Local relocations are often disregarded when we talk about the difficulties of moving. However, the truth is, short distance moving can be equally complicated as when you are moving long distances. In fact, the only major difference is the distance that you and your items need to cross. And, since the transport of items is on your movers’ shoulders in both cases, you are often left with the same tasks, regardless of the distance. If you are just preparing for a move and you are looking for some short distance moving tips, Master Moving Guide prepared a detailed guide that will help you organize your move properly and with ease. Get in touch and we can help you both with guidelines and with finding proper movers!
Start preparing as soon as you learn about the move
We will start our short distance moving tips with one tip that is often disregarded when it comes to moving preparation. It is something that can truly make a difference between a difficult, exhausting, and chaotic move and an easy and smooth ride that you will enjoy. We are talking about time. Time is a crucial factor during a pre-move process. If you have enough of it, you will be able to do your tasks slowly with much less effort. If you do not have enough time – that is, if you start preparing late, you will have to do much more things at once, which can be exhausting, and more importantly, you will be in danger of forgetting something.
That is why one of the best moving tips that you will find here is to start preparing as soon as you learn about your move. Preferably, it should be at least two months before your moving date. That is the optimum time that you will need to prepare everything without stressing yourself too much.
Prepare a detailed moving plan
Even if you left enough time to prepare yourself for the move, you will still need a plan that you will follow. Unfortunately, preparing a moving plan even when moving locally is not an easy task. Especially if you do not have enough experience with moving. That is why you need to think well and do a lot of research in order to be able to prepare a plan that will be suitable for your specific situation. Of course, you can use this guide as a general reference. But you can also use the internet to read moving FAQs and different moving-related articles that will give you some ideas and help you prepare a strategy that you will follow throughout your move.
Remember, even a local move is a complicated process. If you do not have a plan in front of you the whole time, you are bound to forget about something. And forgetting to do something during a move will certainly backfire at your bank account.
Dealing with your moving inventory is the most important part of the pre-move process
The biggest, most important, and heaviest task during a move is transporting your items to a new location. Therefore, it is a task that you should deal with first. Of course, if you are hiring movers for the job, transportation will be their task. However, there are things that you should do before you hire or even start reading tips for hiring movers. And that is to prepare your moving inventory. Now, you may be thinking that it is too early to start packing. And you are right. But right now you are not packing yet.
Right now your task is not to deal with items that you are planning to move but with items that might be excess in your inventory – items that you are not planning to move. Moving unnecessary items is not only making your relocation more difficult but is also making it more expensive since movers calculate their prices according to the number and weight of items you plan to move.
Remove excess items from your inventory
When you start preparing your moving inventory, your first task is to find items that you do not use regularly, items that will not fit into your new home, items in bad condition, or items that are simply too complicated to maneuver and relocate. As we already mentioned, the weight of your items is one of the key factors when movers start calculating your moving estimate. Keep that in mind when you start choosing items that you want to get rid of. And how you will get rid of them is the next important question in our short distance moving tips. Here are your options.
A yard sale
If you listened to the first of our short distance moving tips and you started the preparation process on time you will have an opportunity to make a good profit on your excess items. And the best way to do it is to organize a yard sale. A yard sale is the most profitable way to remove excess items. However, for this, you need a lot of items and at least a month to prepare.
Selling your items to a retailer
If you do not have enough time to organize a yard sale but still have a large number of items to sell you can visit your local used item retailer. They usually can buy off all things that you have. However, even though this is a fast way to get rid of a large number of items, do not expect to gain the same profit as you would in a yard sale.
Charity donations
Donating to charity is another great way to get rid of excess items. Every city you choose for your new home has a number of charity organizations that are accepting domestic items as a donation. You just need to contact them and they will even come to your place to pick up the stuff. Now, even though there is no profit to be made here, it is still an easy and time-efficient way to get rid of unwanted items.
Renting storage
When you are moving locally, you have another option for the items that you do not want to move to your new home. Especially if you do not want to say goodbye to your stuff. Of course, we are talking about renting storage. Still, since there are many bad storage facilities around the country, make sure that you read some storage tips before you pick the place where you will keep your items.
