Author Topic: Moving across country for work - dos and don'ts  (Read 3982 times)

Bearblastbeats

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Moving across country for work - dos and don'ts
« on: June 08, 2018, 07:31:06 AM »
Good day fellow people of the MMM community!

I wanted to start a new thread here to get a feel from those who have moved across country, whether for work or pleasure.

I am looking into a new job opportunity that will bring me about 800 miles southbound from home. It will provide me a salary increase of ~$25k annually and no more winters in the great white north.

Please share with me your stories and helpful insight on the dos and donts to moving across country.

Thanks!

bryan995

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Re: Moving across country for work - dos and don'ts
« Reply #1 on: June 08, 2018, 07:40:13 AM »
First make sure that the effective take home will actually be more (or at least equal) to warrant getting out of the snow. Hopefully housing is not 2k more expansive in the new city!

We moved East to west coast. Shipped one car ($900, filled with items) and drove the other (loaded with our most prized / delicate possessions) and then I flew back and forth via virgin America with 10 x 50lb duffels full of other possessions. Virgin charges $25 per bag, up to 10 per person. All of the large stuff we sold locally and rebought again slowly in our new city.

We just simply did not have enough / nice large items to warrant a 4-5k price tag for movers.
I would be weary of the high cost for movers / trucks etc! For us it just wasn’t worth it.

Bearblastbeats

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Re: Moving across country for work - dos and don'ts
« Reply #2 on: June 08, 2018, 07:45:16 AM »
First make sure that the effective take home will actually be more (or at least equal) to warrant getting out of the snow. Hopefully housing is not 2k more expansive in the new city!

We moved East to west coast. Shipped one car ($900, filled with items) and drove the other (loaded with our most prized / delicate possessions) and then I flew back and forth via virgin America with 10 x 50lb duffels full of other possessions. Virgin charges $25 per bag, up to 10 per person. All of the large stuff we sold locally and rebought again slowly in our new city.

We just simply did not have enough / nice large items to warrant a 4-5k price tag for movers.
I would be weary of the high cost for movers / trucks etc! For us it just wasn’t worth it.

Man, that sounds like a lot! How did the flight prices level as apposed to a moving truck?

Luckily, the new company is going front the bill on the moving expenses, and after doing my homework, the new locations COL is ~20% cheaper than my home here in NH.

bryan995

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Re: Moving across country for work - dos and don'ts
« Reply #3 on: June 08, 2018, 07:51:14 AM »
We partake in the credit card churning game, so flights and hotels for the 8 day drive were all free :)
The drive was awesome, we really enjoyed it. But mybe because it was only 1 way :)

My company moved us as well. They offered either an all in 1 plan where they would pay for movers, packing, shipping two cars, 2 months rent in a furnished apartment in the new city + 10k cash. Or 32k cash (grossed up, aka 50k taxed) where would manage the move ourselves.

We took the 32k cash, spent maybe 5-6k (new furniture) and then saved the rest :)
« Last Edit: June 08, 2018, 07:56:08 AM by bryan995 »

Bearblastbeats

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Re: Moving across country for work - dos and don'ts
« Reply #4 on: June 08, 2018, 07:56:28 AM »
We partake in the credit card churning game, so flights and hotels for the 8 day drive were all free :)

My company moved us as well. They offered either an all in 1 plan where they would pay for movers, packing, shipping two cars, 2 months rent in a furnished apartment in the new city etc etc. Or 32k cash (grossed up, aka 50k taxed).

We took the cash, spent maybe 2-3k and then saved the rest :)

!!!!

Smart. My gf and I could get away with selling most of everything and grab a small uhaul for my drums. One of us would probably sell a car but would keep one. I would need it to transport my dogs.

bryan995

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Re: Moving across country for work - dos and don'ts
« Reply #5 on: June 08, 2018, 08:05:17 AM »
Or better yet. Buy a used trailer + hitch for your car now. Load it with stuff for the drive. Then sell both for a 10-20% loss in the new city :). One way uhaul for us was very expensive, > 4K if I recall.
« Last Edit: March 26, 2019, 10:58:12 PM by bryan995 »

acroy

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Re: Moving across country for work - dos and don'ts
« Reply #6 on: June 08, 2018, 08:16:12 AM »
What others mentioned - work your Mustachian muscles. Great opportunity to de-clutter. Get a 'Pod', take your time loading it up and have it moved, then drive yourselves in your 1 car. Cheap, fun, easy. Welcome to the South, it is awesome. It's summertime in the South, the weather is hot, the pool is cool, and the drinks are cold. Life is good.

