How Much Does Moving Houses Cost in Melbourne?

Moving house is generally a significant event in one’s life and it often involves careful planning and calculation. If you make a relocation to a new house without understanding and carefully calculating the associated costs, you are likely to be in for rude and unpleasant surprises in the future.

In Melbourne, as with most major cities, the relocation cost can and generally does vary depending on several factors, which include the size of your home, the distance of your move, the services you require, and whether you hire a removalist or do the move yourself.

Even at minimum a local house move within Melbourne even for a one-bedroom apartment generally costs more than $600. Of course, the scale of your move will impact the price of moving significantly; moving out of a one-bedroom apartment is expected to be a lot cheaper than moving out of a double-storied family home.

Difference between three options of relocation are given below:

In DIY move you rent a truck or tempo and move everything yourself, often with the help of family members, friends, and/or relatives. In a full-service move, you hire a professional moving company to pack, load, transport, and unpack your belongings. In a hybrid move, you pack your belongings but hire the services of professional removalists to do the heavy lifting and transport.

Each of these options comes with its apparent and latent associated costs. Let us  take a closer look at their prices and benefits.

DIY Move

The main expense in this case is renting a moving truck. The size of the vehicle, the duration of the rental, and whether you need one-way or round-trip rental are the factors which will influence the cost of hiring a truck for relocation. The costs of a DIY move in Melbourne is briefly described here:

Truck Rental: A day’s cost of renting a small van or truck for a small house move in Melbourne can range anywhere between $200 to $500. Larger trucks for a big house move generally cost anywhere around $500 to $1000 per day.

Fuel Costs: Another additional expense in the DIY method is fuel cost, especially if you are moving a long distance within Melbourne or moving to another city or going interstate.

Insurance: Some truck rental companies operating in Melbourne offer insurance coverage for an additional fee, which generally ranges between $100 and $200 for a given day.

Among the three, DIY moves can be the most cost-effective option and could be beneficial for you if you are on a tight budget. DIY moves generally involve lots of time and hassle, effort, and physical labour. And the risk of damage to your belongings or causing an accident in DIY moves are higher as compared to when a professional removalist company handles your relocation.

Time and convenience have their own price and sometimes that price is more valuable than money. If one realises this one is not likely to go for the DIY option.

In fact, DIY option could be preferred for short distance moves and for international moves , the DIY option, though possible, is not feasible or practical because it needs navigating legal, logistical, and customs procedures which can be very challenging for an individual layperson to handle on his/her own.

Full-service Move

If you hire a full-service removalist then the cost of moving houses in Melbourne is likely to be much higher as compared to what it is in DIY method, but it is likely to ensure a smooth and professional move with minimal effort on your part and with less risk of damage to your belongings. It gives more peace of mind and a sense of safety to your belongings. If you are searching for a removalist Melbourne has a  wide number of options, catering to various budgets. Similarly for a removalist Melbourne can provide a number of exciting opportunities.

Professional removalist companies in Melbourne generally offer comprehensive and professional moving services, including packing, loading, transporting, and unpacking of your belongings.

Some essential aspects of the costs of professional removalist companies in Melbourne are given below:

Hourly Rates: Often removalists in Melbourne charge an hourly rate for small moves where the is small known volume of goods to be moved.  Our preference at Dawson Moving & Storage is to provide you with a fixed price that covers all factors.

Variation in the hourly rate may occur when factors such as difficult access to the property, involvement of extra staff, weekend schedules or larger-than-usual loads come into play.

Time Required: Cost of relocation in a full-service move will also depend on how much time the move takes and also the distance involved. On an average, 3 to 6 hours are needed for a local move within Melbourne, for a small house, and up to 8 hours or more for local moves of larger homes. Most removalists will require a minimum of 2 hours to move the belongings of a small apartment.

Additional Services: Additional services such as packing materials,car relocation and cleaning services are offered by several full-service moving companies, which will increase your cost of moving house in Melbourne.

For a standard full-service housing move within Melbourne, the relocation cost varies greatly depending on the size of your home, time required on the move, the distance involved, the number of movers involved, and additional services provided.

Average Costs of Local House Move in Melbourne

On an average, costs of moving house within Melbourne (local moves) with the help of removalists are within this range:

$600-$1200 for a one-bedroom apartment

$1200-$1500 for a 2-bedroom home

$1500-$2250 for a 3-bedroom home

$2250-$3000 for a 4-bedroom home

It should be kept in mind that many factors affect the price of moving home, such as property access, many stairs, long travel distance from the property to property or property to the depot, a large number of heavy items and higher amounts of furniture or fragile items than usual. Dawson Moving & Storage will be able to provide a precise quote to avoid any unexpected fees at the completion of your move.

Extra services can be provided when you choose an expert moving company in Melbourne. These moving services incur additional fees but can be arranged by your removalists to make your moving experience as stress-free as possible.

