It's time

[ajcooper]

After 12 years we've decided that we're done and are ready to move home.  Thinking of next year so we've got plenty of time to sort things out.  I used these forums in the move over so it's good to see there's  a community for those moving back.  All our issues can be overcome but can be summarised here;

- 13 year old boy in YR7, we held him back so worried that he'll have to jump up a year in the UK
- 11 year old boy in YR5, again we held him back so worried that he'll have to jump up a year in the UK
- 2 golden retrievers!  Not happy about my babies being in a crate for 24 hours but it's only one day right?!

Biggest one at the moment is what to ship back and would appreciate others thoughts.  I'm thinking personal effects, clothes and electronics (TV's, computers, consoles etc), my wife is thinking furniture and the kitchen sink.  

Also, exchange rates, will probably start moving money over sooner rather than later.

I have a sister who is moving back home from Canada so I know about the new import TOR thing, will look at that early next year.

Anyway, will be here a lot now as we start to plan.

[LKC]

We are just in the throes of planning a move back at the moment.  I will be heading back to the UK with the kids in about the end of August/beginning of September, with OH to follow a few weeks later having shipped our belongings and our cats.  We've been in Sydney for eight years, and have accumulated quite a lot of 'stuff' in that time!

With regards to shipping, I've sold any bits of furniture that we definitely don't want to take back such as the IKEA storage stuff that we had for the kids Lego.  I figure I can replace that easily and cheaply if need be when we buy a house.  I've also thinned out lots of our possessions.  For example I went through the toys, books, pictures and ornaments, and we've only kept things that we love or need (still 15+ boxes of books to bring back though!).  We won't bring our sofas.  The two old ones that we brought with us we gave to a local charity to forward on to a family in need, and the IKEA ones which we are still using we will give to the girl's school (they are setting up less formal learning areas with sofas, beanbags etc).  We will bring back our dining furniture, sideboard, tv cabinets, a desk, a hall table, and all of our bedroom furniture, with the exception of our mattresses.  Our mattress didn't travel very well coming this way and had to be replaced, so I figured that we'd give those to the same charity that our sofas went to, and I can arrange new mattresses in the new rental so we've got something to sleep on until the shipping arrives.

It is complicated, and I was really worried at the start that I'd never manage to sort things out and manage to fit the UK end with the Australia end, particularly in regards to having somewhere to live and shipping our belongings and cats.  However, the further in I've got the easier it has become.  It all kind of untangles itself!
 

[MARYROSE02]

I wish I could be more "brutal" discarding things as I still have stuff in my garage here in Sydney which I packed away in 1997 when I decided to go back to England, and I have even more stuff from 2008 in the attic of my home in England from when I decided to move back to Sydney.

[LKC]

9 minutes ago, MARYROSE02 said:

I wish I could be more "brutal" discarding things as I still have stuff in my garage here in Sydney which I packed away in 1997 when I decided to go back to England, and I have even more stuff from 2008 in the attic of my home in England from when I decided to move back to Sydney.

I had unopened boxes of things in the garage that we'd brought with us!  I figured that if we hadn't needed them in the eight years we've been here, we won't need them moving forwards!  I think OH was a bit gobsmacked as to how much stuff I chucked/donated/sold, but it is such a good feeling!  I've kept sentimental things, but I did force myself to get rid of some of the things that the kids have brought home from school over the years.  I kept one box for each of them that I put the best things in, but the rest got recycled.  I did feel bad about sorting through those things, but realistically you can't keep every bit of paper that a child has scribbled on!

[ajcooper]

7 minutes ago, LKC said:

I had unopened boxes of things in the garage that we'd brought with us!  I figured that if we hadn't needed them in the eight years we've been here, we won't need them moving forwards!  I think OH was a bit gobsmacked as to how much stuff I chucked/donated/sold, but it is such a good feeling!  I've kept sentimental things, but I did force myself to get rid of some of the things that the kids have brought home from school over the years.  I kept one box for each of them that I put the best things in, but the rest got recycled.  I did feel bad about sorting through those things, but realistically you can't keep every bit of paper that a child has scribbled on!

It's hard to make decisions on this stuff.  When we came over, there were things that we wished we'd brought and things we wished we hadn't.  I'm sure it will be the same this time, although instead of 2 adults and a baby there's now four of us and the youngest is a hoarder

[Collie]

My sister has a pretty good rule of thumb.

