It was some time ago, but I’ve moved myself several times. Moving yourself involves a lot of work, but saves a lot of money. Moving yourself involves a lot of time, but saves a lot of money. You get the idea…save a lot of money. Nowadays that’s even more important.

One of the best options is to use one of the self pack moving services in your area. You can get boxes, wrapping paper, “peanuts”, tape and everything else you’ll need to do the packing from them. You do the packing and then let them know when to pick up your things and where to take it to. Not a bad arrangement. You do the “grunt” work, they do the heavy lifting, literally.

You’ll find many choices if you search for “self pack moving companies” In your area. I suggest you contact three and get a description of what they provide, a quote and references you can call. References are very important. Since this business has a low cost of entry, it’s important to be certain the company you choose has a good reputation and has been successful relocating people in your situation.

You can tryservices that do the packing as well as the relocating if you want to compare prices. You’ll still need to be at home when the packers come and will need to monitor their work, so the time you spend on the packing won’t be appreciably different than doing it yourself.

Once you’ve found your relocater and have your supplies in hand, packing can take as long as you’d like. Of course you need to be very careful with dishes and other breakables. I always overdo the protective packing just to be sure…its fairly inexpensive versus breaking an expensive piece of crystal, for example. Pack heavy items on the bottom and be sure to label the boxes “this side up” and/or “fragile” on more than one side. That way if something happens you can at least use that when you negotiate any damage reimbursement from your relocater. It is very important to number your boxes and keep an inventory sheet with the number of the box and a brief description of the contents.

You may need to ship a vehicle too. I’ve used California auto transport companies and a New Jersey auto transport firm with good success. Just like above, you’ll need to get competitive quotes – which you can do via the web now – and check references. The price to move a car varies more than you’d think, but you need to consider how the car is protected as well.

Posted on February 14th, 2009 by admin
Filed under: Fun Stuff