Important Things to Do Before Moving to London from Abroad in 2021
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- čas přidán 3. 02. 2021
- Planning to move to London this year? I moved to London from the USA a few years ago and I have a lot of friends who moved here from different countries, so I know how much goes into a big move to London. In this video I give you the important things you need to do before moving to London, both a few months out and the things to do just before hopping on the plane or train. There's a lot to do before you move to London from another country, so this should help 🤓
Other videos to help you with your move to London from abroad:
Costs to Expect When Moving to London: • Major Costs to Expect ...
How to Find a Flat in London: • How to Find a Flat in ...
What does it cost to live in London?: • What Does it Cost to L...
How to Find a Job in London: • How to Find a Job in L...
The Moving to London Checklist is no longer available, sorry!
Moving to London resources mentioned in the video (some links are affiliated)....
SpareRoom Where to Live wizard: www.spareroom.co.uk/flatshare...
Mayor of London Rents Map: www.london.gov.uk/what-we-do/...
Info on Transfer of Residence Relief: www.gov.uk/guidance/transfer-...
Eat Sleep Dream English CZcams channel: / @eatsleepdreamenglish
Papa Teach Me CZcams channel: / papateachme
English with Lucy CZcams channel: / @englishwithlucy
Sign up for Transferwise to send money cheaply to the UK: transferwise.com/invite/u/jes...
Sign up to Xoom to send money cheaply to the UK: www.xoom.com/
Find flats on Rightmove and Zoopla, or rooms on SpareRoom UK
Free London 101 Guide for first-time London visitors: goo.gl/Eh3HP3
Your first 3 days in London, completely planned for you: loveandlondon.com/3-day-london...
Daily London-y stuff on Instagram: / loveandlondon
London resources (airport transfers, SIM cards, etc.): goo.gl/nsZZ64
How to say thanks for the free advice: loveandlondon.com/how-to-say-...
About Love and London:
I'm Jess, I've lived in London for many years, and this channel is a London travel guide for anyone visiting the city that wants to experience it like you live here. Beyond talking about the usual London attractions, I show you some of the cooler things to do in London, that most travel guides don't mention. Watch my videos and you'll feel like you've got a Londoner friend telling you the best kept secrets in the city.
When we moved to London, we booked an accommodation for 3 weeks. Looking back now, I think I should have booked for 4 weeks at least. It was quite stressful checking flats online and do the viewings on a daily basis. Good flats are immediately snatched up back then (not sure now) so when we finally found a place we liked, I had to immediately make an offer to the landlord. It was quite agonizing waiting for their response :D. Luckily, the landlord accepted and we're still living in the same flat 3 years after.
Yeah exactly. Everyone I've spoken to, it took them a month. But probably better to book less and then extend than book four weeks if you only need two!
Timestamps-
A Few Months Out:
0:47 Financial Planning
2:19 House Hunting
4:40 English Skills
5:27 Packing & Shipping
7:54 Setting up bank account
Less Than a month out
8:21 Temporary Accommodation
9:43 UK Sim
10:29 Finances & Documents
11:31 Flat Viewings
12:39 Airport Taxi
13:08 Job Hunting
13:58 Most Important
I love this! When I turn 25, I REALLY want to move London! 😊❤
Thanks Jess. Your vidios are informative and entertaining. It's a breath of fresh air during covid
Thank you so much James, and thank you for taking the time to watch!
Your videos are always insightful. Learnt guosto and giffgaff through your YT before I moved here a few months ago.
Awesome! Thanks so much for commenting Miles :) And thanks for watching!
I always love to see all of you videos.
Thank you Khaled! Appreciate it :)
Thank You for the "Spare Room" idea. Hoping to use it to Holiday let this year.
It's not for holiday lets. If you want an apartment to rent while in London, get an aparthotel. My website LoveandLondon.com will have a new post tomorrow sharing some of the best aparthotels in London :)
Love this video! Very detailed and informative plus love your presentation style and ease of talking. Feels like we are having just a conversation
Thanks Deborah!
