Not only are we moving one of our favourite customers for the second time, but they have made a special purchase since their last move. They have bought a painting by Samuel van Hoogstraten, who was a student of Rembrandt, making this picture very valuable and about 370 years old. Christie’s have valued it at £30 000.

When transporting these types of artworks, we always use a porous acid-free paper to protect the oil-based paint. Then, we wrap it with two layers of export-grade bubble wrap as well as protecting the frame with a blue foam edging. The whole parcel is then packed into a specially-made box with filler put in to the gaps to compensate for any vibrations.

Samuel van Hoogstraten’s work can be seen in the National Gallery at Trafalgar Square.

When we were recently contracted to do a move for a big entertainment company, we also had to sign a confidentiality agreement which meant our men were not allowed to have any recording equipment on them – including their mobile phones.

The guys handed in their phones at base and left for the client’s location. Ten hours later, after a job well done, they ran into the office, desperate as an ice cube in hell, to get their phones back. It was really a bizarre sight.

So it made me think… how attached are you to your phone?

The first order of business is to ensure that we never ever let any of our customers down. Just this morning we are moving a customer who called us yesterday in a panic because the removal company that she had booked was incommunicado and she was now getting worried. Within an hour of her phonecall, she had a quote from us, a booking in the diary, a contract sent to her and the names of her removal team. The men have set off and we shall find out soon enough whether the other removal company will pitch up.

Christmas Lights on Oxford Circus

It’s that time of year again. As soon as halloween is out of the way Christmas rears it’s glittery head and suddenly everywhere is inundated with festive decorations. This time of year brings up extra considerations that we don’t have to contend with through the rest of the year, such as more pedestrians and traffic on the streets slowing down our progress. That doesn’t stop us from doing removals, especially in the city and on the high street; we just find a way to work around it.

Students are happy with their A-Level results

Thousands of A-Level students will receive their results today, which will confirm whether or not they have a place at university. Over the next two months we will be inundated with phone calls from students trying to arrange for their personal belongings to be moved to their new residence. We are quite happy to help these students, however, we find that they generally are keen to keep costs down to a minimum. As we have larger vans that are used to move big family homes and offices, we find that we don’t necessarily fit within their budget. However, Amber Moves will always find a way and so we have teamed up with a courier company who can always help these young people. Greg Jenks of A2B Deliveries manages a fleet of smaller vehicles who specialise in transporting small loads over long distances and he would always be happy to help. You can contact him on 020 8424 999.

Of course, many businesses and home owners will be looking toward their insurance policies to see them through this difficult time. I would like to suggest the services of Bond Insurance who are experts in business premises and public liability insurance.

Selling a home can take some time and I’ve got a solution to getting it sold in no time. I present to you home-staging: styling your home for potential home buyers. This sounds simple enough but it’s more than tidying up your home and making it look presentable. It’s about dressing your home in order to give prospective buyers a better idea of the potential of each room, and the home as a whole.

My associate, Julia Alexander, who was trained by Anne Maurice of Channel 5’s House Doctor series, specialises in home-staging. Visit her website for more advice on selling your home.

“Benefit from a trained eye and someone who understands both the market and buyer motivations.”

In the UK, any property being let or sold requires an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) – and you’ll need this before you market your property too. An EPC tells you how energy-efficient a home is on a scale of A-G (A being most efficient and G being least). The average UK property is between D and E.

So, obviously having a more energy-efficient home helps, but it’s not only about financial gain here. An EPC is absolutely necessary and my colleague Monique Simons would love to help you book a survey and answer any other questions you may have concerning this.

Although home-staging and EPCs are important for selling a home, if you’re buying a home you’ll probably need a mortgage. I can highly-recommend Mark Sykes, who has over 20 years of experience, for mortgage advice and other property needs. Mark is very good at assisting first-time buyers and helping clients release equity from their property.

“Part of the service that Mark offers includes speaking to the estate agents, solicitors and accountants on his clients’ behalf, thus ensuring that the whole mortgage/remortgage process goes through smoothly.”

To read the full article in the Daily Mail, follow the link below:

Daily Mirror: Have A Heavenly House Move

J.T. moved within Hampstead

“Very helpful, responsive, professional, good team.”

M.S. moved from Islington to Kensington

“Excellent, we would use you again, as we have in the past.”

