Blocks · CR1
Flat and tower moves in Croydon
Croydon has more tall buildings than most English cities, and moving out of one is a negotiation with the building before it is a job for a van. Almost everything that goes wrong on a town-centre move is a permission rather than a piece of furniture.
Ask your managing agent for three things as soon as you have a date: the lift, the bay, and a named contact.
What a block move involves
The three things to ask your building
A goods lift booking, for a window long enough to do the job rather than a token half hour. Buildings routinely offer less time than a move needs, and it is much easier to negotiate that a week out than on the day.
A loading bay or parking arrangement at ground level. In the town centre there is rarely anywhere legal to sit without one, and a van circling is a van not loading.
A named contact who knows you are coming. Concierges change, managing agents forget, and a move that arrives unannounced at a secure building does not start on time.
What decides whether a piece comes out
The lift car, usually — its internal dimensions and, more often overlooked, its door opening. A sofa that fits diagonally inside a car may still not get through the doors.
Then the corridor turns. Long blocks have tight corners at the lift lobby, and a wardrobe that came in before a carpet was fitted does not always come out.
We measure these at survey and tell you plainly if something has to be dismantled or, occasionally, cannot come out at all. That conversation belongs before the move, not at the door.
Newer developments and older blocks
The newer developments around East and West Croydon are generally well set up: proper goods lifts, defined bays, and management that has seen a hundred moves. They just need booking.
Older blocks are more variable. A single passenger lift, no bay, and a service charge regime that is unhappy about marked walls. Those are the ones where protection matters most and where we allow more time.
Flats above shops
Their own category, and common along London Road, Brighton Road and the district high streets. A narrow shared entrance, a staircase that turns, and loading onto a busy street with a short stopping window. Tell us it is above a shop — it changes the crew and the timing.
Flat and tower moves
Questions about flat and tower moves
- 01
How long does the lift need to be booked for?
Longer than the building will first offer. We will tell you what to ask for based on the volume and the floor, and it is worth negotiating that in advance rather than running out mid-move.
- 02
What if there is no goods lift?
Then it is stairs, and it needs crewing for. That is entirely doable and it is a different job from a lift move, so it has to be established at survey.
- 03
Will you protect the communal areas?
Yes, as standard — runners through corridors and blankets in the lift. Marked communal walls are the commonest source of post-move disputes in a block.
- 04
Can you move on a weekend from a managed block?
Often, but many buildings restrict weekend moves or charge for out-of-hours access. Check with your managing agent early; it shapes the whole plan.
- 05
What if the bay is occupied when you arrive?
We deal with it, but it costs time that a booked and confirmed bay would not. It is the main reason we chase the confirmation rather than taking "should be fine" for an answer.
Tell us the district and the floor
The two addresses, what is moving, and what sits between your front door and the road. We read it, ask what the form could not, and come back with a written quote.