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It is interesting how many posts mention dreading decluttering which will in some cases put people off from moving, but conversely how those who have moved and had a major declutter are so positive and wish they'd done so sooner.

Great post Grandmaz showing that happiness is not rooted in "stuff" but in head and heart.

Have you ever put off moving because it seemed too difficult? No. The moves were always necessary.
What do you least look forward to about moving house? Getting my own house in order so it sells. I’m a bit of a cluttered person so it’s a daunting task.
Does the thought of decluttering when moving house fill you with dread, or does it feel like an exciting new start? To be fair it’s the best part of moving and also the hardest. I once said that every 5 years I should pretend I’m moving just to declutter.
What would make you consider moving house in the future? I’ve been in my flat for 9 years. I thought it would be short term , planning to get married and move in the next few years but my partner is now terminally ill, so I guess I will stay put here. I look at little houses but I’m not ready yet. Won’t rule it out completely.

Having just cleared out my father’s flat following his move into a care home, I am inspired to downsize and move to a flat or cottage. The frequent house moves made by him and my stepmother made the house clearing process easy for us. No clutter, minimal furniture and items labelled stating to whom they were bequeathed. A move of home from the one we have inhabited for 40 years would make things simpler and less painful for our children after our eventual passing.

Having recently moved I would not like to go through the stress of it again. Luckily we love our new home and it really feels so much better without all the clutter and stuff accumulated over the last 30 Years.

It is the garden I would not like to leave and the view from the windows. I enjoyed decluttering but would not move again unless we get built around and los our view

The last time I moved was 11 years ago, which was my 3rd move in 40 years. I found the experience absolutely fine. The decluttering before the move was a very positive experience for me - after all why would you keep things you haven't looked at, used or have need for anymore? It definitely gave me a sense of release from lots of "stuff" that was of no use to me any more. Even things with memories of my children when young were a pleasure to give to them instead of carrying them on myself. I know I am not a "keeper" so for me it was easy. I try once a year to have a clear out, so that I will never have to declutter so much if I move again. Let's see!

I was lucky that the move was not too far away, so friends were not left behind. I still live in a house, but if I needed to move to a flat, then I would do so with no hesitation - I think!

I have in recent years downsized to a one bedroomed flat - mostly due to financial necessity, but also in recognition of the fact that I no longer need all the space and 'stuff' that I have occupied and collected over the years of being a wife, mother and parent. I have kept the things which mean the most to me and my family photographs are amongst those precious items, as are a few items from my own parents, long gone...and my day to day necessities. In the seven years since I have downsized I can honestly say that I haven't once missed any of the items which I parted with so anxiously. I have all I need and most of that which I would like. It's quite a liberating thing, to downsize...and yes, I miss my wonderful country views and walking country lanes with the dog...but not dragging in coal and logs in all weathers, from a bunker which was at the end of the garden. I now rent, so no maintenance worries for the property - I am warm, comfortable and fortunate in my neighbours. I have beautiful trees planted within my view and a communal garden large enough for my little dog to wear herself out chasing butterflies and seagulls.(she's never caught either, before I get shot down in flames!) So downsizing, for me was ultimately a positive experience. It's the 'stuff' which often makes us hesitate, I think ...and the fond associations with a particular home or place. But memories travel with you, to wherever you are, in your head and heart. I made the right choice, before choice was forced upon me by age or infirmity.

I have moved house several times. Declutter, then get the removal company to pack. The clutter is only “things”, the memories still remain.

We've been in our house for 38 years. Yes we've been put off moving because it seemed too difficult - and too expensive. A few years ago we started to look at houses nearer to our daughter and her family. The houses were more than we could afford and to be honest not as nice as ours. We have a lovely big garden and we are not overlooked at the back. Some of the houses we looked at had tiny back gardens without the pretty outlook we have. For those reasons, and the dread of packing up 38 years of 'stuff', we decided to stay put and have a new kitchen and bits and bobs.