L.H. moved from Cambridge to Acton

“Very good as usual. Many Thanks”

L.C. moved from West Hampstead to Finchley

Unfortunately getting a quote for a removal service is not like searching for car insurance or buying a CD on the internet. You can’t simply input a few details on some website and then sit back and sip your tea while a cleverly written program trawls through various databases to compile a myriad of quotes for you to peruse. The truth is that the amount of information that would be required to be entered is quite extensive and as the business of moving is very much a matter of geography, the algorithms required to compute these things would be too complex.

However, the internet can be a very useful tool in obtaining quotes. The first thing most people would do is go on to Google and enter a search for something like “moving home” or “removals”, then go through the websites produced by this search to find a few that suit them. The main thing you’re looking for is the feasible region that a company works in. It’s no use approaching a Cornwall based removals company when you’re planning to move from Edinburgh to Stirling. The second thing you’re looking for is the completeness of the service that they offer. Some companies offer a very basic removal service – a van and one or two men to move a few items. Whereas other companies may offer the full gambit of move related services, such as packing, storage, disposal, dismantling/reassembly. If you’re a student, with just a few too many boxes than can be fit into a car, then the first company will probably suffice. If you’ve got a large family with too much to pack up and no time to do it in, lots of furniture and possibly boxes of unused items in the loft that need to be disposed of, then the second company is obviously the better choice.

Another internet gem is www.helpiammoving.com. It has a lot of helpful hints and tips as well as a handy search feature. You enter some basic details about your move and your contact details and then your information is sent to five removal companies who work in the areas that you are moving from and to and they contact you with a quote.

When we talk to customers who are looking for a quote, we ask a lot of questions, so that we can be as accurate and comprehensive as possible. If you are telephoning more than two or three removal companies, you may find it useful to type up a description of your move that you can email out so that you don’t have to answer the same questions over and over again. The following list is a guideline of the kind of questions removal companies ask to help them provide a quote:

* What date do you plan to move?
* Where are you moving from and to?
* Are you planning any additional drop-offs or collections?
* What floor is each property on and how many floors does it span?
* Is there parking within 10 metres from the front door? If not, how far do you have to walk?
* How big is the property you’re moving from?
* What is the contents of the property? (A list of the large items is preferable)
* Are there any items that needed special attention when you moved in? ie. Items that need to be dismantled, taken through windows or over gardens fences, etc.
* Are there any items that are especially fragile or need extra protection?
* Are there any items that are especially valuable? ie. worth more than £3000.
* Do you want packing assistance?
* Do you require any storage?
* Do you require any disposal?
* Are there any associated services that you may need that we can put you in touch with? ie. cleaners, lettings agents, builders, pest controllers, electricians, plumbers, painter/decorators?

When do you plan on moving?

When we take an enquiry for moving home, the first thing we ask is the planned date. This is important for us as we may already be fully booked that day and not able to render the service at all. In this case, we do not want to take you through the whole process of describing your move and raising an estimate, just to find out that we couldn’t be of service any way.

However, we understand that you have already done a lot of work by the time you can answer the question: “When do you plan on moving?”

If you rent your home, you have given notice on your current property and have found a new property to move in to. Ideally, you’ll be moving out a day or two before you need to vacate your current abode, to allow time for end of tenancy cleaning and estate agent inventories on either side.

If you are buying your new home, then you’ve had countless discussions with your solicitor and your estate agent. There have also been numerous messages whizzing back and forth along your buying chain to try to establish a move date. Some chains are more difficult than others to work with in terms of establishing a date and most people do not book their move until they have exchanged.

Some customers do not find a new property in time. They could be looking for the perfect place or the property they were planning to move to falls through and they can’t back out of moving out of their current home. These customers might be lucky and have family or friends who might host their belongings in a garage while they get things sorted out. This is fine and well if you know anyone who has space in their garage and even if you do know someone with a completely empty garage, a full family home probably won’t fit in it. We can offer these customers the use of our storage facility, which has various security and environmental management features that will keep your furniture safe and ensure that it returns in the same condition as it went in.

Very often, we get asked by customers who have some flexibility with their move date, whether we charge any more or less over the weekend. We don’t charge more because we feel that your move has not suddenly become more difficult because we’re moving you on Saturday rather than a Friday.

However, in certain boroughs, parking availability may affect this decision. Many areas have no restrictions over the weekend and if the customer is able to secure parking spaces for the vans, then we can save the costs that we might have had to pay to the council for dispensations or suspensions.

