finally time to move to the new home that you’ve worked so hard for and have looked forward to for the longest time — but you're realising that it's a lot more work than you imagined. You’re definitely not the one.
Most South Africans move homes at least once, so we all know that it's not as easy as it seems. And seeing that moving can be a very stressful time, we’re here to be your partners-in-move to help you make this herculean task seem like an absolute stroll in the park!
To make the moving process a lot clearer, we've broken it down into a practical checklist covering every step in the journey, topped with a few tips to adequately prep you for a cleanly executed move within the Rainbow Nation!
Moving isn't easy, from the packing to the loading — then you've actually got to transport everything which comes with possible damage to your belongings and risk of accidents. While many try to do the moving process entirely on their own, sometimes hiring a professional mover just makes more sense.
Here are the advantages of hiring movers vs doing it yourself to help you properly weigh up your options:
| Pros of Hiring Movers | Pros of Moving Yourself |
| Movers offer a range of useful services such as packing. | It's often more budget-friendly. |
| Avoid damage to your belongings with the help of trained professionals. | You can control the entire process and have a more flexible timeline to suit you. |
| Most movers provide moving insurance to cover any loss or damage to your belongings during the moving process. | It might be more efficient if you only have a small load with few belongings to move. |
| You can let the movers do the heavy lifting and sort out the logistics. |
Our advice is that hiring professionals is always best. Trust us, no one can be more skilled at moving home items than actual professionals in the field.
For an efficient, seamless moving process, we highly recommend using a checklist. A checklist puts some order in your steps to help you maintain a workflow that sets your moving task up for deserved success when moving.
The very first thing on the checklist is to find moving companies in your area, discuss prices with them and then book a date. Once you've finalised the moving date, you can then proceed to set up a timeline for moving.
There are a ton of factors to consider when choosing a moving company. When consulting, you should be looking to pop these questions:
Alternatively, instead of spending hours finding and contacting dozens of movers to maybe find the right fit, you can use Wise Move's moving company platform to instantly connect with all the top local movers near you.
All you have to do is post one moving request and all the movers that can perform your moving request will reach out to you. You can then compare quotes and reviews to choose which moving service best suits your needs and your budget.
Book Professional Movers with Wise Move
For those who have opted to move everything yourself, now is a good time to contact your friends and family, see who is available to help you move and arrange the perfect date and timeline that suits everyone. The sooner the better so that they can make necessary arrangements and put it on their calendars weeks ahead
The next thing to check off is having to contact the relevant government agencies and inform them about your impending address change, giving them the details of your new place. Letting them know ahead of time will make sure that they promptly redirect all your correspondence to your new address when you make the move.
Here are the organisations you should contact to update your address change:
Inform the utility providers about your move. But first, ensure that you’re up to date on your utility payments on your old apartment. If you don’t want to be slammed with bills for utilities you didn't use, you want to check the electricity meter to ensure that the old occupant of the place you’re moving cleared their payments too.
You want to do the same thing with phones and the internet. Any delay in getting them up and running at your new home could prove unbearable, so initiate the process of migrating your account from the old place to your new home.
And if the move is taking you out of the jurisdiction of your utility providers, make sure that your account is closed and that the records show that you no longer reside there. Then, set up new accounts with the utility providers at your new residence to be activated immediately after you move in.
Before you move, you have to make sure that the place is properly done up and habitable. A step-by-step checklist should be a worthy consideration here:
Whether it’s a rental or an outright purchase, chances are that in the time preceding your move there, certain animals or insects have set up shop in the apartment, especially if it hasn’t been occupied in a long while.
If you find traces of pests, first fumigate the place with the help of a pest control company to clear them out. You can then proceed to get rid of their droppings, nests and whatever other “souvenirs” they might have left behind. Finally, block the entrances through which they gained access to the place.
Whether it's something as simple as a wall repaint, replacing broken doors and fixing sinks, or complete stripping of the plumbing and electrical and kitchen renovations, make sure to get it done before you start moving in.
