Be patient
For starters, the actual process of moving house is the most tedious thing, getting the mortgage sorted, spending every penny you ever earned on deposits and solicitor fees and the lark, but just remember that its all gonna be 110% worth it in the end. I'm a horribly impatient person but I just kept reminding myself that I wasn't losing all my life savings, I was gaining an asset, an investment.
Plan in advance
This seems pretty obvious but plan, plan, plan! The main thing to arrange would be how you're going to move - are you doing it yourself? Using a removal company? Think about it, because its always a bigger job than you think. We moved the majority across ourselves in a couple of trips (we only moved about two miles away so it wasn't too difficult) and we had help from our friend and his van for some of the big stuff. If you don't want to spend money on a removal company and don't know anyone with a van - rent one! We looked at this and there are so many cheaper options than using proper movers.
Group your things
Another obvious one but it really is key. If you group your stuff together, for the meantime, you can just dump it all in the necessary places (bathroom, kitchen, bedroom, etc.) and organise it once you're a bit more organised.
Decorate your main living space first
Most likely to be your living room, right? Get that done first, as thats the place you're most likely going to have people when they come round. If thats a nice space then you don't need to worry too much about the rest of the house for a bit. You don't have to decorate it completely, just tidy it up and make it inviting. We painted the whole living room, bought a new sofa and make a desk space so its semi-organised and inviting, then when we *eventually* have more money we'll decorate it with all the furnishings and little bits.
Don't worry about getting it all done straight away
So many people told me this and I didn't really listen, but now I'm in I totally get it. Moving house and making it your own is so much harder than you expect it to be. Paint colours? Good luck gal. You think you want one colour, then once you're in you change your mind, then you can't find the right shade, then you get it on the wall and it doesn't look how you thought it would - trust me, its hard, but still fun.
Don't follow trends completely
By all means, get home inspo online, get on Pinterest and find all the colour schemes you could wish for, but definitely don't follow them all to a T. Trends are great and they show you whats cool and 'in', but this time next year it won't be and what are you gonna do then? Re-decorate your whole house? No, didn't think so. Take elements of trends but ultimately make it your own!
Make a list of what you want to do
I'm a list lover so I make lists for absolutely everything. Make a list for everything you want to do in the house. You don't have to do it right away but at least then you can clearly see what you want to get done, whats most important and what you want to save up for.
Enjoy it!
So cliche, but the main thing to do is enjoy making it your own. It'll take time but just think of it as a lil project to do over the coming months and years, then think of the finished product (and also how much equity you'll have...)
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