Consideration was given for this guest article to be reviewed and edited.
Moving causes financial stress – due to the burden of packing, renting trucks and the cost of decorating your new home. If you choose to hire a professional moving service, you’re looking at fees priced in the thousands. If you choose to move yourself, you’re missing time from work when you could be earning more. It’s a big financial stress moving, which is why we put together these money-saving tips.
You’ll want to employ these strategies in order to save big on your next move. Whether you’re relocating to another state or moving just down the road, cutting costs is fiscally responsible. So grab a pen and paper, because your first step is creating a budget.
1. Create a budget factoring in both time and costs. You’ll want to consider the money you already have in savings. How much of this is planned for the move? This number should be at the top of your budget. Then list your needs, the first being the most important and moving down until you’ve factored in everything.
Apply a projected cost to all of these items and budget accordingly. If you’re left with a surplus, hold on to that money in case your actual costs are higher than your projected costs. If you find you’re unable to meet the cost of your move, you may need to eliminate some of your allocations, opting to do more yourself, as opposed to hiring someone.
2. Use a storage facility to temporarily hold items. Self storage is one of the easiest ways to save money when moving. Temporarily, or even permanently, store your items in a low-cost storage unit. Many different sizes are available, so you have a lot of options. Look for local deals and coupons to save even more.
Storage options like Westy Self Storage is available to provide you with low-cost storage options. They’re conveniently located with self storage facilities all over the greater New Jersey area.
3. Don’t overspend on packing materials. Instead, stop by your local grocery store and ask if they have extra boxes you can take. Do this at multiple stores and you’ve successfully collected all the boxes you need to complete your move. Also, ask friends and family members for their moving supplies. You can borrow everything from packing tape to label machines.
4. Don’t overspend on labor. If possible, employ friends and family members to help you pack and move. You should still provide them with food and drink, but that’s a lot cheaper than spending thousands of dollars on professional movers. If you must go the route of a professional mover, make sure to call around for estimates and compare prices. Oftentimes, a moving company will make a lower bid to keep your business. If you need help finding a reliable mover use a Mover Concierge Service. A Mover Concierge will find the right mover for you. Their sound advice and recommendations are free of charge. The Concierge will be with you every step of the process to ensure your move runs smooth. The goal is to provide peace of mind and make your move as stress-free as possible. (link to www.westy.com/mover-concierge-service)
5. Finally, don’t overpay for your rental truck. Again, shopping around is the best policy. Just like a moving company will, a rental truck company may lower their prices just to keep your business. Don’t be afraid to haggle. You’ll also want to ensure you get the right size truck. Don’t overspend on a huge one, when renting a smaller size will save you more.