hpka

When you're looking at your stuff in the UK, ask yourself if you really are attached to it? Your IKEA pots and pans etc over there... don't send them, not worth the cost. Your priceless antiques and heirlooms that you want to hang onto, OK, send those, but know you're accepting the cost of doing so. If you have a really expensive sofa etc... ok, but see above.

Personally, I'm on the side of sell stuff in the UK and buy when over here.

I just had a few bagloads of stuff that I/family brought over and I was fine. I'm well set up now.

Come to think about it, I would have planned out making decisions. E.g. "monday morning: car shopping, monday afternoon: furniture, tuesday: houses". Rather than make the decisions themselves (some of them you just can't make unless you're here), I would have planned out my research...

iaink

If you have a whole houseful of furniture, clothes, tools etc etc, then its probably worth the cost and hassle of bringing it over. Its going to be costly enough to replace the electrical stuff anyway(although much of that will work on transformers, although its a bit inconvenient)

If you are bringing stuff, you might as well bring as much as you canl, fill that container to the brim as it will cost the same anyway.

If you only have a bit of stuff, then its probably better to sell what you can and start fresh again. Medium amounts of stuff are the worst, there is no simple cost effective way to ship it, and you cant just bring it with you on the plane.

snowcandy

That's a good plan if you are single, but start adding kids into the equation and there's no way we could have even dreamt of doing that!

cheeky_monkey

we did it for a family of five (3children)..we sold all our our stuff in the UK and came to Canada with just what we could fit into our suitcases on the plane...worked out fine for us.

snowcandy

Were your kids not a bit unhappy to sell their beloved toys?

cheeky_monkey

no our youngest kept his favourite two teddies that could be stuffed into the suitcase and we just bought them new stuff mainly for birthdays and chrimbo..the fact i was spending more quality time with my children more than made up for it

Almost Canadian

We came over with an indentical number of family members and shipped everything bar major electricals. There is absolutely no way on earth we could have replaced what we brought with us for the cost of shipping it which, IIRC, was 3,500 pounds. I'm sure would could have replaced the items we took, but at a cost of way more than 3,500. Four double/queen beds, mattresses and bedding would like cost more than that in Canada. We did not wish to replace what we had in England with items purchased on Kijjiji.

Each to their own, of course

cheeky_monkey

yes but depends what value you got for your goods back in the UK when you sold it add that to your 3,500GBP and we ended up with well in excess of $10k to spend.

Almost Canadian

I appreciate that. I doubt very much that we could have purchased new here for the sum of what we may have been able to sell our's for in the UK and shipping costs. There is then the issue of having diminishing items in the UK while everything is being sold. I don't believe our position is unusal if postings on this site are anything to go by.

$10,000 would not have been enough to replace what we brought with us.

As I said, each to their own, there is likely no correct solution.

cheeky_monkey

i am not saying there is a right or wrong way..but you can bring a family over here with out shipping everything with you if you dont want to.