So while it may seem a very simple question, “When do plan on moving?” is littered with a myriad of considerations and is very often one of the most difficult things to pin down. No wonder it’s the first thing we ask.

I explained to her that the greatest cost involved in a removal is the cost of labour and so the easiest way to save some money is to employ friends who are happy to do a day’s labour without getting paid. If cost is your greatest concern, then of course, this is the way to go and I say good luck to you and I hope the future brings you prosperity so that next time you move you can afford a removal company.

However, this “free” labour doesn’t come without hard work.

Let’s start with the packing materials. I have seen many helpful box packages from various retailers with sets of packing materials aimed at 1, 2 or 3 bedroomed properties. At first glance these look quite cheap and likely to provide all your packing material requirements, however, from our experience you generally need about 3 of these packs to supply your actual needs. So in the end, you pay more for your packing materials than we would charge. Besides, if this option was so terribly cheap, then we would be sourcing our boxes from there too.

Next we look at the van hire. The biggest vehicle you can hire with a standard driving licence is a 3.5t van. Our vans are purpose built with a bigger body so that we can fit more into them, so we know that any standard 3.5t van that you can hire yourself will not be as big. We also have to remember that it takes skill to pack a van efficiently. You need to fit as much as possible into the van, whilst ensuring that once you close the back and start driving, the furniture and boxes won’t move around and consequently break. So you’re looking at doing a few runs because you won’t be able to pack the van as tightly or safely as men who have years of experience.

Finally, let us consider the man power. Our men are young and fit and can keep going for 10 hours straight. Even people who are regular gym-goers find a whole day of walking up and down stairs quite tough going. Also, you need to know the best way to lift things without hurting yourself and for two and four man lifts, you need to have a team of people who can work together well. There are also various techniques that make the job easier and safer to do and a myriad of equipment that is expensive to purchase or hire that we already have and your team of enthusiastic amateurs won’t have.

So in the end, if we’re quoting 3 men for 8 hours to do a job, you would probably need 6 people for 12 hours to do the same job as you won’t have a big enough van, the right equipment or a team who are as skilled and as fit as our men.

Some say to do a job right, do it yourself. We say, to do a job right, get an expert to do it.

J.F. moved from Watford to Welwyn Garden City

“Excellent, excellent, excellent. I have never seen a team of people work so hard and so effieciently and with such care and good humour. Amber Moves have been BRILLIANT – I would wholeheartedly recommend them.”

T.P. moved from Chalk Farm to Highgate

“Absolutely fabulous service. Lovely people to work with. Timely, good-mannered, helpful. Highly recommended. Brilliant service!!”

S.R. moved from Barnet to Finchley

At least our crews are at home, tucked up tight

We never shun work, always in the zone

But just for today, we’re glad we’re at home

Yesterday was not considered a particularly busy day here at Amber Moves. However, in a moment of reverie I realised today that every single one of our customers had the letter “W” in their postcodes. We moved customers from W1, W2, W8, NW11 and WD19. So we’d like to thank the West London Massive for supporting us yesterday. Please don’t let this start a gang war!

We’ve done some amazing moves this year. We moved a couple 5 days before they gave birth to their first daughter – I remember because she has the same birthday as me! We moved another couple on the day that their baby was due. The idea being that the due date would be the one day the baby would not arrive. Everything went to plan, but the new parents-to-be were quite tense all day waiting for the first signs of the new arrival.

 We continued our regular work of moving, storing and archiving for one of our corporate clients throughout the year. We had 4 office moves that resulted in executives from those companies choosing to move with us also. This year’s most complicated office move required 10 men to take 3 vans’ worth of equipment and files from the 6th floor in Cavendish Square, where city works had nicked our parking spaces to the 6th floor in Trafalgar Square where the entrance is next to one of the busiest bus stops in London. However, our biggest office move this year required 14 men every day for 3 days which resulted in the relocation of over 300 office workstations.

We moved £120 000 worth  of artwork in a single move and over the year, we have had to have 7 wooden crates made up to protect various works of art of particular value. In one month, we did four moves for the same individual who was going through a complicated phase in his life where he needed to move his personal things over to a new home in stages because he had to work around his work commitments.

We did moves for 18 individual schools and and charities, including one where we took over 50 bicycles from Mill Hill to Esher. We moved a bridegroom from London to Manchester the day after his Stag night and two days before his wedding. We also have a repeat customer who loves us so much that she had us collect her things from Pewsey, near Swindon to take to store while she renovates her home.

