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Why Moving House Is Stressful

Why Moving House Is Stressful — And What You Can Do About It

Why-Moving-House-Is-Stressful-—-And-What-You-Can-Do-About-ItMoving house consistently ranks alongside bereavement and divorce as one of life’s most stressful experiences. Studies have put the average move at over 100 hours of planning time, and that’s before a single box has been packed. Yet most of the stress that people feel during a house move isn’t inevitable — it’s the direct result of a handful of very common, very predictable mistakes.

The good news is that all of them can be avoided. After more than 90 years of helping families move across South London, Surrey and Kent, we’ve seen every version of moving day go wrong — and right. Here’s what causes the most stress, and what to do instead.

1. Starting the process too late

The single most common cause of moving-day chaos is running out of time. Most people significantly underestimate how long a house move actually takes from start to finish — not just the physical act of moving, but the weeks of preparation that need to happen beforehand.

Think about everything that needs to happen before the van arrives: decluttering rooms you’ve lived in for years, sourcing packing materials, booking a removal company, arranging parking suspensions, notifying utility providers, organising childcare or pet care for moving day, and sorting out everything from change-of-address notifications to broadband transfers. Each of these tasks takes longer than it seems in isolation. Collectively, they can easily fill six to eight weeks of evenings and weekends.

People often wait until their completion date is confirmed before they start any of this — which can leave them scrambling through the final weeks with no margin for error. When something goes wrong (and something almost always does), there’s no buffer to absorb it.

What to do instead

Start earlier than feels necessary. As soon as a move is on the horizon — even before a completion date is confirmed — you can begin decluttering, researching removal companies, and building your to-do list. Good removal companies in South London and Surrey get booked up quickly, particularly in spring and summer when the market is busiest. Getting an early quote and pencilling in a provisional date costs nothing and protects you considerably.

A rough timeline to work to:

2. Unclear or unexpected costs

One of the most anxiety-inducing aspects of moving house is the feeling that costs can spiral without warning. The headline removal quote is rarely the full picture — and when unexpected charges appear, they can throw an already tight budget into difficulty.

Common hidden or overlooked moving costs include:

Not all removal companies are transparent about these. Some quote a low headline figure and then add charges on the day. This is one of the most common complaints people make about removal experiences that went wrong.

What to do instead

Ask for a fully itemised, fixed-price quote — and read it carefully before signing. A reputable removal company should be able to tell you exactly what is and isn’t included, with no ambiguity. At F Smith & Son, we provide fixed prices with no hidden extras: what we quote is what you pay. If you need additional services — full or partial packing, storage between properties, specialist handling for pianos or antiques — these are agreed upfront and priced clearly.

When comparing quotes, the cheapest option is rarely the best value. A lower quote from a company with limited experience or poor insurance cover can easily cost more in the long run if items are damaged or the move overruns.

3. Leaving packing until the last minute

Packing is the task almost everyone underestimates — both in terms of how long it takes and how physically and mentally draining it is. A house that looks entirely manageable when you walk around it starts to feel overwhelming the moment you open the first drawer and realise you’ve accumulated fifteen years of accumulated belongings.

Last-minute packing means items get thrown into boxes without order, fragile things get damaged, important documents get buried, and you arrive at your new home to find nothing is where you need it. It also means the removal team is waiting while you pack, which can push costs up and create a stressful dynamic on what should be a smooth day.

What to do instead

Begin packing non-essential areas of your home at least three to four weeks before moving day. Work systematically, room by room, and follow a few simple rules:

If the scale of packing feels genuinely unmanageable, professional packing services are worth considering. Our team can pack an entire house efficiently and safely, using the correct materials for each type of item. Professionally packed belongings are also better covered by insurance if anything is damaged in transit — because the packing standard is guaranteed.

4. No clear plan for moving day itself

Moving day without a plan is a recipe for a long, exhausting and expensive experience. When everyone involved — family members, removal team, the people at the other end — is unclear on the sequence of events, things get left behind, time gets wasted and stress levels rise quickly.

Common moving-day problems that stem from poor planning include:

What to do instead

Agree a clear plan in advance with your removal company and share it with everyone involved. This should cover: arrival times at both properties, parking arrangements, any access challenges, the sequence rooms will be loaded and unloaded, and who the point of contact is at each end. If you have children, arrange for them to be looked after elsewhere on moving day — ideally from the night before. The same applies to pets, who can become anxious and unpredictable when their routine is disrupted.

On the day itself, have the kettle, cups and biscuits accessible. A good removal team works hard — keeping them comfortable and energised is both courteous and practical.