Unique User

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Re: Moving across country for work - dos and don'ts
« Reply #7 on: June 08, 2018, 08:18:34 AM »
We've moved five times cross country.  The easiest by far was the move done by a relo company and paid for by DH's employer.  We've also done two where we got a lump sum and moved ourselves.  Wrap everything well, splurge for the zip up mattress covers and full couch covers and put things in the uhaul or pod carefully and securely.  We used lots of bungie cords.   Expect that something will be broken or damaged, inevitably something will.  We've had some things damaged, but since most of our furniture is from craigslist it doesn't really matter. 

You can get moving boxes off craigslist, we never paid for any.  Our best place was produce boxes from the grocery store.  Apple boxes smell good and we've never had an issue.  The paper that the moving companies use is really nice - I kept all the boxes and paper from the relo company and we used it again on our last move.  Don't use newspaper, I still have every towel and blanket we've ever had in 25 years of marriage and I use those as well as put breakables in with clothing.  We lived at the beach for 6 years and had a stack of beach towels - they can be wrapped around small pieces of furniture.  Buy a couple rolls of packing tape and the thing that it goes on to tape towels or blankets around furniture.  Mark EVERY SINGLE box with what is in it and what room it goes in.  Makes the unpacking so much easier.  Purge everything you don't think you will need or have not used in a while.   

Eat down everything in the house and freezer, means some weird meals toward the end.   We packed a box of basic kitchen and any condiments left (we LOVE condiments in our house), sheets and towels for each of us, cleaning supplies and clothes for a week in the car.  If you drive a truck this is less necessary, but we did a pod on the last move and it was needed.  The cleaning supplies at hand is necessary - every single house I've moved into was dirty.  Good luck, it's stressful, but I love living in new places!
« Last Edit: June 08, 2018, 08:22:18 AM by Unique User »

Bearblastbeats

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Re: Moving across country for work - dos and don'ts
« Reply #8 on: June 08, 2018, 08:28:51 AM »
@acroy thanks! It's not confirmed yet but it is looking promising.

@Unique User That is some really great information and thank you. I LOLed at the apple boxes. Getting a hitch on my A# sportback woudn't be a bad Idea. My A3 surprisingly has as much cargo room as an SUV and gets 30 ish MPG.

FIRE@50

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Re: Moving across country for work - dos and don'ts
« Reply #9 on: June 08, 2018, 08:29:34 AM »
We partake in the credit card churning game, so flights and hotels for the 8 day drive were all free :)

My company moved us as well. They offered either an all in 1 plan where they would pay for movers, packing, shipping two cars, 2 months rent in a furnished apartment in the new city etc etc. Or 32k cash (grossed up, aka 50k taxed).

We took the cash, spent maybe 2-3k and then saved the rest :)

!!!!

Smart. My gf and I could get away with selling most of everything and grab a small uhaul for my drums. One of us would probably sell a car but would keep one. I would need it to transport my dogs.

I've made a few big moves in my adult life. The only helpful advice that I can think of is don't ever use uhaul. For one of my moves, I had reserved a truck in advance and when I showed up, they said that they didn't have one for me and that reservations aren't really reservations. After calling around for a day or two, we finally found one that was available nearby. It was quite old and the cab had the strong smell of gasoline. We asked someone to look at it and they said it was okay. While driving it to FL, we realized that it wasn't idling correctly and even while literally standing on the brake at red lights, the truck would still try to move forward. Their customer service was terrible. Ever since, I have been more than happy to pay the premium for Penske. Their trucks are so much nicer.

Cassie

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Re: Moving across country for work - dos and don'ts
« Reply #10 on: June 08, 2018, 08:32:53 AM »
We moved a few times cross country with uhaul. We sold some stuff and put the rest in the truck and moved ourselves. We pulled one car and drove the other.

mak1277

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Re: Moving across country for work - dos and don'ts
« Reply #11 on: June 08, 2018, 09:05:21 AM »
If you don't hire movers, I'm guessing you won't get paid cash to move yourself.  When I was relocated, my company paid all expenses but wouldn't have given me cash to do it myself.  You should check.


Noodle

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Re: Moving across country for work - dos and don'ts
« Reply #12 on: June 08, 2018, 09:12:14 AM »
Congrats on the new job! One thing I would suggest is pricing lots of different moving options, even if you don't think that's the way you'll go. I did one move where I discovered that it was not much more expensive to hire a professional moving company (I did my own packing) than to rent a truck, and the savings of wear and tear on my friends and family was totally worth it. I was honest with the moving estimator that I needed to be frugal because I had been laid off and he was able to suggest some ways to save money by being flexible about pick-up times and moving before Memorial Day--it also helped that at both ends a big truck could pull up, so they didn't have to transfer to a smaller truck. I also hired packers for my last cross-country move because I didn't have a lot of notice and I wanted to spend my last couple of weeks in a city I loved seeing friends, going back to favorite places, etc, not stressing about packing. For a minimalist, it was pretty cheap and I will never regret the money I spent (and frankly, they packed better than I did, not a single thing got broken.)

