Tips for Moving Across Town: How to Set the Cross Town Wheels in Motion

It seems easy enough to reach any place in town, doesn’t it? There are plenty of transportation options available and you just know which secret passages will take you directly to your destination. Yet, when moving to a new home – even if that new home is just around the corner – it isn’t that easy to reach your new place, at least not with all your belongings in tow.

You may be moving only a few streets away, but you still need to pack all your earthly possessions and find a way to transport them to your hew house or apartment, change your address and transfer utilities, etc. Many of the laborious and time-consuming relocation tasks remain the same, regardless of the distance of your move.

While the amount of work and preparation that goes into organizing a successful local move should not be underestimated, however, some distance-related peculiarities tip the balance in your favor and make the relocation process easier and less stressful. Moving across town will be a piece of cake if you take advantage of these short-distance-move specifics and know how to properly organize your relocation.

Read on to learn the easiest way to move across town.

Make Time Your Ally

While the distance to your new home may be short, the time you will need to organize your move and complete all relocation-related tasks will be about as long as when preparing for a long-distance move – so, you need to start planning your in-town move as early as possible. Make a moving across town checklist (so you know what tasks you need to complete before moving day and don’t miss anything important) and a moving calendar (so you can better organize the time you have until your relocation date) and get down to work without delay.

Visit your new neighborhood frequently to get better acquainted with the area, locate all key places in the vicinity, and get a sense of the community life. If you haven’t found a new home for you and your family yet, view potential properties and choose a place that meets all your needs and preferences (in terms of size, layout, design, available features, price, etc.) and can easily become your dream home.   

Be sure to get the keys to your new house or apartment a couple of weeks before you need to move out of your current home. This will allow you to complete any necessary repairs and renovation projects and clean the place thoroughly before moving in. It will also allow for step-by-step moving.

Once your new home is ready, you can start relocating your belongings – you can pre-pack some of your items (rarely used items, out-of-season items, books, decorations, and everything else you won’t need until moving day) and transport them in your car to your new place. Your new house or apartment won’t be far (since it’s in the same town or city), so you’ll be able to visit it many times before the actual relocation – and take a load of your pre-packed items every time you visit.

This way, many of your smaller items will be moved to your new place ahead of time and things will be much easier and will go much faster on moving day (it will be easy to take the large furniture pieces out of your old home when there are no small items in the way, there will be fewer items to relocate so loading and unloading will take less time – and you’ll need a smaller moving truck, etc.).

Bonus tip: If you have a cat or a dog, it is a good idea to take them with you when going over to your new house or apartment before the move – so your animal friends get familiar with the new place and aren’t so scared when you actually relocate. (See also: Moving with dogs to a new home; Moving with cats to a new home)

Change Your Address and Transfer Utilities

Even if you’re moving just a few streets away, you still need to change your address and forward your mail. Submit a change-of-address request to the US Postal Service and do your best to notify all the people and organizations you have dealings with of your new address.

Do not forget to contact service providers and inform them of your move either – you will want to have electricity, gas, water, and Internet access as soon as you arrive in your new home, so be sure to make the necessary arrangements and transfer the utilities in time. It is also a good idea to check your old place several days after you have moved out and verify that all utilities have been disconnected and everything is fine.

Pack Smartly

Packing is the hardest task you’re going to face when preparing for a local move – so, knowing how to pack for a move across town the right way will be essential for your smooth and successful relocation experience.

Pack only what you need and love

Even if you’re only moving across the street and relocating your belongings will be really easy, there is no point in bringing everything along – sort out your items and decide what is worth taking to your new home. (See also: How to decide what to keep and what to throw away when moving)

Go through your possessions and assess the value (monetary, practical, and sentimental) of every individual item. Get rid of everything you don’t need or don’t like anymore – throw away broken and worn out items, sell items in good condition online or at a garage sale, give some things away to family or friends, donate others to local charities, etc.

Paring down your possessions will save you time, effort, and money:

• You’ll need less packing supplies and a smaller moving vehicle, so your moving expenses will be smaller;
• Packing will take less time and effort;
• Loading and unloading will be faster, so your moving costs will be lower (local movers charge by the hour, so the faster your relocation is completed, the less you’ll pay).

Once you’ve decided which of your items to take along, be sure to create a detailed inventory list of the things you’re moving to your new home – it will double as a packing list, will help you keep track of your belongings, and will serve as a proof of the pre-move condition of your items.

