When you make the decision to make a long distance move, there are many things that are uncertain – what will your new city be like? Should you attempt to move yourself or hire a professional moving company? There are expenses that are obvious when you are planning to move, but it is important to know some of the hidden costs that are easy to overlook.
If you decide you would like to move yourself, just remember, that does not always mean you will be saving money. You will still have to rent a truck, or a few storage containers to be shipped. If you rent a truck you will be responsible for paying for the gas to get you to wherever you are going and you will need to get comfortable driving a large truck on the fly, and through weather that you may not be comfortable in driving. Along with that, you will need to get supplies, such as boxes, tape, rent moving equipment such as dollies and ramps and furniture covers. And then there is the bribing factor. It would be naive to assume that you can move everything in your home by yourself. You will need to enlist the help of family and friends to get everything packed up and loaded onto a truck or into a storage container. Not only that, but when you arrive, unless you are moving somewhere that you have plenty of friends, you will have no one to help you unload and unpack on the other end, so chances are, you will need to hire someone to help, at the very least with the big stuff such as appliances.
Conversely, should you hire a professional moving company, you will be expecting to pay a little more. What you will be saving is time and uncertainty. Since most of us only move so many times in our lives, so we never fully perfect the act, often getting bogged down with tiny details and then forgetting how fragile some things may be and packing them incorrectly. By hiring a professional moving company, you are taking out the guesswork. Professional movers will know exactly how to wrap your valuables and the most efficient way to pack boxes. They will also have all of the necessary packing materials and equipment when it comes to moving china hutches, dressers, washers, dryers and pianos. Then, the company will have professional drivers to get all of your belongings to your new home as quickly and as safely as possible, freeing you up to either fly to your new destination, or perhaps even take a cross country road trip to see all of the sights the United States has to offer. There is also the option to have a moving company not only bring your belongings into your new home, but some companies will unpack your belongings and help you hang items such as televisions or wall art or shelving.
Should you decide to hire a professional moving company, keep in mind that there are certain situations where they will charge you more. It makes sense to purge your life of any unnecessary items such as old furniture or clothing because typically a professional moved will charge you by the weight of the contents of your home along with the distance being traveled, and the time it takes, with an extra charge for expedited shipping. You will also be charged for furniture disassembly and reassembly. And you will also want to purchase moving insurance through your homeowners insurance policy or through the moving company itself.
You also have to option of doing a combination of a self move and hiring professional movers. You can be responsible for packing and unpacking all of your belongings and hire a company to load and unload them, leaving all of the small details to yourself, but allowing a professional company the opportunity to transport all of your belongings.
No matter what option you go with, if you end up driving yourself across the country, there are other things to consider. If you are moving yourself, where will you be stopping to stay overnight, and is there room to park a moving truck? Will your truck be safe parked in a parking lot and unsecured overnight? And if your belongings are with a professional moving company, what is their procedure for securing your belongings if it is a multi day trip?
If you are moving for work, it is worth asking your employer if they would be willing to cover at least some of the costs of a long distance move. If not, you will be responsible for budgeting for gas, overnight stays and multiple meals a day at restaurants. Along with that, you will want to make sure that your vehicle is in good shape to make a long distance trip. Be sure to have an oil change, make sure your tires are not worn, and that your brakes are in good working condition. You will also want to familiarize yourself with the different weather conditions that you may be driving through, and what you should do if you encounter an issue. You will also want to have an emergency fund available just in case something happens, whether it be a blown out tire, or a baseball size piece of hail that pierces your windshield – these are things that will need to be taken care of as they happen.
All in all, you will want to make sure that you have a few thousand dollars saved for your move, regardless of the method you choose, self move or hiring professional movers. If you think that you may want to hire professional movers in Tucson, we would love to sit down with you and talk about more of the specific logistics that are involved in a long distance move, and how our team of local movers in Tucson can fulfill your needs.