So very helpful!! Thank you
You're so welcome! Thanks for watching! If you need more help with moving, check out this section of my shop: shop.loveandlondon.com/collections/moving-to-london
Your videos always make my day better
Thank you Faraz ❤️
once again a very intelligent video. It takes a lot of "engineering" to move to London. Good to see this channel growing all the time
It does, but it's doable! Thanks so much for watching and sticking around :)
Thank you for your tips! I took notes about everything and I decided that I'm gonna stay for a maximum a month in a friends' house and in this meantime I'll have a look on what is available in the area close to my work (Thank God that's in the 5/6 zone)...then I'll get a price more affordable and hopefully some great space for me. Thaaaaaank youuu so much!
That's a GREAT plan!! If you need anymore help I also have a couple of options in my shop: shop.loveandlondon.com/collections/moving-to-london Otherwise, good luck with it all!
Thank you Jess! This video is gold! As it turns out I will be moving to London in May. (Given Covid lets me)
Wooohoo! That's great news! Thanks so much for watching. Good luck with it and be sure to watch the other "moving to London" videos on my channel for more help.
very informative .thanks
Thanks for watching!
Thank you🎉
You’ll have no credit so make sure you have US credit cards that have no foreign currency conversion or ATM fees. It will take awhile to build your credit and even qualify for a high interest rate credit card.
Budget for everything that needs to be plugged into an electrical outlet and you will need to rebuy again. My misc “had to buy again” cost was $7K.
You’ll need to keep your US SIM card so budget for that. Many US financial institutions require a US phone number to send one time passwords to complete online transactions and verify your identity. Change to the lowest mobile plan possible with your US carrier.
If you have a Queen size mattress stock up on sheets before you move otherwise you will have to pay custom fees to ship queen size sheets here. Most BRs are small here so having a Queen size bed might make it difficult to find a flat.
Make sure you file your TOR before you ship your household goods. I was not aware this had to be filed with the UK gov’t and this held up my household goods passing through customs and being delivered. It’s a form that itemizes everything you are bringing into the country.
Thanks for giving an American perspective! Wow, £7k, you must have been rebuying lamps, home stuff and lots of expensive appliances! Some tips for those who are reading this comment (from anywhere, not just US):
- Your new UK bank will give you a debit card so it's ok that you can't get a credit card for a while
- As mentioned in the video, I personally wouldn't recommend shipping big stuff like mattresses, it's better to pair down back at home and pick up things as you need in London. You can get absolutely anything you need here and you don't want to be stuck trying to find a flat just to fit your mattress, or trying to import US sheets when you need new ones! This might be different for people who have companies paying to ship their stuff to their new home, but still can be a headache to deal with.
- Things like phone chargers, laptop chargers, etc from your home country can usually be plugged in to UK outlets using plug adapters so no need to buy new ones. Any electronic that is dual voltage can be plugging in just with a power adapter.
Thanks for watching Sandra!
@@loveandlondon I rewired some lamps, and had to rebuy all new kitchen appliances (Vitamix, coffee grinder, espresso machine, also air purifiers, hair tools, TV, wine fridge, red light therapy machine, it just all adds up so quickly!
I really wanted my own furniture so had everything shipped. It does make flat searching more complicated since most come furnished. I’m having to pay to store the furniture that came with my flat. But I’m really glad I choose to move everything I own with me especially during lockdown.
Such an informative video! I have thought of moving to London twice in last 2-3 years for a couple of job offers. I think I will be ready to make the big move 1-2 years down the line, assuming I can get a similar job offer. Plus I will just wait out this pandemic and hopefully things will streamline next year.
That's great, so glad you found it helpful, and hope you can make it happen down the line :) Thanks for watching Prasun.
