I underestimated how much selling my house would set me back – but experts say that doing this one thing can drastically cut moving costs

My husband and I are currently selling our first home, and while our experience as first-time buyers six years ago was admittedly stressful and expensive, I’ve quickly realised that buying and selling is a whole different ball game. From stamp duty to countless fees and the deposit itself, it all adds up. But one of the highest costs I didn’t anticipate? The actual moving day.

During this whole process, we’ve done everything we can to sell our house fast, and we’re slowly but surely making our way through the moving home checklist. However, I’ve hit a roadblock with moving from one house to the next, as hiring a removals company or even renting a van to do it ourselves is pricier than I could have ever anticipated.

Although I (perhaps naively) assumed that removal companies would charge by the size of your house or the number of rooms you have, the reality is that they quote based on how much there is to move. And as we’ve acquired a lot of stuff over the past six years, our quotes have been extortionate - which is why I’ve reached out to experts to help me out. Their advice? Declutter!

Why you should declutter before moving house

It’s a well-known fact that decluttering while your house is on the market is a surefire way to improve viewing feedback and potentially lead to a quicker sale. But experts say that adding an extra decluttering session before the big moving day can also save you a lot of hassle - and money.

Dave Sayce, who worked as a removal man before founding Compare My Move, explains, ‘Arguably, the biggest cost factor when moving house is the volume of items that need to be transported. Compare My Move data shows that the average removals cost per bedroom was £451 last year. That means for every bedroom’s worth of belongings, you can expect to pay around £451 on average. The more you reduce the volume, the more you reduce the cost.’

He adds, ‘If you clear out half a wardrobe, cut down your books, or remove unwanted furniture, you could realistically reduce your load by the equivalent of half a bedroom, potentially saving around £225.’ And if you repeat that process in each room of the house, that could reduce your overall moving costs by thousands.

And while hiring a van and doing it yourself, in lieu of using a professional removals company, is generally considered a great way to save money when moving house, the same logic applies to this hire cost. After all, the more stuff you have, the larger the van you’ll need - or the longer you’ll need to hire it for. Based on my own research and quotes for my house move, this can even make hiring a van more expensive than hiring a team of movers.

Personally, I know I have a lot to declutter before moving day, but Dave assures me it’s not just about throwing things away. He says, ‘Time is another major factor in removal costs. Simply organising and sorting your belongings properly can help bring costs down. When items are already in the correct rooms and grouped together, packing becomes much quicker and easier.’

This should also lift some of the mental load that moving house can pile on me, and I must admit that using decluttering methods before moving house has me excited for a fresh start. This is something that Shannon Murphy, Professional Organiser and Founder of Simpl Living Co, loves about moving.

She says, ‘Moving house is one of the best natural reset points we get. It’s an opportunity to decide what you want to take into your next chapter, and just as importantly, what you want to leave behind. Decluttering beforehand means you arrive knowing everything you’ve brought with you is something you actually want in your new home. It protects that fresh-start feeling rather than immediately recreating the same overwhelm in a different space.’

After all, those first few weeks after moving are normally filled with paperwork, address changes, and other admin tasks that can all add to your stress levels - so taking a load of unnecessary items out of the mix sounds like a dream!

How to successfully declutter before moving day

1. Give yourself time

The process of selling my current house and buying our next one has already happened very quickly. But when you’re trying to declutter before moving, it’s important to give yourself some time to get the job done properly. However, this should be easy to do as you can do it alongside packing.

Shannon explains, ‘Moves are also one of the rare moments in life when you physically touch almost every item you own. That makes it the perfect opportunity to let go of the “just in case” items and reassess what still fits your current life, not a past version of it.’

2. Start with the bulkiest, lowest value items first

When you have so much stuff, it can be hard to know where to start. Dave’s advice? Start with the bulkiest, lowest value items to get the ball rolling. Then, everything else should fall into place.

He says, ‘Large pieces of furniture, old shelving, unused desks, garden equipment and anything stored in the loft or garage tend to add the most volume but often bring the least value to your new home. If you can remove even one or two bulky items, you may reduce the size of the van or the time required on moving day, which can have a noticeable impact on cost.’

3. Be realistic and ruthless

Many people find it hard to declutter without guilt, but you need to be realistic and ruthless if you want to declutter and save money while moving - especially if you only want to take things with you that you’ll actually use. That means parting with those ‘just in case’ items you may have previously held on to.

Shannon adds, ‘That might be clothes in your wardrobe you realistically won’t wear again, children’s toys that have been outgrown, or items you’ve been keeping purely out of habit rather than purpose.’

4. Declutter before getting quotes

One big mistake I’ve made so far is getting removal quotes before decluttering, as they’ve been seriously expensive. But luckily, removal companies and van hire providers are used to last-minute bookings, so you can get your decluttering done before moving forward.

Dave explains, ‘The more accurate your inventory when you get removals quotes, the more accurate your pricing will be. Adding extra items later can lead to re-quotes or higher final costs. By properly sorting and reducing your belongings early, you give removals companies a clear picture of the job, helping you avoid surprises and stay in control of your budget.’

If you're moving this year, make sure you declutter to cut down your moving costs!