Congratulations! You navigated through the home buying process. Finding a good realtor was tough, knowing exactly what you were looking for was tough, and actually finding homes that fit in your price range was even tougher. After going through offers and counteroffers, you were able to close on the house. Now, how are you going to get everything moved?
Moving Companies
The most convenient way to get things packed up and moved is simply to hire a moving company. If you find the right one, they will even help get all of your boxes packed and transport it for you. There are two major problems with this option though: cost and trust.
First, the cost is definitely going to be much higher than moving yourself. Second, how do you find a company that you can trust with your things, especially your more valuable possessions? The answer is that you can't, which is why this option is off the table for most people.
Rent a Truck
Cheaper than hiring a moving company, renting a truck or trailer offers the space of a hiring a mover at a much lower price. Still, it does cost a pretty penny, especially since you will have to pay for gas on top of the rental fee. Despite the downside though, most people will chose this option because they have control over their items and it is much cheaper than hiring a full moving crew.
The issue this leaves is getting the boxes needed for transportation and getting the items most efficiently packed. The reality is, you can cut your costs by cutting the bulk of your items, and renting a mid-sized truck vs. a full moving truck can make a huge difference after closing on a house. So, where do you begin?
Where to Find Boxes
Buying regular boxes is surprisingly expensive, so to get started on your packing, how can you find the most affordable boxes to get yourself moved out? The first place to start is at your job. Sure, the most convenient situation would be if you worked in a retail chain. They get hundreds or even thousands of boxes running through their stores in a week, making it easy to gather the needed supplies. Most people don't work in a retail store though.
Still, even if you work at a small office, there are bound to be some shipments coming in that use large enough boxes. Plan out your move ahead of time, and start gathering up any boxes you can a month or so in advance. Any little bit will help. Next, go to your local grocery store. Ask the manager when they get their shipments and see if you can come by to pick up some boxes. More than likely, they will be happy to oblige, as it will save them the overhead of the time their employees spend using the bailer.
Still, if you can't get free boxes, one of the best places to find low price boxes is actually checking with the company you rented your moving truck from. They will usually sell them much cheaper than the local mailing office or than a large retailer. One of the keys though, is to keep the amount of boxes you need to a minimum, which can be done in a variety of ways.
Creative Packing
In order to optimize your moving space and keep your items organized in the best way possible, it sometimes pays to get a little creative in your packing of items. Here are just a few ideas that can help optimize space and keep your items well organized. First, pack one room at a time; this is an absolute must. Resist the temptation to do bits and pieces of different rooms.
Label each box that you used by the room the items came from. Here's where the fun starts. For rooms where you have a dresser, or a blanket chest, or any other storage type furniture, get creative. Take the china out of your china cabinet and unpack the blanket chest. Rather than worrying about packing them in some crazy fashion, use a single piece of newspaper on each piece of china and wrap the items in your blankets carefully. Pack it all back in there gently, and you just consolidated two items in one. This will save you space and you'll need one less box.
Similar things can be done with the clothes in your bedroom dresser. Take out the drawers and carefully put any breakables from your bedroom in with your clothes. Move the dresser into the moving truck with the drawers, and then go ahead and put the drawers in. Make sure they will not open in transit.
Though there are other ways to make a move easier, hopefully these ideas help stir some creativity up. Getting a new house can be a hassle, so the easier the move, the simpler the transition.
Posted by: Ahmed Muztaba