Also, it's important to change the locks on the doors. While the old occupants are expected to hand back all of their keys to the management of the house, there's no way to verify if the keys that they reported as lost were actually lost, and most landlords would rather not shoulder the cost of changing the locks. So just to be safe, change out the locks on all of your external doors to ensure the security of your family and belongings.
Finally, identify and properly mark emergency exits and put a first aid box in position.
The more stuff you move, the more you have to pack and unpack, the more space you need and the more money you have to pay to transport it. That's why it's always best to do some spring cleaning before a move to downsize your belongings to only the stuff you really want to take with you.
Walk through each room with a notepad to write down every item in each location, making note of all the items you want to keep and everything else that can go. For more valuable items, you can put them up for sale on Facebook marketplace. Alternatively, you can choose to give away your leftover items to friends and family or donate them to a local charity.
When you have trimmed the excess, you can now begin to take inventory of what is left. An inventory is great for two reasons: it helps you to keep track of everything while packing, and it also helps you ensure that the moving company does not lose anything.
Food items and other perishable items complicate moving. When they don’t spill all over the place, they just get mashed up, leaving a nasty mess. Starting weeks before your move, begin to wind down your food reserves. Use up everything, and if you need to run out and need to buy anything, do so, but only in small amounts.
In the same vein, use up flammables. Ensure that there is no fuel left in your lawnmower or gas cylinder. These things are a fire hazard, and moving them with the rest of your belongings without getting rid of the fuel would be reckless.
Both pets and plants require some TLC and special handling during the moving process. You may choose to personally move them in your car. But, if you can’t, you will have to make a special arrangement with the movers.
To ensure a smooth moving journey for pets with as little stress as possible, it's best to hire a designated pet transport service that is trained to handle your pets with the utmost care and attention they need.
Now, you can begin to pack up all your stuff! First, stock up on any packaging supplies you may need, including moving boxes, bubble wrap, tape, padding, furniture blankets and any other protectors you need.
Next, you can start putting it all in boxes. It's often helpful to pack similar items together, arranging it all per room so that it's easier when you're unpacking.
You can also make use of your checklist when packing. This can help you to plan and keep proper track of everything. When you’re done, label all the boxes appropriately with what's inside as well as any fragile or important tags to inform whoever will be lifting them about their contents so they can handle them with the level of caution required.
Packing and unpacking don't occur in a flash. In that period between when you pack, move and unpack, you and your family will need to eat, drink, use the bathroom and change clothes.
So, pack an “essentials bag” with all the supplies you’ll need to get you through the days leading up to the moving, moving day and a couple of days post-move. This way, you're all sorted until most of your items are unpacked and accessible in your new home.
Moving is no small feat, and if you’ve gotten up to this point, you deserve a pat on the back and maybe even a housewarming party to celebrate your new home with your loved ones and new neighbours.
But remember — a successful move starts with hiring a professional mover. With Wise Move, you can find the best moving service near you using our quick and user-friendly platform, bringing speed, professionalism and excellent delivery to your move.
Check out Wise Move today to start receiving your quotes ASAP and take the first step in the moving process.
We built Wise Move to make a quick and easy connection between customers and moving professionals – our platform is the stepping stone to make removals easier and more streamlined than ever before, and it all starts with one click. We’re dedicated to connecting customers with the best, most efficient and most cost-effective movers in South Africa, both at a local and at a national level.
It's free and easy to create a request on Wise Move.
Describe, add photos and the dimensions of your shipment in your listing — anything that you think will make a difference, will make a difference.
Our platform will reach out to moving companies and movers relevant to your delivery specification in your area.
Movers may ask you a few more details about your delivery before giving you a quote.
Compare prices and get to know movers before accepting their quote by reading previous customer reviews on our platform.
Pick your preferred mover and arrange collection and delivery.
Prepare your package for collection or if you are moving home, get ready for moving day.
Meet and greet your chosen movers on your collection day.
Sit back and relax while your movers takes care of your booking.
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