Archive for the ‘Domestic Moving’ Category

Saving Money When Moving Your Household Goods

Friday, January 6th, 2012

Movers are all too aware of how costs can pile up when going through a domestic relocation. From trucks to hotels, meals and boxes, tape and time, moving can be a really expensive endeavor. For most people, reducing costs as much as possible is just as important as getting all of their goods to their new home safely. There is one major thing that movers can do to save the most amount of money, and that is planning. Creating a plan allows comparison shopping, which can drastically reduce the costs of things like moving materials and trucks.

Properly creating a moving plan of action requires at least a few months. This will allow time to compare and contrast a large variety of moving companies and obtain quotes from all of them. It also allows time for the gathering of supplies. Things like boxes can usually be obtained for free either from work or when they are discarded by others. The time will also allow you to pounce on sales and get all of your other supplies at the cheapest time possible.

Domestic movers can also save money by consulting with a global relocation service. These kinds of moving companies can arrange the transportation of your household goods in the most cost efficient way possible. Most people outside of the moving industry simply don’t have the knowledge or connections to arrange multiple modes of transportation, which is required for moving to certain remote locations. A relocation service can arrange for door-to-door transportation of all your household goods at prices much more affordable than you would be able to find on your own.

Making Moving Easier for the Kids

Saturday, December 31st, 2011

Moving an entire family with children, whether it be a domestic relocation or an international one, can be a stressful process. How you approach the move with kids will depend on several factors: how many there are, their ages and the living situation both current and future. For very young children, the key is to make sure that they are well attended to during all of the hectic activities that occur during the relocation. For older children, their help can be used to make the move easier overall. Either way, it’s important to use all of the resources at your disposal.

Kids under the age of perhaps six, although this will be a case by case basis, problem will not be very much help in a move. If you are doing all of the work yourself, it’s a good idea to have family or trusted friends watch your young children while you work through the move. During the packing phase, keep essential baby products and favorite toys in an easy to reach location. Better yet, hire a global relocation company to transport your household goods for you so that you have time to stay with your kids.

With older children, it’s a good idea to employ their help in moving their own things and even other items around the house. Giving the task of packing their own rooms to your older children will help them feel like an important part of the process and will enable them to keep track of where their stuff is when everything arrives at your new home. Older children can also help with a lot of the more complicated items like furniture.

How Moving on the Cheap Can Go Wrong

Friday, December 16th, 2011

Everybody wants to save as much money as possible when moving, but there are dangers to going the cheapest route all of the time. One of the easiest ways to get burned is by moving companies that claim to offer the cheapest prices, but end up loading on a bunch of extra costs and fees at the conclusion of the move. Other companies that offer the cheapest prices don’t have the required licensing and insurance or have bad ratings with the Better Business Bureau. When looking to go the cheapest route for a domestic relocation, it’s a good idea to do your diligent research about each company you hire.

When you move, it is often the case that you are trusting almost all of your material possessions to the moving company that you have chosen to hire. That is why it is essential that you hire a relocation service that you can trust. There are a few ways to find out which moving companies are best. The most trusted way is to get recommendations from friends and family who have moved recently. If you don’t have access to those kind of people, online reviews can be helpful. It’s also important that you speak with a representative from the relocation service in order to find out their policies, fees and a general impression of how the company operates. With the proper amount of preparation and research you can not only move cheaply, but with a sense of security as well.

Finding a New Roommate When Moving

Monday, December 12th, 2011

The ideal situation for most people moving into a new house or apartment is to move in with loved ones, family and friends or with people they know. Unfortunately, this isn’t always possible for a variety of reasons ranging from new employment far away to college and a variety of other factors. Finding a roommate to help share the cost of rent and utilities can be a necessary burden, but the process itself can sometimes feel daunting. How you find a roommate will depend upon where and why you moved in the first place.

