to ship furniture or sell first

[mahjong]

I'm moving to uk round about June. I have to sell my house in Australia. Do I ship a house full of furniture or buy everything over there. Does anyone know of any good shipping companys? I know some houses may be smaller in uk so my  furniture  may not fit. I'm so confused 

[Guest The Pom Queen]

Welcome to the forum. Like you say houses in the UK are smaller so if you do take things back I'd cut back before you go.

[Booma]

we took everything back but most furniture was to big for the houses we could rent in uk & we couldnt even sell it to other people for the same reason. you forget how small the rooms are in uk houses after a while. we couldnt even fit all our pots & pans & dishes in the kitchen cupboards so i would get rid of most things & just start again fresh when you get to uk.

[VERYSTORMY]

The first thing I would do is look on line at the houses in your budget and area that are available as the rule that UK houses will be smaller doesn't necessarily apply. For example, in my area, the same house price as where I lived in Oz would get something significantly bigger. 

Then I would try to look at your furniture objectively and see what is worth shipping. For example, if you have a bed that may be replacing or could do with replacing soon, then don't bother. 

Then again, look at quality. When we moved to Oz, we had a relocation package which would have covered a fair bit of furniture but we didn't as it was mainly crap hand downs. Coming back, we didn't have the funds to ship, so have bought everything again and it has been a lot less than shipping, though we were happy to buy some things second hand or had friends and family donate. 

[ScottieGirl]

I have just moved back. I shipped a few newer items but like VS said if its old and/or cheap not worth it. Don't however assume stuff will be much cheaper here. White goods cost less but sofas, dining tables and beds seem to be a similar price.

I got quotes from Chess, Pickfords and Crown.  Chess and Pickfords were the same price.  It is much cheaper to share a container but it takes longer, ultimately its down to your budget as to which is best for you. 

[doubter]

I used Kent removals back in 2010 from Australia to UK and they were excellent.Items were packed well and I had no damaged items unlike UK to Australia. If I was doing it again I would only take my clothes and personal items with me. My way of thinking is you need household items as soon as you arrive in country so just as well buy. If you items you leave behind are not expensive or antique and you shop around its not going to be much difference in price.