Calling junk removal service
Finally, if you do not want to sell, donate, store, or deal with your excess items in any way, you can simply call a professional junk removal service. They will come to your place with a truck and deal with your junk on their own. This is a simple and easy way to remove your items but it will cost you, which can be problematic during an expensive moving process.
Complete the process by making a moving inventory list
Once you deal with junk it is time to deal with your remaining items – items that you are planning to transfer to your new home. And no, it is still not the time for packing. You just need to make a moving inventory list – a list containing all the details about items that you are moving locally. The list should contain as much information about your items as possible. This means that you should state your items’ names, dimensions, weights, colors, conditions, and serial numbers. A useful thing to do would be using a moving inventory app. A list with all those details will help your movers provide you with a precise online moving estimate. And you will have an easier time keeping track of your stuff.
Now you have all information that is necessary for making a short distance moving budget
You have now completed some very important tasks. You dealt with your excess items and items that you are planning to move with you. This means that you know how much money you have to invest in your move and you know the structure of your moving inventory –meaning that you will be able to hire a suitable moving company for your move.
You know how much money you have and you know what types of moving services you require? It is time to make a moving budget. Even though most short distance moving tips ignore this part, and you can usually read about this only in interstate moving tips, it is very important. If you have a moving budget prepared the chances of overspending and going broke during a move are much lower.
Fiding reliable short distance movers
Hopefully, you have completed all these tasks on time and you still have at least a month until you hire help to move. If that is the case, it is time to start searching for short distance moving companies. Remember, that all the best moving companies are booked for weeks in advance. Therefore, if you want to have reputable moving assistance during your move, you need to do this at least a month before your relocation date. If that is the case, start by gather information about the most reliable movers in your area.
Find out what services they provide. Once you gather a group of at least five reliable companies, ask for their moving estimates. Once you get their quotes, compare them and pick the one that suits your needs and your budget. Remember that local movers are your partner to a safe relocation. So make sure that you check them thoroughly before you choose.
Choose your moving services smart
Short distance moving companies offer a number of helpful services that you can use to ease your relocation process. You can use movers to help you pack and unpack, disassemble and reassemble your furniture, or even move your piano or some other kinds of specific items. If you want, you can hire full moving service, which means that your movers will handle your entire move without you interfering at all. Of course, that can be an expensive choice. However, it is still the best way to move.
If you want you can hire only specific services that you require. Our suggestion is to hire packing services at least. Packing is the most difficult part of the moving process. If you have professionals who will give you a guide to packing for a move or help you execute it altogether, moving locally will be immeasurably easier. That is one of the short distance moving tips that will make the most difference in your move. We promise you that.
Packing on your own for short distance moving
If you decided to pack without the help of short distance moving companies, first you need to prepare suitable packing materials. Use the moving inventory list that you created to calculate the number of required boxes and wraps.
If you can make a definitive estimate, ask your movers to help you. Alternatively, you can find an online moving box calculator that can give you a close answer. Nevertheless, here is what you should prepare:
- Moving boxes of different sizes and shapes. Get standard square boxes, dish packs, wardrobe boxes, mattress boxes, etc.
- Plastic containers with lids for most valuable and delicate items.
- Plastic garbage bags
- Bubble wrap
- Packing paper
- Duct tape
- Labels and markers
While you are packing your items, do not forget to keep a certain order. For example, make sure that you pack boxes with towels, beddings, and other items that you will need on your first day in your new home. You want to be able to unpack one or two boxes once you arrive and that you can shower or go to bed without having to unpack everything you have. When you are reading long distance moving tips, you will often find a guide for packing your bag with essentials. However, since these are short distance moving tips, we will not bother you with that. Once everything is packed all you have to do is wait for your movers to arrive.
Take your short distance moving seriously and prepare well
A local relocation can be as difficult and complicated as a long distance one. The only major difference is that you will have an easier time reaching your destination yourself – as you can use your car and you do not have to bother with chasing airlines and tickets. Hopefully, these short distance moving tips will help you go through the process easily and stress-free. Contact Master Moving Guide to help you find a suitable moving company and prepare to enjoy your move.