The agent calls on Monday: the flat has been sold, or the landlord wants it back, and you have until next Monday. The wardrobe is full, the kitchen is a mess and you have no idea where the new place will be. A week is short, but it is enough for a whole-house move if you stop thinking about it as one big job and cut it into days.
This is the order that works, from experience of moves that started late.
Day 1: decide where everything is going
Before touching a box, settle the destination. Without a new address you cannot plan the vehicle, the route or the date. If you do not yet have a place, put the heavy furniture in a relative's compound and a short store arrangement, and move the rest later.
Walk through every room with a notebook and write the big items: beds, wardrobes, sofas, fridge, cooker, generator, anything over two people to lift. This list decides whether you need a truck or a pickup van.
Day 2: cut the load
A short deadline makes cutting easy. Sell, give away or throw out anything you would not buy again. Broken chairs, old mattresses, bags of clothes you have not worn, buckets of cables. Every item you drop is one fewer to wrap, lift and unload.
If you are short of time, do the heavy decisions first: the old bed frame, the bookshelf with a loose side, the second fridge. Downsizing your home before a move has a good way to sort things into four piles.
Day 3: pack what you do not use daily
Start with rooms nobody needs: the guest room, the store room, books, curtains, decorations, suitcases. Use strong boxes and number every one. Keep a master list on your phone. If the packing is scattered, the unpacking will be too. Labelling and numbering boxes explains a simple system.
Day 4: send the request and confirm access
Now you can describe the move properly. Send your request on Sphere with the pickup, drop-off, a full list of large items and the floor numbers. Nearby verified drivers accept or send counter-offers, and you can compare and choose.
Confirm access at both ends today, not on the morning of the move. Ask the gateman or estate office about move-in or move-out passes and any hours. Our guide to getting past the estate gate lists what to ask.
Day 5: take things apart and handle the awkward items
Take beds, wardrobes and tables apart, and bag the screws with a label taped to the furniture. Disconnect the gas cooker and the fridge, and let the freezer defrost. Our posts on taking furniture apart and moving a fridge or freezer show how.
Make a bag of things you need straight away: chargers, medicine, toiletries, bedsheets, a torch and documents. Carry it yourself.
Ready to move?
Request a truck or van on Sphere
Choose your vehicle, propose your price, and verified drivers in Lagos accept or send a counter-offer.
Day 6: pack the last rooms and clean
Pack the kitchen and bathroom last, since you use them every day. Wrap the glass and breakables, and keep a box of plates, cups, a kettle and a few cooking pots outside the main pile. Clean as you go if you are handing the flat back, so the final day is only for loading.
Call the driver and confirm the time. Agree who will help carry, and where the truck will park. If the street is narrow, tell the driver now.
Day 7: move day
Be at the pickup early. Walk the empty rooms with the driver, check drawers and cupboards, and photograph the empty flat if you are handing it over. Load the heaviest furniture first, boxes next, soft items last. The dismantled furniture bag goes on top where you can reach it.
At the new place, stand at the door and direct each item to its room. Do not unpack everything on the first night. Put up the beds, set the kitchen box in the kitchen and sleep. The first night in your new home explains the order.
Where a short notice move goes wrong
Most failures come from the same three things: unlabelled boxes, a wrong guess about the vehicle size and no access arrangement at the new estate. Spend time on those rather than on packing the perfect box.
If a day slips, pull a task forward instead of dropping it. A packed room by Day 3 is worth more than a clean flat on Day 6.
How to do this on Sphere
Open the Sphere app, choose a truck for a full flat or house, or a pickup van for a smaller load. Add the pickup and drop-off, describe the load by room, and say the date is urgent. Propose a price, and nearby verified drivers will accept or send counter-offers. Agree loading and offloading help with the driver before you accept an offer. For the next steps, see house moving in Lagos and truck hire in Lagos.
Frequently asked questions
Is one week enough to move a whole house?
Yes, if you decide the new address early, cut the load and send the request by the middle of the week. A bigger house needs a tighter plan.
What should I do first if I only have three days?
Write the list of large items and send the request. Pack the rooms you do not use, keep the daily rooms for last.
Can I move in one trip?
Often yes with a truck, if you list the large items honestly. Say so in the request so drivers can offer on the right vehicle.
What if I have nowhere to move yet?
Move the heavy furniture to a safe store or a relative's compound and settle the rest after. Do not rush into a lease you have not seen.
Who carries the heavy items?
Agree loading and offloading help with the driver before you accept an offer, and arrange extra hands yourself for stairs.
Request your move
Request a truck or van on Sphere
Choose your vehicle, propose your price, and verified drivers in Lagos accept or send a counter-offer.
Get New Guides
Join Sphere's logistics insights list
New guides on moving homes, offices and business goods, sent to your inbox.