I have lived in my present home for over 38 years now and often think about down sizing but I can't see what I would gain. I have a 3 bed roomed house so always have a spare room when friends or family stay, the other bedroom is my "office" where I have my computer and all my paperwork (I like to write and do competitions as a hobby). If I downsized I would not have so much space and I also could not live without a garden..it may look like a jungle but it is my jungle and I love sitting out there in the summer.

I was in the forces for 25 years and during that time I was posted 17 times to different units in various parts of the world. I really enjoyed moving as it meant a new experience with some old but mainly new friends. When I left the Army my new job required me to move around and so I did with great relish because this time it also meant promotion and more money as well as my normal experiences. So yes moving can be great. Go for it

We haven't moved for a long time so we have far too much clutter, especially all the stuff from our grown up son who lives here from time to time.
My tip from when we did move was to spend the first night in a hotel. When you get back to the house you are all raring to go.Two bits of advice we were given were: don't underestimate how long it takes to pack up your kitchen things and get your bed sorted out quickly so that when you are fit to drop, it is all ready.

Every time we've moved, we've moved to a bigger house. My husband says if I had Buckingham Palace I'd fill it. Having lost my Mum recently, we're thinking we really ought to get rid of some of our clutter rather than leaving our kids to sort it out after we've gone. No plans to move at the moment - I love our house and setting, although now the kids have moved out and my Mum's gone we're rattling round in it. The move here was so traumatic that I said I'd only leave feet first! The main reason for moving would be when we get to the stage when we can't maintain a huge old property and its grounds on our own any more. Hoping that by that stage kids & families might move back in!

My father, who has just turned 85, has just moved into a retirement development, mum passed 6 years ago, and none of us, his children, live that close to him. He was starting to feel quite lonely, and so we looked at these developments, there was a new one under construction in his village, and within 2 months, they had bought his old home and he moved into the development.

That was about 4 weeks ago and he says he wishes he had done it sooner, most of the apartments are occupied, there is an on site restaurant, lounge and even accommodation for visitors. He says he was starting to get worried in the family home about things going wrong, like the boiler, and being left without heat especially in winter.

His new place has 24 hour management, so always someone on hand should anything happen. He’s already made new friends and making noises about staying there for Xmas with his new pals.
We couldn’t be more pleased.

As an aside, the company has just put the family home up for sale for only 10k more than they bought it from him so not being ripped off either.

We are currently looking at downsizing, we have looked at various options, and have decided to build a bungalow.. At some point in the near future .
The thought of what we will do with all our furniture and all the various things that have accumulated over the years, and are in the attic, fills me with dread . I had hoped my grown up kids would like some of my good bits of furniture, but they don’t want it .
I actually don’t know what I will do with it all in the future . But I cannot throw out perfectly good, and reasonably expensive furniture that was purchased to last . Plus I hate wastefulness .
We looked at retrial purpose built properties, but we felt like it was not for us . We are fortunate enough to have lovely friends, and a lot of family in the area, and we can’t up sticks and start again somewhere else .
I hate the legal costs, and I hate the upheaval, I actually would like a new look in a new house however. That’s the only part of this that excites me .
At the moment we have kicked it all down the road for a while longer, as it’s actually easier to do that, than start this costly and time consuming project .
Who knows, we might not build yet, but unfortunately we will need to move as the house we are currently in has many steps to the door, and stairs internally, which we know we will find hard to negotiate in the future .
Who knows what the next few years will bring . However we do try and have an open mind .

I’ve stayed in the house I moved into when we married 32 years ago.
We haven’t moved since for all the obvious reasons such as the expense, the hassle and dreading downsizing a lifetime’s worth of stuff!
However, we now have a house that is too big and in an area which is slowly sliding so we need to start thinking about downsizing. I dread it!