So I’d just like to take this opportunity to thank all our customers – the ones who come back to us time and time again and recommend us to all their friends and family and the new ones who will hopefully do the same in the future. I also want to thank our fantastic crews, without which none of this would be possible and also to our office staff, who answer the phones and make all the arrangements, without whom nobody would know what to do.

Thank you all for a fantastic 2010 and we look forward to a great 2011. We plan to go paint-balling next time, so we need to get the sales to cover it. ;-)

A Chinese vase sold for £43 million at Bainbridges Auction House.

A Chinese vase that was found during a house clearance was sold for £43 million last night in an auction at Bainbridges. A brother and sister who live in Pinner, were clearing out their parents’ home when they discovered a beautiful porcelain vase with Chinese styling and decorations of fish and flowers. The piece was originally estimated to fetch around £1m, but instead the hammer went down on the largest sum ever paid for a piece of Chinese artwork sold at auction. It is believed that the vase found it’s way to England during the Second Opium War in 1860, when British troops ransacked imperial palaces.

We find that during the summer, the majority of our moves are homes belonging to young families that are either expanding with the birth of new child or are relocating to get into a better schooling catchment zone.

 However, during the autumn and winter months, we find that people get to those jobs that they’ve been holding off during the summer. For our clients, these tend to include house clearances. This is often a very emotional time for people because the need for a clearance usually arises from a family member passing and understandably they will need time to come to terms with the implications of disposing of another’s belongings.

 At Amber Moves we have a lot of experience dealing with these sorts of sensitive situations and can assist with the process without distressing our clients and as we have no emotional attachment to the contents, we can clear the home more efficiently. We have also worked with valuable pieces of artwork and can recognise when an object needs a little more care and attention than usual.

N.B. moved from store to Islington

“Great team, very helpful & friendly and fast! Thanks. Jan was a great help too – much appreciated.”

A.L. moved from Camden to Crouch End

Now, however, there seem to be more properties for sale than people interested in buying them. It seems that banks are being more cautious these days and more selective regarding first time buyers. Potential first time buyers themselves are being more cautious as the fear of unemployment still looms.

Although nationally the average house price has dropped, the area worst hit is Northern Ireland with a decrease of 8%. London, on the other had, has seen an increase of 15%.

The result is that buyers will be able to negotiate a better deal as there is less up-take in the market and landlords who were considering selling will probably continue to let.

K.P. moved from West Hampstead to Highgate

“4 years in store and it’s as good as new.”

R.Z. storage items delivered to Hampstead

“Amber Moves – You’re just the best! You’ve made the refurb much easier.”

D.H. refurbishing house in Mill Hill

“You guys always do a great job for me.”

S.H. moved some items to store from Kensington

“Very helpful – as always.”

L.C. internal move in West Hampstead

“Thank you for a wonderful move! Martin was really switched on and made it all very easy.”

G.dK. moved from Brentford to Chiswick

“I am very grateful for the cheerful and practical help.”

D.H. moved from Highgate to Muswell Hill

“The wonderful men did such a great job.”

M.F. moved from Potters Bar to Staines

“Excellent”

T.S. moved from Regents Park to Kensington

“Professional job. Very good management.”

L.A. moved from Maida Vale to West Hampstead

“This is the second time we have used Amber Moves – the service is excellent. I would definitely recommend to others!”

H.M. moved out of store to Greenwich

“This is the second time we have moved with Amber Moves. We couldn’t recommend Andrew and his team more highly. They are polite, hard-working and totally dependable. Thank you so much!”

N.W. moved from Gerrards Cross to Launton

“5th time we have used Amber moves and we will again. Thank you”

J.T. moved within Hampstead

“A fantastic seamless move! So professional & helpful. Hardly knew they were there – would recommend again.”

A.G. moved from Archway to Bishops Stortford

“Great job, efficient, fast, helpful!”

G.F. moved from West Hampstead to Archway

So in support of great moments in the history of house clearances, here is a clip from ‘Allo ‘Allo.

Viva Le France!

“Friendly & helpful, exceleent service.”

P R, moving within Edgware

“Prompt and rapid. Will use again.”

J T, pack & move to Hampstead

“Fantastic service. very friendly and helpful in every aspect of the move. Many thanks!”

M L, pack & move to Ealing

Andrew and ‘the ladies in the office’ would like to thank our men on the front line who make sure that we receive this fantastic award every month! Thanks guys!