Now you know that you are going to be moving. The details might still be blurry - many questions to be answered and dates to be decided. But time is ticking so let’s start!!!
First step: Get moving quotes! This is arguably THE most important part of moving or at least it is the biggest chunk of the work that you should get over and done with quickly. Here are a few key points to consider and figure out before contacting any moving companies:
Where are you moving to? National or international makes a HUGE difference here! Who is paying for the move? If a company pays for your move they will probably have a list of contacts of movers they have worked with and possibly hold an account with – this is what you’re hoping for!! On the down side a company will probably ask you to get at least 3 quotes from different movers which increases your task at hand exponentially… Do they pay for a “full service move”? (BTW no, they do not take over everything and eliminate all of your worries BUT they will do your wrapping, boxing and unpacking [to be exact, they will empty the boxes and stack it all on the floor for your convenience])? Will they pay for vehicle(s) to be moved? Will your belongings have to be stored at your destination or do you already have a new place to receive at?
If you are paying for the move yourself you will probably still want to get a few quotes as these can have quite a range of price. You might want to skip on the full service and pack and unpack yourself. Or at least ask for one quote with full service and one without.
Now is the moment to go down that contact list (or the result page of the search engine of your choice) and send an email or call every contact on that list. AS MANY AS YOU CAN!!! Even though you might just need 3 trust me getting moving associates to respond to you is not as easy as you hoped for… unless (and this is where your key points above come back into play…) you’re moving internationally. They love that. They will reply much quicker! It also depends on the time of the year. Anything between end and beginning of school year is going to be much more of a struggle.
Ask for a quote indicating origin and destination, if it is a personal or corporate move (so who pays), full service or not (so who packs), the size of the home you are currently in, if you have vehicle(s) to be moved and the time frame you are looking at. Now you wait. Eventually you will be contacted and have to repeat it all again. That’s ok - you can do this!! They will schedule a meeting with you to take an inventory of your belongings to estimate your load. Companies use virtual moving survey apps more and more often and I think they are great! It saves you so much time and the hassle of having someone come to your home. You download the app and essentially you are video-showing-off your home and everything you own to a stranger over a Zoom-like app. They record your virtual tour and use it to calculate how heavy you are! Hah! Do not forget your garage, your yard and hide any “personal” items you would prefer to pack yourself!
Once this is done you should have a quote within 48 hours. Compare them carefully! Companies have different ways of compiling the total so make sure you are comparing apples to apples! Watch out and compare the weight you have been estimated. It might fluctuate slightly between the quotes but if you have been underestimated you might end up being charged surplus if you are overestimated you are just simply being overcharged! You should have an idea pretty quickly of which offer is the most attractive and which company you felt best with during this process. If your company is paying for the move they will most likely decide on a mover based on the lowest cost to them but there are ways to steer them towards your favorite… let me know if I need to elaborate!
Make sure you lock in your moving date(s) as soon as possible. Dependent on how much stuff you have and who is packing this could take anywhere from a half day to 2 days for packing and loading. Do not forget that there is still some work on your end to prepare your things before they are being moved and ideally some sort of throwing-out-the-unneeded – so scheduling the moving date like tomorrow is a bad idea!!!!
Puh!! First step done!!! You should feel very proud of yourself right now!! No time to gloat though there is much more ahead of you – stay tuned for more!!
P.S. If you are like me and you know that you will be moving again in the future hold on to these good contacts (and make a list of the ones who never got back to you) and cherish them. They can make this easy or really hard. I might share some of my preferred contacts with you if you ask kindly!