A move of any kind, whether it’s just across town or to another country, takes time, stress, and money.
There’s no getting around it: moves are stressful and costly. For some, hiring professional movers is the right answer whereas, for others, a DIY move is a great way to save money.
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Should I Hire Movers or Do It Myself
To make the right choice, you need to consider many factors.
What is your timeline?
How much time have you got? If you have the time to organize, pack and transport your belongings, you may be able to move. But, if you are on a tight schedule, professional movers are a way to go.
Consider your options
Today, there are more options than ever before when it comes to hiring professional movers. The best part is that hiring outside help doesn’t’ have to be an all-or-nothing approach. You can hire self-pack movers which means you pack and they do the heavy lifting and transport your stuff. You can also rent a movie container that you fill yourself. As long as you don’t mind the heavy lifting, you will only pay for transporting your belongings to your new place. If you are not a fan of packing nor have the time, you can hire professional packers to do that for you. They will treat your belonging with care and protect them with the right materials to ensure they reach their destination safely, but heavy lifting and transport are up to you. The last option is to hire full-service movers to do everything for you, A to Z. Just make sure you shop around and compare prices along with damage coverage policies before hiring a moving company.
Assess your finances
Right next time, money is the most important factor when making this decision. Can you afford movers in the first place?
Assess your physical condition
Moving can be physically demanding. Lifting something incorrectly could result in a painful injury such as a pulled muscle or a back injury.
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How To Plan and Prepare for a Stress-Free Move
Regardless of whether you decided to go at it alone or get help, there are a few things that can make the process far less stressful.
Make a list
As much as you think there’s no way you will forget something, you will unless you write it down. Go room by room and make an inventory of everything you want to take with you. Make sure you declutter and organize beforehand so you don’ end up bringing something you won’t use.
Use colors to make your life easier
Designate a color for each room and add subheadings to each box to specify the objects in it. Needless to say, keep things together such as pictures hooks with picture frames and pictures.
Make a moving day kit
Pack everything you need for the moving day in a separate box so you don’t have to unpack everything to get your toothbrush. Put in some cookies and soda too as you will get hungry from all the work. You should also put cleaning supplies for clean-up jobs of the moving day as things are bound to get messy.
Register your new address
Don’t forget you need to change your address, starting with your documents, voting information, mailing address, credit card info, along with making a PA power switch for your utilities and informing your provider of your new address.
Takeaway
Don’t forget, you can also mix and match and do some things alone while getting help from others. To make the right choice, you have to consider a number of factors because there’s no right or wrong when determining if you should hire professional movers. It all depends on your individual circumstances. If you have the time and energy that’s required of you in a DIY move, you could save quite a bit of money. But if you want to take the stress away and have the financial resources, hiring a helping hand could make all the difference between a stressful and smooth move.