College students who are planning to move to school will find that there are a lot of options available for finding roommates either in dorms or within the surrounding community. For dorm dwellers, most of the work is done for you. Most schools will let you pick your dorm mate or will set you up with someone no problem. If you are living off campus, many schools have websites and facilities that work to set up students and landlords with rental properties close to campus. This is a great way to make sure that your roommates have something in common with you.

Individuals who have just finished a domestic move to a new state or city may find that they need a roommate but don’t know anybody that is available personally. There are several websites and organizations available to help people who are just in this situation. The thing to remember here is to vet potential roommates as well as possible before officially signing the arrangement. This can be hard to do over the phone or through a website, so it’s a good idea to have one or two meetings in order to find out if you’re going to be compatible with your potential roommate.

Save Money on Your Move to Alaska

Friday, December 9th, 2011

Moving to Alaska is unlike other domestic moves in a variety of ways. First of all, Alaska is thousands of miles away from almost all other points in the continental states. This means that moving to Alaska will involve a lot more travel than your typical domestic move. Alaska is also in a location that is hard to access by any other means than boat or airplane. This makes packing up a moving truck and driving it to your new home in Alaska much more difficult than it would be in other moves.

It is possible to drive a moving truck up to Alaska, but there are much easier options. Driving will require two border crossings, multiple nights of hotel/motel stays, possible bad weather and a host of other issues that can make driving very difficult. A relocation service that has Alaska moving services can help set up a move that will save you money on highly expensive moving trucks and travel expenses. Relocation services can do this by coordinating various modes of transport for your household goods that don’t rely on expensive cross continental highway travel.

Using a relocation service for your Alaska relocation will also free you up personally so that you can travel more comfortably and with less stress than you would by driving a truck across the often harsh Alaska Highway. A global relocation service like Unipack will move your household goods door to door from any location in the U.S. to your new home in Alaska, often at a drastically reduce price than you would find if you tried to move yourself.

Getting Supplies for Your Domestic Move

Wednesday, December 7th, 2011

Anybody who is planning on moving finds out eventually that they don’t have all the supplies they need to go through with their domestic move. The list of needed items can sometimes seem a little expensive: boxes, tape, labels, padding and a variety of other tools used to keeping your stuff safe and secure during a move. Many people choose to go the retail route when getting supplies for their domestic move, such as going to any retail outlet and purchasing brand new supplies at high prices.

Purchasing brand new boxes can be an unnecessary expense. The first thing you should do is find out if it is possible to get boxes from your place of employment. Most companies that do any kind of shipping or receiving will be getting rid of lots of cardboard boxes on a daily basis. Don’t be afraid to go to the shipping department and ask for a few boxes for your move; the shipping people are used to it. You can save lots of money by getting slightly used boxes from work or friends and family that have recently moved.

A long term cheaper option for people who relocate household goods often is to get a collection of plastic bins. Regular cardboard boxes have a life of maybe one or two moves, while good plastic bins are virtually indestructible and can last a very long time. This option may not be great for people planning on moving only once or twice in their lives, but for people who find themselves moving somewhat often the initial investment will payoff in the long run. Plastic bins aren’t even that much more expensive than boxes, and may even be cheaper depending on whether or not they are on sale and where you buy them.

Safety Hazards When Moving

Wednesday, November 30th, 2011

Most jobs done during a move are completely harmless, but occasionally you will have to take on a job that will require heavy lifting or moving that can cause injury if not done correctly. There’s nothing that says you have to take on a job like this, as you can consult with a relocation service to set up movers for you, but if you do decide to take on the job yourself, it’s important to properly observe all safety cautions so that you reduce and chance of getting injured. Moving is already stressful enough as it is. There’s no reason to make it unsafe as well.

Proper lifting techniques start and end with the legs. It’s important to remember that when you bend lift things you should be bending at the knees instead of at the waist. This will ensure that the energy in your body used for lifting comes from the big muscles in your legs instead of the much weaker muscles in the lower back. This technique will provide for much greater lifting power and less risk for injury. You may also want to consider using a lifting belt to help ensure proper technique.