Very generous of you Jess to put all this together for folks 👍😊 I had wanted to move to London in my 30s but now I'm 52 and just dont have the energy 😂 I will def plan another trip when feasible. Hope you are well Jess. Cheers ✌
Thanks for watching Kate! Can't wait to have you all (the community) back for a visit.
@@loveandlondon Me too. Can't wait to come back.
Wonderfull information
Thanks for watching Carmen!
We have found quite good house shares and studios on Facebook groups and Gumtree! There's so many options! 😊 I also find that London is super easy to find a job even if you just take 1-2 days to go out and ask around if they're looking for employees. Great video!!
Thanks for watching Daniela! I find Gumtree quite scammy but yes Facebook groups are GREAT to finding house shares!
@@loveandlondon it can be sometimes yes :X I guess you need to be quite careful with it! :)
@@danielazziptrips finding work should be easier as there is over 1m vacancies in the country plus the eu people have to get visas like everyone else these days , good luck and have a great time when you come over , oh remember that the further away from London ( more so the city ) you are the cheaper it is
@@lawrenceglaister4364 hi Lawrence, I have actually been living here since 2015, so luckily for me, I didn't need to get a visit when I started working in London. Still live here and love it - so much that I started doing travel videos around the city and the country! Eheheh
Love this city
me too :)
Right now im just plan on visiting London real soon once the virus is over if i ever meet that special lady in London and i get to know London a little bit better maybe in the future ill probably move to the UK
Great! Thanks for watching Larry.
@@loveandlondon ur welcome Jess
Got a question about my US automobile. I drive a BMW hybrid 5 series, and I wondered if I could import it and drive it over there, even though the steering wheel is on the wrong side, and driving there might be a challenge, and I'm not sure if the charging is the same. Does London have a lot of charging stations and are the connectors the same?
I wouldn't import a car from the US. Not worth the hassle and cost and I don't know if chargers are the same. Having a car in London is costly (like the cost of driving in the center of London is £15 PER DAY), parking etc and you probably won't use it much.
@@loveandlondon Thanks so much for this info! :)
London is beautiful.
it is :)
Do most flats in the uk not have any shops, convinence stores or pharmacies near them? Bc id like a place that is near those things
Yeah most places should be within walking distance of a shop or two at least.
We lived in London for 8 years. Have been away from it for about 10 years and are now planning to move back in within the next year. There’s no city like it, especially if you show up with substantial deposit to buy a flat in central London.
yeah everything's much better when you have loads of cash I guess lol!
Thank you so much for this video ! I am planning on moving to London as soon as the Covid-19 restrictions will be lifted. Do you think 5000 pounds would be enough to survive before finding a job/flat ? Regards
Hey Ron, thanks for watching! It totally depends on your expectactions of your lifestyle. Have a watch of my costs of moving to London video for some help!
Can you provide advice on what documentation you should bring and or required as acceptable forms of identification
I use my passport for things that require official docs and bring around my US drivers license for alcohol purchases (rarely need it though)
How do I get Wi-Fi? Wi-Fi for the new flat when I move in?
Search for a comparison of providers that can service your flat on MoneySupermarket.com
I would like to omg
Many thanks Jess
Regards Gwenn Gomes Goa India
If I am moving to study abroad for about 10months should I get a UK bank account and phone plan? Or would it be better to see if my US carrier has an international plan and plan on using my US banking?
I would get a UK SIM (there's a link for one in the description) but if you aren't going to be working and getting paid, don't set up a bank account, just use a card from a home account that doesn't have foreign currency fees.
Wow Wow Wow
Thanks for watching!
I’m early
Are you part Italian Jess?
Yup!
@@loveandlondon Daje :-) Bellissimo canale BTW
....Got my checklist........I need to find the open- mic places....so I can get discovered ...like Radiohead....
:) Thanks for grabbing it Lonnie!
Never thought I’d hear the words London and less expensive in one sentence 😉
I missed the opportunity to move to London before Brexit so I got a plan B: obtaining an Irish citizenship. So see you there in 2027! :D
Good luck!