5. Overlooking parking and access

Parking catches people out more often than you’d expect, particularly in urban parts of South London and inner Surrey where streets are busy and residents’ parking schemes are common. A removal van that can’t park close to the property means longer carries, more time on the clock, and a crew that’s working much harder than they need to — all of which adds cost and stress.

Roads to pay particular attention to include red routes (where loading restrictions are strict and short), streets with residents’ permit zones, properties on steep hills or with very narrow access, flats above ground floor with no lift or a lift too small for furniture, and new builds where developer restrictions sometimes limit van access.

What to do instead

Discuss the access situation at both the collection and delivery addresses with your removal company early in the booking process. If a parking suspension is needed, your local council will need to be contacted in advance — typically at least five working days before the move, and sometimes longer. There’s usually a fee for this, but it’s money well spent.

If you’re unsure whether your street needs a suspension, your removal company can advise. At F Smith & Son, we’re familiar with the parking conditions across Croydon, South London and Surrey and can guide you through what’s needed for your specific locations.

6. Not being prepared for delays and chain collapses

In England and Wales, nothing in a property transaction is legally binding until contracts are exchanged. That means sales fall through, chains collapse, and completion dates shift — sometimes at very short notice. People who have built their plans tightly around a specific moving date can find themselves in a genuinely difficult position when it changes.

Common causes of last-minute delays include:

When a date shifts, everything booked around it — the removal company, annual leave, school transfers, pet kennels — needs to shift too. The more tightly things were scheduled, the more stressful this becomes.

What to do instead

Build flexibility into your planning where possible. Avoid booking anything non-refundable too far ahead of exchange. Understand what your removal company’s rescheduling policy is before you book — some companies charge heavily for date changes, while others are more accommodating. At F Smith & Son, we work with customers to accommodate changes when we can, particularly when we’ve built a working relationship throughout the booking process.

It’s also worth maintaining a good relationship with your solicitor and keeping communication open throughout the chain. The more visibility you have on potential problems, the more time you have to respond to them calmly rather than reactively.

7. Trying to manage everything yourself

There’s an understandable instinct to try and keep control of every aspect of a move — to hire a van, do the packing yourself, rope in friends for the heavy lifting, and coordinate the whole thing personally. This can feel like the economical choice, but it frequently makes the experience significantly more stressful, and often more expensive when things go wrong.

DIY moves typically take two to three times longer than anticipated. Friends and family, however willing, generally lack the experience and equipment to move furniture efficiently and safely. Items get damaged. People get injured. What was meant to be a one-day job becomes a two-day job. And at the end of it, you’re exhausted before you’ve even started unpacking.

What to do instead

Be realistic about what you can handle and what’s worth delegating. A professional removal company isn’t just a van and some labour — it’s experience, specialist equipment, proper insurance cover, and a team who does this every day. The cost is often recovered many times over in time saved, stress avoided, and the peace of mind of knowing your belongings are properly protected.

Think of it this way: you wouldn’t attempt to rewire your house to save money on an electrician. Moving the contents of your home is a specialist task too, and treating it as such tends to produce a much better result.

8. Forgetting the administrative side of moving

In the midst of packing and logistics, it’s easy to neglect the significant amount of administration that a house move generates. Arriving at your new home to find your broadband isn’t connected, your GP has no record of your transfer, or important letters are still going to your old address adds a layer of friction to an already demanding time.

The list of organisations and people who need to know your new address is longer than most people expect:

What to do instead

Start a change-of-address list at least two weeks before moving day and work through it systematically. Take meter readings at both properties on moving day and photograph them. Set up Royal Mail’s redirection service as a safety net — not as a substitute for updating your records, but to catch anything you’ve missed while you work through the list.

Organise any important documents — passports, deeds, insurance certificates, mortgage paperwork — in a clearly labelled folder that travels with you rather than going in the removal van.

Moving house doesn’t have to be the ordeal people expect

Almost every stressful moving experience can be traced back to one or more of the points above. With the right preparation, the right timeline, and the right team behind you, a house move can be managed calmly and efficiently — even when things don’t go entirely to plan.

F Smith & Son have been helping families move across South London, Surrey and Kent since 1930. As members of the British Association of Removers (BAR) and holders of the BS EN 12522 quality standard — the only recognised quality standard specifically for furniture removal companies — we bring genuine expertise to every move we carry out.

If you’re planning a move and would like a free, no-obligation quote, get in touch with our team. We’re happy to talk through your specific situation and make sure you have everything in place for a smooth moving day.