When I move to a new place, the first thing I do is find the library and get a library card. Then I have somewhere to go on a regular basis, and something to do to keep myself occupied during that early period when you don't really know many people.

mschaus

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Re: Moving across country for work - dos and don'ts
« Reply #13 on: June 08, 2018, 12:36:01 PM »
Congrats! Funny, I read your question slightly differently -- I'd say DO: Take the opportunity of a big move and fresh start to rearrange your life to better match your values. Weather (done!), job satisfaction, proximity to outdoors, and commute/distance to normal daily activities like running/walking/biking areas and getting groceries.

MayDay

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Re: Moving across country for work - dos and don'ts
« Reply #14 on: June 08, 2018, 12:47:10 PM »
We have kids and a house o stuff, so we used a pod type service. We used ABF as it was the cheapest option. Load it up on one end,unload it on the other. Drive our cars loaded with last minute and fragile stuff.

The first time we did it I found free boxes and we loaded and unloaded ourselves.

The second time I was working FTright up until the day before the move, and starting the new job right after. We hired crews to load and unload,and bought boxes. Still cheap compared to a full service move and it saved our sanity.

The biggest thing is to clean out and get rid of crap. My husband's boss needed two full size moving vans for his last move. We did it in half a half size trailer.

PepperPeter

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Re: Moving across country for work - dos and don'ts
« Reply #15 on: June 08, 2018, 12:58:12 PM »
Moved cross country a few years ago.  Biggest lesson - 99% of interstate moving companies use 3rd party contractors to actually move your stuff.  Get it IN WRITING who will be responsible for your truck.  They have up to 21 business days to deliver your stuff.  That's basically a month in a new place with no furniture, minimal clothes, no pots and pans... and yes, our truck took exactly 1 month to arrive.  Thankfully we had brought our blowup mattresses in the car.

CalBal

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Re: Moving across country for work - dos and don'ts
« Reply #16 on: June 08, 2018, 01:23:17 PM »
During my last big move from the east coast to the west coast (3000 miles) my company paid for a mover. It was nice because at that point I lived in a 4th story walk-up in NYC and I am not sure how I would have managed it otherwise (both the stairs and the parking situation in New York). I didn't have a car, so I flew. I knew I wouldn't have the majority of my stuff right away so I held back a big suitcase of mostly clothing that flew with me. I flew out in advance of when I was starting, and found an apartment in the first few days, and arranged to borrow an air mattress while I was waiting for my things. The truck was delayed a few days but otherwise nothing was lost or broken. Being able to roll with the punches (eg. the truck delay) was helpful - I know a few people who would have absolutely blown up in that situation. Movers don't do that just to screw with you (and as someone else mentioned, the movers doing the moving at the ends are not usually the ones doing the interstate transport, so no need to take it out on them), so just relax and know it will get there, even if it's a few days late.  Trying to maintain a relaxed attitude was helpful throughout the process - after all, you are starting a new adventure so try to do so with positivity! :)

(If I had to do it again (which I might), depending on how far and how much stuff I keep I might consider using one of the POD companies. Gives you a little more relaxed timeline in the packing up stage. Agree that labeling boxes by room and keeping lists of what is in boxes (I numbered them for my own records and kept separate lists) really helps in the unpacking stage.)

Johnez

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Re: Moving across country for work - dos and don'ts
« Reply #17 on: June 09, 2018, 12:40:41 PM »
Some of these stories sound pretty nuts to me. No offense, but moving by.....airplane sounds incredibly nuts and wasteful. $4000 for a one way UHAUL??? Man I'm used to seeing the $19.99 sign on every dang uhaul around here lol. I realize cross country is a different beast, but sounds expensive.

I'm considering a move to Indiana from California in the future, and have jack squat to spend on moving. I figured get rid of most my crap and uhaul the essentials-is there any options for say a thousand bucks or in the neighborhood (preferably cheaper). Was thinking bout getting a van, stuffing that and hitching a trailer. I guess one benefit of apartment living is there's a built in limit to the amount of stuff one can accumulate heheh.

nick663

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Re: Moving across country for work - dos and don'ts
« Reply #18 on: June 09, 2018, 03:34:38 PM »
Some of these stories sound pretty nuts to me. No offense, but moving by.....airplane sounds incredibly nuts and wasteful. $4000 for a one way UHAUL??? Man I'm used to seeing the $19.99 sign on every dang uhaul around here lol. I realize cross country is a different beast, but sounds expensive.
$19.95 plus mileage and fees.  You're not renting a truck for $20. :)

crxpilot

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Re: Moving across country for work - dos and don'ts
« Reply #19 on: June 09, 2018, 03:51:14 PM »
1.  Get rid of your extra crap.

