GeneralPowerpoint

This is a very practical question, but I wonder if anyone had any experience recommendations when it came to organzing moving day?

I'm trying to find a plan that minimises disruption whilst taking care of our dog, our baby son and our belongings which we're shipping back with a removal company.

In my head I'm contemplating the following;

Scenario 1

Day 1: Arrange to have pet relocation service pick up our dog.
Day 2: Arrange for movers to arrive and pack belongings, then check into a hotel.
Day 3: Fly back to the UK.

Alternatively, Scenario 2:

Day 1: Arrange to have pet relocation service pick up our dog and head to the airport
Day 2: Have our building super let the removal company in to pack up unsupervised.

I guess the only difference would be that I'd be on hand to take care of any issues that arose with the removal company in Scenario 1. But Scenario 2 does seem a little easier. Our building is staffed and I'm using Pickfords so it's a reputable company.

Any thoughts?

Helen1964

Definitely Scenario No 1. I’d want to be there to supervise the removal guys.
Also, after they’ve gone, don’t you have to give the place a clean before you hand back the keys?

GeneralPowerpoint

Nah the building take care of the cleaning after we're out. Or I can organise myself and have them let the cleaner in. The building staff are pretty good like that.

Lion in Winter

I've been pondering the same thing, and juggling this with what happens at the other end on arrival.

Items to juggle are:

1) Rent a place to live (will I be able to do that ahead of time, or not? Rentals seem to be moving very fast.)
2) Related to above, will I need an Airbnb to start off with?
3) Upon picking up cat, take it where? Probably not a hotel. So to the Air bnb?
4) Or, take the cat ahead and leave it somewhere (kennels?) and then get it after landing ourselves. Possibly combine this with getting keys to a rental?
5) Furnishings, etc. Whatever we do, our stuff is likely to be a container somewhere on the high seas for quite a number of weeks. What do we do about beds, etc., if we are in a rental?
6) If we are in an Air bnb then furniture is a non issue. As long as they will accept the cat. But it's pretty expensive.


Sigh.

Helen1964

Lion in Winter, sorry I don’t know the answers to any of your dilemmas but it would be great if you could keep us posted on the situation as regards getting a long-term rental: whether you are in fact able to arrange it from abroad, what documentation the letting agents require, and - if you do end up in an Airbnb - how much you’re able to do without a utility bill to show you have a permanent address.

My Plan A would be to get a long-term rental arranged in advance so we could go straight there on arrival.
If that proved impossible, Plan B would be an Airbnb while we looked around for a rental.

Re your cat, excuse my ignorance but won’t it be in quarantine in the UK for a number of weeks? By which time you’ll hopefully be in a rental.

Helen1964

Sorry, just found an old thread from which it seems there’s no quarantine.

Which part of the UK are you moving to? Rentals do seem to be in short supply in certain areas at the minute.

christmasoompa

Only self-isolation until a negative PCR test is received, so a couple of days for most people.

durham_lad

she was talking cats

Lion in Winter

Yes, no quarantine but a host of other things that have to get done in order to import a cat. Not the least of which is finding a rental that will accept one.

So far, I have had a response from only one agent and they seem to be prepared to accept proof of identity, employment & income, and presumably also cold, hard cash as a deposit, although that wasn't mentioned. I've got no further than that, at the moment, but I'm going to continue to try to establish relationships with a few in case that helps ease things. As much as I can, I'm finding actual people in each office and emailing them personally, rather than using the generic online contact form, and am introducing myself, sending my LinkedIn profile so that they can see I'm a real person, etc. Other people seem to have managed to get somewhere remotely by using a UK-based agent who does the walk through and so forth, so it must be possible, but I don't yet know what they charge.

Lion in Winter

They seem to be in short supply everywhere. Keeping options pretty open at the moment, but must be on a good train line (for multiple destinations, will have to travel around the UK reasonably regularly) with a vaguely reasonable trip to London once a week (so journey under 2 hours max, for example).

Helen1964

Best of luck!