No matter how you slice it, moving is expensive. That’s why it’s important to find every opportunity you can to save money. Don't automatically assume that hiring movers will be more expensive than moving yourself. While that rental truck looks like a good deal, too many do-it-yourselfers put a lot of sweat into a move, only to realize they've spent more on a U-Haul than they would've on professional movers.
These tips for comparing your options to save some cash should help you make the choice that's best for you at an affordable cost. Remember: Every penny counts!
Set up a personal moving budget
One good way to do just that is to monitor and control your expenses in a way that will let you step up and apply the necessary fix if a task suddenly requires more money for its completion than originally planned.
Based on the typical moving costs, create a home moving budget to help you stay within your limits and lower your moving costs even more. Your newly-created budget will serve as an invaluable moving costs checklist, providing you with valuable information regarding the household moving company expenses (moving cost estimate, additional services, moving insurance - called valuation, extra charges and fees) or the self-moving expenses (truck rental costs, moving equipment, packing supplies, hidden DIY costs).
Equally important when budgeting for a move is to know for sure that you have saved enough money to cover the future moving expenses – failure to do so will turn your upcoming move into a true financial challenge.
Find the moving company with the best value
Your best bet to move house for less money is to use the services of a reasonably-priced moving company. Some moving companies may swear that they have the most affordable relocation services out there, but when you don’t have a good basis for comparison, you just can’t know how true their statement is. So, what you need to do is compare various movers and their cost estimates to pick the one that will best agree with your budget.
Fill out online moving quote requests to get in touch with several professional moving companies.
Request in-house estimates from the movers for accurate price estimation. At the end of the survey, you should be given, or emailed soon thereafter, a written moving cost estimates where the moving services and their charges are listed clearly one by one.
Do a background check before booking. A word of caution: Be suspicious of suspicious estimates. This can be done by asking for references from previous customers, and checking the U.S. Department of Transportation's Safety and Fitness Electronic Records System.
Don't Pay for Boxes
Boxes are the building blocks of moving, which is why moving companies offer them for a cost to you. But, if you are on a tight budget, buying boxes is unnecessary when there are so many ways to get them for free:
- Bring empty boxes from your office or workplace; printer-paper boxes are strong and large enough for most items.
- Ask friends who have recently moved or post a request on your social networks.
- Ask at your local liquor store; boxes strong enough to hold glass bottles of rum or vodka can certainly handle your knickknacks.
Ditch Some (or All) of Your Stuff
Selling or donating some of your belongings can earn you some cash (or a tax deduction) and eliminate extra weight, a metric that some movers use to partly estimate their cost. Use sites such as Poshmark and Mercari. And as many people have discovered while unpacking after a move, you don't actually need everything you think you do. Ready for drastic measures? Sell everything, a particularly appealing idea if you're overwhelmed by all of the tasks associated with moving.
Let U.S. Postal services Move Your Books
Boxes containing books are among the heaviest ones to move. Once you've gone through your personal library and identified books to donate or sell, box up the keepers and send them via Media Mail through the U.S. Postal Service. While they might take a little longer to arrive at their destination, you can't beat the price hence your savings on moving your books may take some of the sting off other expenses.
Pack up your items by yourself
A full-service move is the most expensive option for moving house, so you might want to consider packing your household belongings by yourself – doing a part of the moving process on your own will always be a good way to save on moving costs.
That said, some household items may indeed require professional packing services in order to survive the relocation trip. Such items happen to be the ones that are extremely fragile, exceedingly heavy, exceptionally bulky, or too special to be handled non-professionally.
Moving your home can be manageable and not overly stressful. Victory Van has even more ideas to help you save money while getting your belongings to your new home. Click below to request a free online quote and a relocation consultant will help you with your personal moving budget.