If you haven't worn it or used it in a year - it goes.

Need to be ruthless with yourself.

If it has sentimental value, is unique in someway or is worth something decent keep it otherwise it goes.  No point in paying to move stuff that isn't worth anything (in value or sentiment) 

[VERYSTORMY]

I would say if your furniture is in good condition and not due for or getting close to the point of replacing, then ship it.

We only shipped half a dozen boxes of personal affects, but that was a lot to do with we were broke.

Get the dogs arranged at an early stage. We used Dogtainers and they were excellent. They don't need to be in a crate for that length of time. We chose Emirates and they take them off the plane and they are let out into an air conditioned run for several hours before boarding the next flight. We then chose a different flight for my wife to what the dog was flying on so that we weren't waiting at Heathrow for hours for him. He arrived hungry, as normally they are in Dubai, but ours couldn't be as he has a medical condition that requires medication at meal times, but other than that and being a bit jet lagged he was fine.

 

[ScottieGirl]

I sent my 2 dogs with Jetpets who were great, they flew the direct Qantas flight from Sydney. It stops at Dubai but the dogs are not deplaned. They were fine, in a much better condition than I was after a 21 hr flight!

As for shipping a lot depends on your budget and how old stuff is. Replacing all your furniture for a family of four will be time consuming and expensive but king size beds and sofas probably won't fit in a UK house. Check if the telly will work in the UK. Definitely bring all your clothing and kitchenware. 

[Pixie77]

Thank you. We are in the process of deciding what to bring.... chest of drawers yes but sofa is huge & think it may not fit in uk house, people buying house have asked to buy bed so that's done. What about white goods? Not long bought a washing machine but we will be renting in UK at first so not sure.... freezer? Again not sure. Thinking of doing a medium move cube so see what fits in! Going to take cut frame but buy new mattress & we may fit double bed frame in not sure. Not taking mattress. Outdoor table chairs going to take..... so much to do in 4 weeks especially when we're all sick ?

[Pixie77]

Thank you. We are in the process of deciding what to bring.... chest of drawers yes but sofa is huge & think it may not fit in uk house, people buying house have asked to buy bed so that's done. What about white goods? Not long bought a washing machine but we will be renting in UK at first so not sure.... freezer? Again not sure. Thinking of doing a medium move cube so see what fits in! Going to take cut frame but buy new mattress & we may fit double bed frame in not sure. Not taking mattress. Outdoor table chairs going to take..... so much to do in 4 weeks especially when we're all sick ?

[Guest]

3 hours ago, Pixie77 said:

Thank you. We are in the process of deciding what to bring.... chest of drawers yes but sofa is huge & think it may not fit in uk house, people buying house have asked to buy bed so that's done. What about white goods? Not long bought a washing machine but we will be renting in UK at first so not sure.... freezer? Again not sure. Thinking of doing a medium move cube so see what fits in! Going to take cut frame but buy new mattress & we may fit double bed frame in not sure. Not taking mattress. Outdoor table chairs going to take..... so much to do in 4 weeks especially when we're all sick ?

A medium movecube isn't that big that you could get a heap of furniture/white goods in plus lots of personal effects. Measure your bed frame and outdoor table etc to see if it will fit. We had a large movecube and our bed frame went in but there wasn't much wiggle room for it length wise. A medium cube will be shorter won't it? 

What you should do is whittle down to what you do want to ship, work out the space you'll need and then pack to fit. Some measure out the size of the floor space of a movecube and do a dummy run in advance to ensure it will all fit. We didn't do that but did work out exactly how many boxes in two specific sizes would fit plus we worked out the dimensions of the furniture we were shipping and sorted it that way. As it was we filled it to the brim pretty much. Only put in a KS mattress and frame, 2 sets of drawers, blanket box, small chair and flat packed the desk. Rest was boxes mostly. 

Research what rentals in the UK usually come with white goods wise. IIRC its usually only a cooker/oven and or hob. Everything else is empty space. Sometimes there is space for a dishwasher or one is fitted in a kitchen but its not the norm I don't recall. Keep in mind Aus fridges are often wider than the UK style. They tend to be skinnier I seem to remember. Much wider here.