Money Saving Moving Tips
Our Bridgetown moving crew is proud to offer 5 star moving services at competitive prices. We know that between application costs, closing fees, and the various other moving expenses, your moving costs can quickly add up. Our movers work quickly while keeping safety in mind to help keep your moving bill down. We want moving to be as cost efficient for our customers as possible, so we assembled a list with some simple moving hacks that may help you save some money.
Plan Ahead. Contact & Schedule Moving Related Appointments
Give yourself plenty of time to plan your move. Waiting until the last minute to pack up your loose items and contact moving companies can make moving day hectic. As soon as you have a date in mind, call your top choice moving companies and compare rates. Try to get on the schedule at least 3 weeks in advance. Securing your moving company will give you peace of mind and allow you to focus on packing.
Check the fine print on the contracts for your monthly home services, such as your utility or cable company. If they won’t prorate your bill, be sure to cancel with plenty of notice so you’re not paying for a full month when you’re not living at the residence. Check if there are any setup costs at your new home and schedule time for any installations needed so there are no surprises.
Be Flexible on Picking Your Move Day
Weekends generally fill up faster for moving companies and often it’s at a higher hourly rate. If you can move in the middle of the week, you will have more options and will save money.
Look for Free Boxes
A few weeks before you begin the packing process to save money and waste less. That gives you plenty of time to peruse craigslist and local grocery and liquor stores. Start saving up old newspapers as well to avoid buying packing paper for your fragile items. The Bridgetown team also has 5 wardrobe boxes for our customers to use during their move at no additional cost.
Think outside of the cardboard box and ask friends if they have reusable plastic totes that you can use and return. There are also companies that have reusable boxes for rent, which can be cheaper than purchasing them.
Organize During Packing
Our crew of experienced movers works hard to make sure move day goes by without a hitch. However, there are things you can do beforehand to expedite the move process to save money. Labeling boxes, getting appliances ready, and having a clear floor plan in mind at the new place will help save time. Check out our tips of things to do before the movers arrive.
Pack Fragile Items Carefully
Avoid unnecessary replacement costs by ensuring everything is packed safely. Haphazardly packing dishes and other fragile belongings at the last minute, increase the chance of breakage. Even the most careful movers can’t guarantee that the boxes won’t jostle in the truck during transit. This makes proper packing and stacking inside the box essential. Check out our blog post on proper packing techniques if you have any questions.
Break Down the Furniture
Our movers are happy to help with basic disassembly and setup of your furniture. However, it will save you more money if everything is ready to go before they get there. Movers charge by the hour, so the extra time they take with your bed frames, desks, and other furniture that needs to be taken apart can add up. Screws and other loose items should be kept in small labeled bags so nothing gets lost in the shuffle.
Purge Unwanted Items
If you have the time, you can pad your pockets by having a garage sale or selling unwanted items online. Downsizing can be great and means fewer items to move.
If you’d rather just donate them, check out this article detailing some great Portland Metro area nonprofits. Make sure to get a receipt, it’s all tax deductible!
If Renting, Take Photos
If you’re a renter, be sure to take photos of the place you are leaving after moving everything out and cleaning. Take photos of your new place before the moving crew has moved anything in. Make sure to save these photos, they could come in handy to saving money later f there is ever a disagreement with your landlord about your deposit.