1. Start planning early
“It’s only one room and a few pots and pans!” I hear you cry. As a student you might not be packing up an entire family home’s worth of stuff, but that still doesn’t mean you should leave it until the last minute. Moving out is more than just flinging some clothes in a cardboard box – there’s also admin tasks, cleaning and maybe clearing out your things to contend with before you can go on your way, and they’ll require time – lots of it.
There’s also the small matter of getting your belongings from A to B. Even if you’re lucky enough to have parents who’ll pick you and your luggage up, it’s common courtesy to give them plenty of notice as to when that’ll need to be, and how much stuff they can expect to pack into the car tetris-style. Even if you don’t need to make arrangements for moving with a car, it’s important to book train tickets, storage and shipping ahead of time to ensure you secure a slot – and the best prices when it comes to travel.
2. Arrange your storage and shipping with Kit Keeper
Are you worried about getting your things home this summer? Stressed about where to store your belongings between term time?
Kit Keeper is LUU’s recommended provider for student storage and shipping; and they are the ideal team to make your move as simple as possible.
Kit Keeper provides an all-inclusive service – providing strong boxes to pack up your things, collecting them for shipping or storage, and then redelivering them at your convenience, anywhere in the UK.
As a student-focused company, Kit Keeper have student finances at the forefront of their minds, therefore, they work hard to keep costs as low as possible.
With a tracking system and compensation cover up to £100, you can rest assured that your belongings are in the safest hands.
Whether you’re staying in Leeds next year and have a gap between your tenancies; or are moving away to another location in the UK, Kit Keeper is the perfect solution to your shipping and storage needs.
Book now using the code LUU10 for 10% off storage!
3. Clear out responsibly
We get it. As a student it’s easy to accumulate loads of stuff over the year, and it’s only when you come to pack up your room that you realise quite how much junk you’ve got stuffed away in drawers. There’s only one thing for it: clear out!
It’s super important to be socially and environmentally responsible when it comes to clearing out your stuff. If you’ve been in Leeds a while, you might’ve seen the piles of rubbish that accumulate in student areas around this time. It’s terrible for the environment, and disrespectful to people living and working in the area – which is why we strongly request that you do not leave any rubbish out on the street. What’s more, even if you’re not planning on dumping your things, it’s important to recycle items or give them a new life wherever possible instead of sending them to landfill.
In collaboration with Unipol, Leeds City Council and universities across the city, Leeds Uni has a number of initiatives to help you clear out sustainably and make your move as stress-free as possible. From doorstep collections with Good To Give to getting started early with Get Your Shift Together, there are lots of resources to help you this changeover period. And because we’re spoiling you, here are a few bonus ideas from us.
- Charity shops – this is an obvious one, but if you’ve got good quality items, charity shops are the best place for them. Just be sure to follow their donation guidelines, and don’t dump things outside the shops if this isn’t their process.
- Sell your items – things like furniture can be easily sold on the likes of Ebay or Facebook Marketplace. Don’t miss your chance to make a little bit of cash back.
- Give things away online – there are some brilliant community Facebook groups like C.R.A.P LS6 and C.R.A.P West Leeds (that stands for Conserving Resources, Associating People!) where you can arrange to give unwanted things to local people. You’ll be surprised at what you can shift, and it’s a great way to give items a second life while directly saving someone in the community some money.
- Donate food – if you’ve got surplus food, don’t just chuck it. If it’s fresh and perishable, why not pop it on Olio for someone to collect and make use of? And if you’ve got things like tins or rice you can’t use in time, a food bank is the place to take them. You can find donation points in lots of supermarkets, but here’s a list of Leeds North & West Food Bank’s donation points.
4. Create a housemate cleaning schedule
End of tenancy cleaning is much more than just running the vacuum cleaner around. If you want your full deposit back you’ll need to do everything from cleaning the oven and defrosting the freezer to dusting the skirting boards and making sure drains are hair-free and sparkling clean (gross). Landlords and agents are sticklers for cleanliness at the end of the tenancy, so it’s important to take the cleaning seriously – and the best way to do that is to evenly assign different chores to all your household members to ensure that everything gets done just in time for the end of tenancy inspection. Bear in mind that people might be moving out at slightly different times and that simply living in a space can create more dirt, so schedule the tasks accordingly. It’s also worth going back over your contract to make sure you’re not required to get a professional end of tenancy clean, and booking in advance if that is a requirement.
5. Get boxes for free from local shops
If you’ll be moving yourself and need packaging, there’s often no need to buy proper moving boxes. It’s easy to nip to your local corner shop or supermarket and ask if they have any large boxes in the back that you would be able to take for moving. They’ll usually be more than happy to give them to you free of charge! It’s also worth asking on the Facebook groups listed above if anyone has any spare. Often people do and will be glad to pass them on to free up some space. Either way, that’s a few quid saved.
6. Make a list of last-minute essentials
Just like going on holiday, there are some bits and pieces that just can’t be packed until the last possible minute. As part of your packing plan, make a list of those things like your phone charger, toothbrush, any medicines and toiletries, an outfit, a set of cutlery and so on that you will need up until the last moment, then keep a bag separate that you can chuck them all into at the end. Same goes for bedding and towels – don’t use up all your bags forgetting that you’ll need to wedge a duvet in somewhere. I’m speaking from experience here…
Equally, if you’ll be moving to a new rental and you’ll need certain documents like ID or proof of employment to seal the deal, make sure you have those to hand.
7. Update your details and do your admin
An important but often overlooked part of moving out is updating your contact details for important things like your bank accounts, as well as more fun stuff like subscriptions. There’s also the option to redirect your mail, but it’s cheaper to just manually update your details. If you’ve got your own contents insurance policy for your belongings, make sure to cancel it as you move out so that you don’t get automatically charged for another year. You should get a letter from your provider when it’s time to renew it, so to avoid a surprise payment it’s important to update your address with your insurance provider.
8. Check the inventory
You may have been provided with an inventory when you moved in, in which case it’s important to check through it and ensure everything is still there. If you find you’ve smashed a plate or two that were included in the inventory, try to replace them like for like in an effort to protect your deposit. If you do have trouble with getting your deposit back and you think it’s unfair, Help & Support are on hand to provide advice. Here’s an article on what your landlord is allowed to deduct from your deposit for – but remember that fair wear and tear can’t be charged for.
9. Ask for a reference
This one’s particularly important if you’ll be graduating soon and looking to rent privately in Leeds or elsewhere. Lots of landlords and agents require references to ensure you will be a good, reliable tenant for them. With this in mind, if you’ve paid your rent on time and kept the property in good condition, it’s worth asking your landlord if they’ll be happy to provide a reference in future and noting down their contact details. It might make life that much easier for future you.
10. Then let your hair down and enjoy your last days in Leeds
We’ve taken you through all the practical steps you need to think about when moving out this summer, but it’s important to make the most of your last weeks in Leeds, too. There are plenty of options to help you celebrate the summer here at LUU, including Leeds Ball, the ultimate way to celebrate the end of the academic year.
Leeds Ball takes place on Saturday 4 June, and is set to include live music, DJs, a roller disco, silent disco, fairground rides, drag show, retro games and casino and much more, all as part of a massive on-campus festival. Tickets are on sale now, so don’t miss out on your chance to say bye to Leeds in style.