Interstate Relocation to Melbourne

If you are moving to Melbourne from another state of Australia other than Victoria, of course the relocation cost is expected to be significantly higher than in the case of local moves within Melbourne, irrespective of the fact that whether it be through DIY, or it is a full-service or a hybrid move.

The cost will be higher because of involvement of longer distance and comparatively complex logistics. The cost of the move will depend on the distance of your earlier home from Melbourne, the size of your new home, and whether you need door-to-door or port-to-port services. Following are some of the other important factors through which interstate relocation to Melbourne would largely depend upon.

Cost Based on Volume: Some interstate removalists also charge based on the volume of goods being transported, which is measured in cubic meters. For such an interstate removalist, relocation of a standard 2-3 bedroom house from Canberra to Melbourne, which generally comes to about 20-30 cubic meters of space, is expected to cost between $3500 and $5000, on an average.

Other Costs: Just like local removalists, interstate removalists too often charge additional fees for services such as packing, insurance, and storage. One can say a full-service interstate move from Melbourne for a 2-3 bedroom house could cost anywhere between $4700 and $9500, on an average.

In conclusion we can say that professional removalists in Melbourne provide a hands-on service to those needing assistance in moving houses. Shifting homes is not something that you will frequently do, so when the time to move to Melbourne does arise, it is best to employ reputable movers to get the job done right. Moving without the help of experts can put you at high risk of physical strain, injury and logistical stress and can also have a greater risk for the damage to your belongings.

The best thing you can do to get a clear idea of how much your move will cost is to contact a handful of local or interstate removalists (as your case may be) in your area for a no-obligation quote.When gathering quotes for your upcoming relocation, you should ensure that you shortlist companies that are AFRA (Australian Furniture Removal Association) affiliated and reputable in the industry.

If you want to get a clear idea of what your Melbourne house move will cost, simply click here for a no obligation quote from Dawson Moving & Storage. Or call (03) 9763 0222.

FAQs

Q: What is the average cost of moving a house in Melbourne?

Ans: In Melbourne, the average cost of a house relocation varies depending on the size of your home, the time spent in relocation and  many other specific requirements.

Q: How much do professional removalists charge per hour in Melbourne?

Ans: In Melbourne, professional removalists generally charge between $220 and $330 per hour, with a minimum booking of 2 hours. These rates are subject to variation based on factors like the number of movers required, day of the week and time of the year.

Q: What factors influence the cost of moving a house in Melbourne?

Ans: In Melbourne, the cost of moving a house depends on several factors such as the size of your old home and the home you are shifting to, the distance between two locations, and the number of movers employed in the relocation. Additional services like packing, unpacking, and specialty items can also add to the costs. Like in other places, in Melbourne too time taken in the move also influences the relocation of the housing’s cost. Timing of the move is also a factor with relocation during weekends and peak seasons often being more expensive.

Q: Are there additional fees beyond the hourly rate for moving services?

Ans: Many additional fees can and do happen during relocation of houses in Melbourne. The very apparent extra charges include the cost of packing,  long carry fees, fees for navigating through steep stairs, and insurance costs. Some removalist companies may also impose surcharges for weekend moves or moves on public holidays.

Q: How can I reduce the cost of my house move in Melbourne?

Ans: To keep the cost of your house move in Melbourne low, it is preferable to do the booking of your relocation on weekdays or during off-peak seasons. You can also do self packing  and unpacking to avoid the charges of extra services like packing or unpacking. Also declutter before the move to eliminate unnecessary belongings, which can reduce the cost of the move.

Q: What is the minimum booking time required by removalists in Melbourne?

Ans: In Melbourne, most of the removalists ask a minimum booking time of 2 hours for house moves.

Q: Do removalists offer packing and unpacking services, and what do they cost?

Ans: Yes, several removalist companies in Melbourne provide packing and unpacking services, but often at an additional cost. These services generally require you to supply your own boxes and packing materials. There are some removalist companies in Melbourne which may offer discounted rates on packing supplies when booked together.

Q: Is insurance included in the moving cost in Melbourne, or is it an extra charge?

Ans: Comprehensive insurance of belongings in transit is generally not included in the standard moving cost charged by the removalist companies in Melbourne. Most removalists in the city provide basic liability insurance covering goods in transit, but this generally has limited coverage and may call for an excess fee if a claim is being made.

For more comprehensive protection, such as full replacement value coverage, one may be required to purchase additional transit insurance, either through the given removalist or through a third-party insurer .

Q: How do weekend and public holiday rates compare to weekday rates for moving?

Ans: In Melbourne, relocation on weekends and public holidays generally incurs higher costs as compared to weekdays.

Q: What should I look for when choosing a removalist company in Melbourne?

Ans: In the process of choosing a removalist company in Melbourne, go for a company with an impressive track record, positive customer reviews and transparent pricing. Also check if they offer adequate insurance coverage and provide additional services like packing and unpacking. Whether they have the proper licenses and equipment for your specific move is also to be ascertained.