Keeping safe during moving also involves using all the tools available to help make the job easier. These items include, but are certainly not limited to dollies, carts, rubber stoppers and jacks. It also requires the use of assistance from friends or neighbors for heavy items that have the potential to cause serious injury. One of the best ways to eliminate the chance of injury is to leave the work to the professionals. A global relocation service can set it up so that movers can take care of the relocation of your household good all the way from origin to destination.

How to Avoid Moving Scams

Monday, November 28th, 2011

Moving, no matter how far it is, can be a stressful experience for all parties involved. Unfortunately, there are a lot of people in the moving business who take advantage of this and try to scam innocent movers out of lots of money.  The following are some tips on how to avoid scammers and save yourself tons of money and hassle in the long run.

-every legitimate moving company is licensed but not every licensed company is legitimate. You should look beyond just a license to find a good company to trust with your move.

-beware of a company that asks for an initial security deposit. A legitimate moving company will never ask for money upfront.

-always get all of your agreements in writing. Verbal guarantees are useless and will never stand up in court should you encounter a problem.

-an indicator of a potential scam is if the moving company tells you that they don’t need to visit your home to get an accurate estimate. Expect costs to be significantly greater than quoted from these places.

-don’t trust a moving company that doesn’t have an office. Visit the offices and take a look at their trucks. How well everything is maintained will be an indicator of how well your stuff is treated during the move.

-research potential moving companies with the Better Business Bureau. It’s not a guarantee for a reliable company, but it’s a good place to gain more information.

-never do business with a company that accepts only cash, postal/money orders or certified bank checks. It’s a sign that you may be working with a rogue mover.

The Moving Checklist Part Two

Saturday, November 26th, 2011

Our last post was a checklist for moving from six weeks to two weeks out. This time we will go through the steps that will help you with your move all the way up until delivery day.

One Week before Moving Day

  • Ensure that you have enough prescription drugs to last you for at least a month. You don’t know the next time you’ll be able to get some.
  • Begin packing your traveling clothes and fill a suitcase with everything you may need for the trip.

Two Days before Moving

  • Empty the fridge and defrost the freezer
  • If you’ve hired packers, start to clearly label the fragile items
  • Aim to have all the packing done by today if you’re packing yourself
  • Go through everything in the house to make sure nothing gets left behind

Moving Day

  • Go through a final walkthrough of the house and ensure that all lights are off, electricity is off, gas is off, doors and windows are locked.
  • Supervise the movers closely when they arrive
  • Make sure that the  driver has the correct address
  • Read the Order of Service and Bill of Lading carefully before signing.

The Moving Checklist Part One

Thursday, November 24th, 2011

This is part one of our moving checklist guide that will help guide you through the steps of going through with a stress free and painless domestic move. This first part will go through the steps you can take a week or more before the moving trucks arrive at your door.

Eight Weeks before Moving Day

  • Decide whether you are going to do your own packing or hire someone else to do it
  • Arrange to have your kid’s school records transferred
  • Go through all of your stuff and decide what to keep and what to  get rid of

Six Weeks before Moving Day

  • Start going through and consuming all your perishable foods.
  • Create a folder or file with all moving related paperwork inside.
  • Notify gas providers, water service, family, attorneys and anyone else that would need to know that you are moving and give them your new address.
  • Begin packing the least used items in the house, label carefully
  • Arrange for the transfer of your medical records
  • Complete the change of address form through the post office

Two Weeks before Moving

  • Remove any valuables stored in safe deposit boxes
  • Packing should be about 75% complete by this point
  • Obtain large moving labels or clear markings for boxes and containers
  • Notify your employer of your move and any time you may need off if applicable
  • Purchase traveling gear for pets if you need it
  • If you have house plants and are moving out of state, plan to give them to friends or neighbors.