Moving within UK - how much does it cost?

While the house that DH and I have here in Harrogate is nice enough, the three-story layout is just not working for me.  To that end, we're considering moving when our lease expires.  Does anyone have experience selecting movers here in the UK and about how much should we expect to pay?

If I were in the States, I'd likely just rent a smaller moving truck and see if I could get a couple of daylaborers to help out.  I'm guessing that there's no equivalent process here in the UK (or rather, it's pretty unlikely to be in Harrogate).  And we'd try and do most of it ourselves, except for the couch that needs to go out the second floor (UK:first floor) window and some heavy bedroom pieces that need navigating down a narrow twisty staircase.

Are you talking about a local move or cross country? You should be able to hire a man and van for about £60-70 per hour. Professional movers cost quite lot more, you'd be best to contact a local firm for a quote.

It would be a local, in-town move.   And how does one find "a man and a van?" I think I've heard about "white van men" before, but how does one find one? 

I guess I'm just looking for a ball park estimate.

We moved from Edinburgh to Glasgow and hired a removal firm.  They started loading us up at 9am and we finally got entry into the new house at 4.30pm.  The total cost (bearing in mind they have a 100 mile round trip) was £550 which included all sorts of insurance.  If you were prepared to pay more, they would have packed everything up for us too...I think the quote was around £800 for that.

If it's in the same town I'm guessing the charge would be less.

We have a few quotes but eventually went for Pickfords. 

We did a local move last June- the houses were about 4 miles apart.  My inlaws rented a truck to haul everything ourselves, and total cost was about £150 plus 4-5 hours of time between me, DH, MIL, FIL, and my SIL's boyfriend.  We didn't move any big pieces of furniture like a couch or a bed, though, just our "stuff", our clothes and small end tables and cabinets (oh, and an expandable dining table/chairs as well.)

I got a 'man with van' from Gumtree... 2 guys, 1 transit van - £140 from Edinburgh to Glasgow.

I think I've heard about "white van men" before, but how does one find one? 

Man with van is *not* the same as 'white van man'! 

White van man is just a generic term for a d*ck in a white van.

In answer to the OP's question, it depends on how far you're going and how much stuff you have to move. If you're saying you could do it yourself (except for the couch), you may not need a moving firm. A man with a van should suffice. You could probably get a burly friend to help you with that tricky couch. I used a local moving firm and moved from Pembrokeshire to Cornwall (six-hour drive) with a three-bedroom house full of stuff. Because of the distance, it necessitated them packing me up, then driving part way, then spending the night, then unloading at the other end the next day. It cost me well over £1000 - but there's no way I could have done it on my own or even with the ubiquitious man and van.

But definitely call around and get some quotes. I think I got four of them before settling on the firm I used. It doesn't cost you anything to shop around! 

White van man is just a generic term for a d*ck in a white van.

  Is the man still attached?

Is this another way of saying escort? 

Is the man still attached?

Is this another way of saying escort? 

You know when you're driving around, you always seem to see lots of medium size white vans, invariably dirty, belonging to carpenters, plumbers, builders, whatever, and they always drive badly and inconsiderately, park badly, shout and yell at other drivers, nearly kill cyclists etc? Well, the typical guy driving one is called White Van Man in the UK.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_van_man

Is the man still attached?

Is this another way of saying escort? 

*laughing* that is funny! 

You will probably find ads for local "man and van" services in your local newspaper or try yell.com