How to Avoid Busting Your Moving Budget

By Scott Boone

Image courtesy of Scott's Discount Movers

If you have ever moved before, then you know the logistics involved are only slightly less complicated than rocket science.  That’s because moving a home or business is complicated.  Not only do you have to negotiate the slippery slope of packing up all your stuff, but you have to coordinate the transportation of your family, your belongings and your pets while relying on movers you don’t know from Adam.  Make one wrong move, or rely on the wrong moving company and you could very well find yourself out of time and over budget.  During this week’s blog, I will try to provide you with a map that will help you find your way down the treacherous road of moving without breaking the bank.

Winging it is NOT a Plan

There are three things in life you should never wing:  surgery, your wedding and moving.  How can you stick to your budget if you haven’t written one down?  Aside from the cost of hiring a reputable moving company, there are a myriad of other expenses involved in moving.  Everything from the cost of packing material, to fuel, lodging, daycare, and food needs to be planned for in advance.  Even if the move is from one side of town to the other, you’d be surprised at how quickly the bill can add up, especially if you haven’t got a plan. 

Cutting Costs without Sacrificing Quality

No sooner do you begin the process when you will start spending money.  Everything you own will need to be boxed up.  If you haven’t noticed, packing boxes are expensive.  A typical move can mean shelling out $100 or more for boxes, tape, labels and bubble wrap.  While you can try to beg local shop owners for discarded boxes, or retrofit boxes that you have recently received from online purchases of electronics and wine, the bottom line is most people haven’t got a clue as to the expense involved in acquiring packing material.  More importantly, if you try to cut corners on properly packing your belongings, you can expect to incur breakage which will add to the bottom line.

You also have to contend with discarding the boxes once the move is complete.  That’s why many consumers today have turned to time-sharing.  That’s right, you can now rent boxes, as well as having them delivered to your door and picked up when the move is done. Sporting names like Bungo Box and Rent a Green Box, these firms take some of the stress and waste out of the packing process.  Plus, they will help you get a firm bead on the expenses involved, which makes keeping to your budget easier to accomplish.

Lighten the Load to Fatten Your Wallet

Courtesy Scott's Discount Movers

Before you start the arduous task of packing your belongings let me suggest you lighten the load by selling or donating some of the stuff you really haven’t used in years.  You would be surprised at the windfall you can generate by staging a yard sale a month before your scheduled move.  Not only will this tactic generate funds that will help defer the expense incurred in moving, it will reducing the amount of things you need moved, thus saving you money when hiring a mover.   Since you in all likelihood won’t manage to unload everything you no longer wish to tote around with you during your yard sale, you can also score by donating the remainder to a local charity.  This way both you and the environment will win, since you won’t be forced to pile a lot of flotsam on the curb that will only wind up in the local landfill.

Hire the Right Mover at the Right Price

Here’s where the rubber meets the road, right?  How can you tell if you have the right mover at the right price?  Having been in the business for many years I can’t tell you how many horror stories I have heard from consumers whose belongings were damaged or destroyed, or whose furnishings were held for ransom by unscrupulous moving companies.  If you want to avoid being taken for a ride by a local mover, there are a few rules of the road you need to know.

Movers are only as good as their crew – Before you sign a contract with a moving company, you need to find out a few things about their hiring practices.  Ask them how seasoned their crews are. Does the company hire day laborers to augment their crews or do they only rely on their own staff?  It’s all too common for busy moving companies to overbook their schedule.  This requires them to come up with additional crew that has little or no experience in the moving business.  This is not the company you want moving your family’s most precious possessions.

Speaking of breakage, some moving companies only carry the minimum amount of insurance coverage required by law.  Since uninsured goods that are damaged will only be reimbursed at the rate of 60 cents per pound, you could be out a lot of money if that $3,000 Smart TV gets damaged in the move and the mover has inadequate insurance.  (Also, a moving company that insures your belongings should not charge extra for this coverage.)

Courtesy of Scott's Discount Movers

Never take their word for their reputation – It’s easy to talk the talk and hard to walk the walk. You need to perform your due diligence to check out any potential movers. Sure, the company might have been in business for decades, but that doesn’t mean that their crew has.  More importantly, you want to hear what actual customers say about the company and the crew.  The Internet is the best way to check out any moving company. Simply Google “Company Name Complaints” and see what pops up.  Make sure you scour the company website for testimonial videos.  Written testimonials are all too easy to fake. Also, look for online reviews, noting how many positive and negative reviews the company has. If a company has little or no reviews, this could mean they only recently started their business, or even worse, they may have changed their name hoping to leave a lot of complaints behind.  (You should also ask for and call 3 references from recent customers.)

Don’t Play the Weighting Game - Other underhanded movers will play the Weighting Game by offering you a “Not to Exceed” contract that contains a clause stating the estimate won’t exceed the quoted price UNLESS the weight of your belongings is more than the estimate.  Since a quote from several different movers that base their quote upon weight can differ by several thousand pounds, be careful you don’t fall for this ploy. 

Better to work with a mover that hires out by the hour as opposed to by the pound.  Just make sure that those who work by the hour hustle to and from the truck or you could wind up being hustled by playing the Waiting Game as the crew dawdles to inflate the cost of your move.  (One of the questions you should ask of the three references you request from any mover is how fast did the crew move.)

Cargo Kidnappers - Above all, make sure you beware of any mover whose prices are too good to be true.  This tactic is used by unscrupulous moving companies to lure in a consumer, only to hit them with “added fees” once the truck pulls up to your new location.  Refuse to pay these exorbitant fees and the movers may refuse to unload your truck, or worse yet, they could threaten to drive off with all your belongings.  This tactic can be especially worrisome in interstate moves where your cargo can be moved in stages from your home to a company warehouse before being trucked to its final destination.

Never Assume - With more than 40 million moves taking place across the nation this year, it’s a given that no two moving companies are created equal.  Therefore, your best defense against getting scammed is to do your due diligence online and off.

The Little Things Can Add Up

Courtesy Scott's Discount Movers

Depending upon the distance involved and the size of your family, what seems like a simple little move can soon balloon to a major budget buster.  That’s because most consumers don’t factor in the little things, like the cost incurred to move your family from Point A to Point B.  For instance, if you have young children, you need to shuttle them off to friends, family or daycare until the move is complete.  The same goes with pets.  Have you factored in the amount of food, gas and overnight accommodations it will take to get your family to your new home?  What happens if you break down on the road? If you haven’t factored in these expenses and contingencies, next month’s credit card bill can come as a shocker.

Your best defense to keep from busting your budget during your next move is to do your homework, find a reputable mover and have a written plan that includes contingencies in the case of emergency.  To do any less is to risk sliding off the road of fiscal responsibility.

With over 4,000 moves, Scott's Discount Movers has handled moves of all sizes, including local and cross country. If you are looking to move your home or office, you can depend on Scott's Discount Movers to provide a stress-free relocation.