I moved house into a McCarthy & Stone retirement apartment just over 3 months ago. Moving itself was not too bad as I had quite a lot packed in boxes and had thrown some old dirty broken stuff that I had kept over the years away as I was moving then everything went wrong and my buyers dropped out so rather than unpack I left things like books in boxes. The removal men packed the last items that I had left and I must admit they were very thorough and wrapped everything in paper. They even brought a bit of old carpet that I had forgotten to tell them to leave behind. I moved because I had a bad knee and wanted somewhere with no steps as where I lived even though it was ground floor I either had to go up a flight of steps or park in the bus stop walk down a long path and down some steps. When I was younger I did not think about this but it is when you get older things become more difficult. I will not be moving again as I like where I live and it is not too big but not cramped either.

I am very happy in the house I live in now and it is convenient for everything I need in the future - very close to doctors, shops and library with an active community. I don't really consider moving although the house is big now children have moved out. De-cluttering will be a nightmare as my husband is a hoarder! Starting on that now as it will be a long process with him!
The only incentive to move would be if my children and grandchildren were too far away to visit, so may consider it then. Would maybe consider a retirement flat but would have to have a good "feel" to it to be an option and be near friends and family.

Have you ever put off moving because it seemed too difficult? No - we moved house 6 years ago after I retired. After 40 + years in the same town, we moved further south to be nearer ageing parents and have no regrets. Yes, it was difficult and quite stressful, but also had many benefits.
What do you least look forward to about moving house? All the business with estate agents, offers etc and permanently keeping the house tidy!
Does the thought of decluttering when moving house fill you with dread, or does it feel like an exciting new start? This was one of the positive things about moving.
What would make you consider moving house in the future? If I had to downsize again or if my husband and/or me could no longer manage to live independently. Even then, I might prefer having carers in if possible.
Perhaps you have tips for moving house that you’d like to share? Be organised. Be prepared to get rid of things.

I have moves]d dozens of times. My favourite tip .... When moving into your new house, make up the beds as soon as possible. Then, when you are tired out from unpacking and sorting, your lovely bed is just waiting for you.

AJl123 I have bought and sold in Scotland (10 years ago) and the Home Report isn't worth the paper it's written on. When selling the surveyor who is supposed to assess the value told the estate agent he could put whatever value he wanted in the house. That was after I had given a full run down on what had happened in the area property wise in the past year. The report didn't highlight there was a heating pump system, nor triple glazing. Also, even though the value should be fixed the offers over system still operates. I got well over what the estate agent/surveyor estimated. When purchasing, if you pull out you can be expected to pay for incidental costs but hard for costs to be assessed unless basically the last day. Not a perfect system by any means.

Moved 12 times. 3 ideas
At every stage, consider if this is the right decision.
Prepare carefully sorting slowly - discarding what you know that you don’t need, then reviewing, and reviewing again.
Think about what you enjoy doing and need to do and make sure you don’t have to travel too far to make a meaningful life.

I moved 16 years ago from the Midlands to live by the sea. It is everything I thought it would be and I would never go back.

Moving house is traumatic because of all the work it involves and all the paperwork. As you get older this seems less and less appealing. I wish there was an organisation that would take it all on for you and make it nice and simple.

Our next move will be from our bungalow with large garden to a modern apartment. I am thinking ahead to No Garden, Easy Cleaning, Warm, Easy Transport. Energy levels will be lower and practicalities must be thought through. My main concern would be noisy neighbours.

My tip for moving would be get rid of everything you can before the move. Keep belongings to a minimum.

Move 5 times in 5 years at one stage in our married life and felt like an expert. Then lived in a property for 30 years and when coming to move the decluttering was awful. Needed a skip and countless trips to local recycling centre. The thought of having to reorganise all the utilities at a new address, changing details with all kinds of contacts and of course having to pay the tax on a property plus estate agent and solicitor fees is enough to make me never move again. And of course there will be just as much decluttering to do again.

I moved quite a few times in my married life and every time I have packed and unpacked . It would absolutely fill me with dread to move now . The only good about moving is it does make you have a good clear out . You hold on to things over the years , that we no longer need or use . Although I find decorating has the same effect . I no longer have the excitement about moving that i did when I was younger . I also don't like change since I got older . So I think I will be staying put at the moment .