Money Saving Moving Tips

Moving is a massive ordeal of packing, planning, coordinating transportation and move-out/move-in dates, and generally juggling several different things at once. It can also get pricey, especially if everything isn’t budgeted carefully. Fortunately, there are ways to cut down the costs of moving, even if choosing the services of a professional mover. Here, we’ll discuss a few.

  1. Budget

The first step to saving money on anything is to have a budget. Keeping track of expenses—and keeping them to a minimum—is much easier if everything to be spent is clearly defined. A budget helps the homeowner be mindful throughout the entire process of moving, including packing, preparation, loading, transporting, unloading, and unpacking.

It helps to write the budget down, perhaps on a spreadsheet that details each of the expenses. This has the added benefit of helping balance things out if it looks like the budget is going over in one area. By looking at the budget plan, it’s easier to find other areas where spending could be cut back a bit.

  1. Time it Right

The most popular days to move are during the weekends. Thus, moving during those times could cost more since the movers will be far busier than at other times of the week. If it’s possible to rearrange the schedule to allow the move to happen during the week, it may be possible to negotiate a better deal with the movers.

In a similar manner, the middle of summer isn’t the most cost-effective either since that’s usually the most popular time to move. Consider moving early in the fall or in the middle of spring. These times are much less busy for professional movers, and thus won’t be as much of a strain on their resources.

  1. Align Schedules

Planning a move is tedious, exhausting work, but it needs to be done. However, people will often focus only on the “get my stuff out of here” part of moving and neglect the “what to do with my stuff once it’s there” part. It’s important to make sure that the new place is ready to accommodate all of the household belongings. If it’s not ready on moving day, storage may need to be added to the budget.

  1. Use Free Boxes

Boxes are central to moving. Boxes can also get pricey. Fortunately, there are plenty of ways to get boxes and other packing materials for cheap or even for free. Some of these include the following:

  • Get boxes from work. This is very easy if you work in a warehouse, but even if you’re employed at an office, printer-paper boxes are still very good for transporting belongings.
  • Search behind stores. They’ll often discard perfectly good boxes that you can use for moving if you’re not opposed to rummaging through them.
  • Save boxes from appliances, particularly larger ones. These can be great for packing large volumes of non-fragile items, such as clothes, bedding, stuffed animals or larger toys.
  • Ask family or friends who have recently moved if they have any boxes left over. Alternatively, you can put a post up on social media asking for boxes.

While bubble wrap is the ideal packing material, if it’s not in the budget, there are other things that can be used instead. Coffee filters are soft and inexpensive, and they don’t rub off on items the way newspaper will. They can be ideal for putting in between dishes. Hand towels are another great idea for wrapping fragile items. They need to be moved anyway, so why not put them to good use in the meantime?

  1. Get Rid of Stuff

Moving is an excellent time to start over fresh by decluttering the home. Take some time to get rid of things that aren’t used anymore. Not only will the new place be less cluttered, but doing this will also save on the amount of weight that needs to be transported. Some choose to have a garage sale to get rid of items and add money to the moving budget.

  1. Choose the Right Mover

Price is not the only factor to go with when choosing a moving service. Quality, dependability, and integrity are paramount for a seamless move. Professional movers who have a solid reputation and have been in the industry for decades are the best bet for preventing losses and ensuring the process goes as smoothly as possible.