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Being a first-time home buyer in the UK is a daunting task, involving mountains of paperwork and oodles of time as you lay the groundwork that’ll turn your new house into a home.

The herculean feat of moving shouldn’t be understated. Countless surveys have found that many Britons think lugging boxes from one property to another is one of life’s most stressful events.

So, is there a way to remove the hair-pulling strain from finding and moving into a home? The short answer is yes, and the list below will give you a few tips to do exactly that.

1. Find the Right Solicitors

Paperwork is one of the more tedious steps you’ll have to take before you can enjoy your purchase, from your phone contract to your mortgage agreement. Crammed with legalese and knotted terminology, the contracts you’ll need to finalise your flit are highly specialist and will require legal help from firms like Dickinson Parker Hill.

These solicitors will guide you through the process with a helping hand and a reassuring tone, easing any nerves you may have about entering a binding agreement.

2. Find High Quality Movers

There’s that old joke from Fight Club where an airport attendant nonchalantly refers to baggage handlers as ‘throwers’, a sentiment that first-time buyers might share about the removal people of their nightmares.

Of course, that stereotype doesn’t bear scrutiny, but everyone wants to know that the people they’re hiring to handle their furniture and intimate objects will do a bang-up job (with more of the ‘job’ and less of the ‘banging’). Sites like Trustpilot will recommend removal companies in your area that are worth the rate they command.

3. Create accessible boxes

So, you’ve moved in. Now you’re surrounded by more boxes than you know what to do with and realise you packed your toothbrush in one of them. But which one?

Mark at least one box ‘accessible’ or ‘first night’ and transport it with you away from the controlled chaos of removal vans.

This box should have everything you’ll need for your first night in a new home: bed linens, toiletries, spare clothing etc. That way, you won’t suffer the headache of scraping boxes for a spare pair of pants. Too tired to cook? In the same vein, research a local takeaway ahead of time.

4. Pre-Install Your Broadband

It’s sensible to have your broadband prepared as soon as you know your move-in date, not least because it can take up to a month to set-up from some providers.

If you’re happy with your current deal, stick with them and save the bother of finding a new supplier.

5. Know the little things

Understanding what day the bin bags are collected, where the gas and electricity meters are, which warranties are being passed on, and other titbits that are vital before move-in day will make the process a little smoother.

6. Get boxes gone

After the exhaustion of your first flit, it’d be tempting to sleep for a week and leave your boxes unopened for as long as you can, but the quicker you plough through the chore of unpacking, the more content you’ll be in your new home.

Unpack the most necessary boxes first (clothes, linens, kitchenware) but reward yourself with ‘treat’ boxes every now and again (your book collection, family albums) to stay motivated.

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