On Leaving Home During a Pandemic


It's a very weird time to be alive right now and there are many of us going through a number of struggles during such a turbulent moment in history (even if it's still in the making). Something I keep hearing is "we're all in the same storm but in different boats" and that's just soooo true. I have been through my fair share of crappy moments since this pandemic began - although I won't go into details on here - I felt like I needed to get back control of my own life, and somehow, so far, I've managed to do just that.

As part of that control, my boyfriend and I decided we were going to take the plunge after nearly four years and move in together on a permanent basis. Now every important person in our lives know, it just left you guys, my lovely readers! So here it goes...

Leaving home during a pandemic

As you can imagine, leaving home in normal times can be stressful, but also super exciting, so leaving home during a worldwide pandemic is a whole other situation. For a start, the process is very different, whether you're wanting to rent or buy somewhere. As everything is contact-free and "Covid-safe" if you will, it's actually quite a bit harder to push the property door open and keep your foot in it, which is partly why I wanted to write this blog post about it. 

I also want it to act almost like a diary entry - something for me to look back on and read my own thoughts and feelings about the situation as it's happening.

We still have about month left before we move in (from the date stamp on this blog post), so it's very early doors, but we're getting prepped as early as possible, just because you never know what could be around the corner, especially with a second lockdown rearing its ugly head (another reason why we decided to move in together).

We wanted to make sure we had all the furniture we needed, as well as nick-knacks like mugs, glasses, plates etc. There's a lot of stuff you use in your parental home that you don't give a second thought to, especially when it comes to items in the kitchen. 

For example, a colander, cheese grater and bottle opener (because, priorities) weren't really on our radar until we sat down and actually thought about what it was we really needed. So on that basis, we wanted to get the bulk of that stuff bought and packed away ready for the move, and where does all that who-har start? IKEA of course ;)

It all started with an obligatory trip to IKEA & a few Amazon orders...

As you can imagine, IKEA was a right laugh, simply because of how busy it was...alllll the time! The only time we got some peace and quiet was at about 8pm on a weekday. Don't get me wrong, they're working on a limited capacity to allow for social distancing, but it was still a nightmare. I'm not really one of those people who enjoy a trip to IKEA, even at the best of times, so this was more of a necessary evil.

It was obviously a lot more exciting than your average IKEA trip, just because we were buying things and making choices for our new home, but there's only so long I can go before it starts getting tiresome. Anyway, with Little Miss Grumpy Pants here aside, I enjoyed picking our furniture for the house (promise),

Now, not everything came from IKEA, we bought a mattress, TV stand, coffee table etc from elsewhere. Even the utensils came from Amazon, mainly because the deals were pretty good, especially with Prime. Our entire saucepan and frying pan collection is Tefal, pretty much all the utensils are OXO and even my wine glasses and tumblers have come from John Lewis and Debenhams. But IKEA is perfect for jars and a few bog standard glasses (the ones where you wouldn't mind if they got damaged).

Let me know if you want me to do a mini homeware haul, I'll be happy to give you a few recommendations, even down to frying pan protectors, place mats, coasters and cutlery. I might even do a little checklist for you all, just in case you were moving house for the first time and need to make sure you have everything, even the stuff you haven't given a second thought to.

Anyway, the point of this is to talk about how the pandemic has affected things with that regard, and that's pretty much it. It just meant mad dashes to IKEA and ordering mass amounts online, something we wouldn't have ordinarily done, but I think you just have to go with the flow and do things as and when you can, especially with so much uncertainty right now.

Luckily, though, we had already started stashing bits and pieces away, a process we'd been continuing for over a year, so the total outlay has been spread, meaning we had more than we initially thought we did. We had been meaning to move in together for quite some time, hence why we had already started buying bits and bobs and storing them away for when the time came, and I'm SO glad we did. 

We even went out and bought an entire Denby set, which I'm already obsessed with even though I haven't used any of it yet! We also have the most hilarious looking chicken tea cosy from Cath Kidston, I'll have to post a picture at some point because it really is a scream.

The logistics - paperwork, contracts & getting the keys

There's really only one solution, and the only answer I can give is that it's all done online. The modern age has allowed for digital signatures, trusted bank transfers and in-depth video tours. Although it would have been better to go into the office, speak to someone in person and look around the house ourselves, it's just not feasible right now, which is why we've taken the rented option.

Although we're in a position to buy, we didn't feel comfortable making such a huge, important purchase with little advice and not being able to look around the house in real life. In a bid to just be together through this strange time, we decided to rent for now and then buy in a year or so, depending on the situation by then. Of course, I'll keep you posted on that, but in the meantime, if you'd like tips on saving for a house deposit or anything like that, please let me know!

In terms of signing paperwork, including the contracts, you digitally sign it and then send the paperwork back. Basically, it's meant we've had to scan in a lot of documents to send to the estate agent, which isn't ideal, but it's the sign of the times right now. Signing the contract will also be done online, so it takes the pressure off a little bit in the sense that we don't need to keep going into the office at the drop of a hat, especially when we both work full time.

Picking up the keys will also be different, they'll just leave them on the doorstep, then wait for you to collect them, at a distance. They'll know what we look like based on the paperwork we sent over, so that won't be an issue. Actually, I think the process has been made so much easier and stress-free when compared to normal times, simply because everything has gone online. You never know, it could be more like that, paperless, in the future.

So now what?

Now we wait to move in, simple as that! We've done everything we need to do, we just need to sign the contracts and get the keys. It's all a very exciting, important time for us both, a milestone in our relationship to be honest and I for one cannot wait.

It's a step in the direction, but it's also an example of where I've taken control of my own life. We've put our foot down on being apart through this and did something about it. I don't know if you guys were aware, but we spent about two months not seeing each other at all during the first lockdown and we just can't do that again. So in that sense, it's the best decision we've made so far and we're both all for it. The closer it gets, the more ecstatic we feel and I think that speaks volumes :)

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Let me know if you've left home or moved house during this pandemic, how did it go? Are you yet to move house and are feeling a little anxious about it? It would be great to hear your thoughts and experiences. I'll see you again really soon with a brand new blog post!

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