2.  Pack yourself.......not that hard to do.

3.  Rent a UHaul

4.  Goto movinghelp.com and hire loaders to pack the truck and unloaders at your destination.

5. Lots of cheap cleaning services online to clean up the house or apartment that your leaving.

6.  Oh yeah, gets lots of big ziploc bags for various screw sets (like when you take things apart), loose items etc to put away.

Once I did buy a used box truck and moved myself.  Sold it on the other end and it didnt cost me a dime.

CogentCap

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Re: Moving across country for work - dos and don'ts
« Reply #20 on: June 09, 2018, 06:51:08 PM »
Once I did buy a used box truck and moved myself.  Sold it on the other end and it didnt cost me a dime.

Clever!

TheMCP

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Re: Moving across country for work - dos and don'ts
« Reply #21 on: June 09, 2018, 07:29:16 PM »
Don't buy / build a house until you're sure you want to stay, which is going to take longer to figure out than you think.  You may think you're in paradise for the first 6 months to a year, and especially if the COL is 20% less than where you are, you may start looking around at all the amazing things you can now afford in your new location.  I don't know where you're going obviously, but we moved from the northeast to the mid-south, and while there are certainly upsides to living here, we just don't belong here and could never stay permanently.

I read this exact advice and ignored it 12 or so years ago.  I wish that I hadn't.  Everything worked out fine and I can't say I have "regrets", as the experiences I've had have been extremely valuable... but things probably could have gone more smoothly had I not jumped headfirst into housing commitments after a year.

Sailor Sam

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Re: Moving across country for work - dos and don'ts
« Reply #22 on: June 09, 2018, 08:02:17 PM »
I move cross country every 2-3 years. Military. Here's what I've learned.

1. Take a tour of your house, and consider what you really, truly need as quickly as possible. Pack those items into the same box(es), and label them LAST IN, FIRST OUT. For me, this includes a blanket and pillow, a towel, a plate and really basic kitchen set up, trash bags.

2. If you get professional movers the will break or lose something. Last time it was my uniforms. Do not be me.

3. It's probable that any insurance you have on your household goods does not insure your belongings while they are in the truck. The truck that now holds some 95% of your belongings. Check into moving insurance, and conduct a robust risk assessment re: how you'd feel if 95% of your belongings got boosted from the back of the truck.

4. Bleach your trash cans before putting them on a truck.

5. When unpacking, flatten every single piece of wrapping paper. It's tedious and will probably make you angry. Do it anyway.

SachaFiscal

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Re: Moving across country for work - dos and don'ts
« Reply #23 on: June 10, 2018, 07:28:59 AM »
I’ve moved across the country twice. The first time it was just me so I packed what I could in my car and gave away or sold the rest of my stuff and drove my car across the country. I regret that I didn’t keep some of my musical instruments but I don’t miss any of the furniture I left behind.

The second time I was part of a couple and most of the stuff we had to move was his. We got an ABF pod and filled it up with lots of books, furniture and household items. We used a service to transport the car and took flights to our destination. We were taking a month long international trip so it wasn’t a problem that the pod would take a long time and ABF offered storage options for our stuff so it seemed like a good idea. Also my company offered a moving stipend. If I had to do it over again I would have ditched the furniture and household items, had friends/family ship me the books or get them later when I came to visit, just packed up the car and drove it across again. Then I could have just invested the stipend money. You can get a lot of furniture cheap on Craigslist, so you have to evaluate whether it’s really worth it to move that big couch or bookcase across the country, or just get another used one when you get there. To be honest I would have ditched the dude I was with at the time too. He was probably the most expensive mistake I ever made.

If you are going to go with a moving company read up on moving scams and how to avoid them.

Linea_Norway

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Re: Moving across country for work - dos and don'ts
« Reply #24 on: June 10, 2018, 08:55:41 AM »
We moved to another country, 1000 kms away, when we were 24 and 27. We didn't have so much stuff yet, but enough to fill an apartment. We hired a sea containerwhich was by far the cheapest alternative. We had to pack our own stuff and got 2 hours to put it into the container. Then the container went to sea, unprioritized transport. We drove in MILs car, together with MIL and a friend who would help unpacking. We paid for their journey back and forth. At arrival, we had again 2 hours to unpack the container at the new place. It went quite smoothly. We used a lot of bubble wrapping and carton around the furniture.