We’ve recently conducted some new research. After noticing a growing trend among home movers for leaving gifts for the next people to move into their property, we decided to run a poll to see how many people actually do it.

 

Britons spent on average £22 on gifts for the people moving into their home in 2015. 7 in 10 said they had left a gift for the people moving into their new home.

 

The study of just over 1,000 people who moved house during 2015 found that wine was by far the most popular choice, with over half (55%) of those leaving gifts opting for a nice bottle of something for the new inhabitants to enjoy. Other popular gift choices include;

 

  • Chocolates
  • Flowers
  • Ready meals for the first night
  • A collection of essentials for the first night, including toilet paper, tea bags, milk and other basics.
  • Houseplants

 

A similar number to those who’d left a gift said they’d been the beneficiary of the same generosity, with 68% saying the previous occupiers of a home they’d moved into had left a gift for them.

 

Almost 1 in 5 (19%) say they’d now expect to receive a gift next time they move house.

 

Nice things you did for fellow movers in 2015

 

  • Buy a gift – 72%
  • Leave a card – 66%
  • Prepare useful information such as bus timetables and takeaway menus – 60%
  • Leave behind useful items such as paint, spare wallpaper or tools – 51%
  • Hire a cleaner before moving out – 48%

 

Most generous movers

People moving into property in the Surrey are the most likely to discover a gift from a previous occupier, while those living in the West Midlands are least likely to get a nice surprise.

Movers in London spend the most on gifts, at an average of £26 per household. Movers in the North East spend the least at £18.

 

From cash to sex tapes – the weirdest things people left behind when moving house in 2015

As well leaving traditional housewarming presents, Britain’s movers have also been leaving some more ‘exotic’ offerings.

Ellis King of London reported that the previous occupants of her flat had hidden a copy of the Paris Hilton sextape ‘A night in Paris’ in a makeshift wall in the kitchen, which she found while replacing the tiles.

 

Pauline Johnston and her partner found £300 stuffed behind the bathroom radiator when cleaning their new house in Manchester.

“The place was in need of a good clean when we moved in so I set aside an entire weekend. When a roll of £5 notes dropped out from behind the radiator, it was a very unexpected surprise.”

 

Other unusual ‘gifts’ left by house-movers included;

 

  • A corn on the cob-shaped sex toy found by a property developer in Nottingham
  • An antique dentist chair left behind by a London-based author
  • A letter from a child asking the new owners to take care of her first home.
  • A pair of glasses left in the freezer discovered by the new owners of a house in Glasgow.
  • A detailed history of the property stretching back to the 1800s found by an Internet entrepreneur when she moved into her Kent cottage.
  • An almost brand new washing machine left in the garage of a house in Berkshire, despite it not being mentioned in the contract.

Regan McMillan, Director of Kiwi Movers, believes the trend for leaving gifts is growing.

“It’s something we’ve seen a lot more recently while helping people move. Wine, flowers and cards are quite commonplace now, whereas they weren’t so common maybe five years ago.
It’s impressive to see how generous and thoughtful people can be during what is possibly one of the most stressful events in their lives.”