Get the necessary packing supplies

When packing for a move across town, you can do without some specialized packing supplies, but you still need the essentials – moving boxes, packing paper, bubble wrap, etc. Make sure you get quality packing materials for your more delicate and more valuable possessions and see if you can find some cheaper packing supplies for the rest of your belongings:

• Buy new moving boxes for the items that will be relocated by professional movers – specialized moving boxes are strong and come in standard sizes, so they not only provide excellent protection to the items inside them, but are also very easy to stack and arrange in the moving truck. This allows the movers to load and unload the truck very quickly and efficiently, which reduces the final cost of your move;
• Purchase quality wrapping and padding materials (packing paper, bubble wrap, foam sheets, packing peanuts, etc.) for your breakables and valuables – so they survive the relocation intact and unscathed;
• Get plenty of stretch wrap – it will come in very handy for various purposes when moving short distance (See also: The many practical uses of plastic wrap for moving);
• Look for free packing supplies – ask friends and colleagues if they have unneeded packing supplies to give away; ask new-comers in your neighborhood if they have packing materials they want to get rid of; check specialized websites to see if anyone in your area is offering free packing supplies; check local businesses for empty boxes; etc. (See also: Where to get free packing supplies);

• Use packing materials you already have at home – your laundry basket can hold plenty of clothing items and accessories, your bathroom items can go into buckets and bins, books can be arranged in suitcases, toys can be put in bags, etc. If you keep the original boxes that TVs, printers, and other electronic and electrical devices came into, they will make perfect moving boxes. And you can use old blankets, sheets, towels, and clothes as wrapping and padding materials. (See also: Alternative packing materials)

Pack with care

When moving across town, your items won’t travel far and won’t be on the road for a long time. This, however, doesn’t mean that they don’t need protection – if they’re not properly packed, your belongings can be easily damaged during the transportation or the loading/unloading process.

You need to wrap your items in protective materials, reinforce your boxes, provide plenty of cushioning inside them, prevent your belongings from shifting inside the moving containers, seal the cartons tightly, and label them with their contents and the necessary handling instructions.

Be sure not to make the boxes too heavy, pay special attention to fragile items and valuables, and use the safest and most appropriated packing techniques for different kinds of items.

Must-read: Fundamental packing rules for a successful move

Exclusive packing tips for moving across town

• Start packing early, so your rarely used and out-of-season items are ready for moving and you can take them to your new home ahead of time;
• Re-use packing supplies – You can make multiple trips to your new home, so you can use the same packing containers several times – just empty the boxes you have taken to your new place (provided that you have where to store the items, of course), get them back to your old home, and fill them again;
• Transport items in their current “containers” – When moving locally, there is no point in taking small, non-breakable items out of drawers and packing them in boxes – you can simply move the drawers as they’re, with their contents inside. Just make sure you wrap each drawer with plastic wrap to keep the items in place and cover it with a blanket for extra protection during transit;
• Leave clothes on hangers – The easiest way to move hanging clothes short distance is to put them in clean garbage bags (tie the hangers first), then put them on the backseat of your car – for added protection, lay a blanket on the backseat of your car, place your bagged hanging clothes on top of it, and wrap the blanket over the garments. When you get to your new home, simply transfer the hanging clothes to your new closet;
• Prepare an essentials box – When moving across town, your items will arrive at your new home on the same day, so having an essentials box isn’t as important as when moving long distance. Yet, it is highly advisable to pack a first-night box (so you have your bathroom and bedtime essentials readily available and don’t need to search for them at the end of the exhausting moving day) and keep your survival kit at hand, even during a local move;
• Label the boxes – Whether you’re moving short distance or long distance, you need to know where you can find what when unpacking. So, be sure to label your boxes with their contents and destination rooms and mark open-first boxes. Do not forget to write any necessary handling instructions in big, bold letters – so your hired movers (or your friends who are helping you move) know which items require extra care;
• Take your cleaning supplies, paints, fuel tanks, and other non-allowable items to your new home – Movers won’t load such hazardous materials on the moving truck for safety reasons, but when moving locally, you can transport them in your car – just make sure you pack them safely, don’t expose them to extreme heat, and handle them with care;

• Take your food with you – You can’t take frozen food and perishable food with you when moving across the country, but you can do so when moving across town. Food items from the fridge or freezer should be moved in a cooler and other food items can be packed in plastic bins or other appropriate containers. Your food should remain in excellent condition even if you’re moving in the summer, as you’ll be traveling only for a short time;
• Move your plants and pets – House plants may not survive a long distance move, but the short journey to your new in-town home won’t be a problem. And taking your pets to your new place will be quite easy when moving across town.

Ensure Moving Help

However simple a move across town may seem to be, you can’t manage on your own – there is too much work to be done. You’re going to need help – you just need to decide whether you prefer the experienced help of cross town movers or the kind help of reliable friends.

DIY cross town move

Provided that you have enough time to complete all the necessary relocation preparations, an in-town move presents the perfect opportunity to perform a self-move – you know the area and you only need to relocate your belongings a few streets away.

So, if you’re up to the challenge, you can rent a moving van and transport your items to your new home without professional help. Just make sure you rent the right size moving truck – it is true that you can make several trips to your new place in one day, but you still have to pay for the gas and pay a mileage fee (not to mention the time that will be wasted for several trips), so you’d want to fit all your belongings in the moving vehicle at once.

Bonus tip: If you managed to transport most of your smaller items to your new home in advance (as described above), you can rent a smaller truck – as there will be fewer items to relocate and they will take up less space (just make sure the vehicle is large enough to accommodate all your furniture).

Even if you can transport your items to your new address yourself though, you can’t do all the loading and unloading on your own – you need someone to help you with the heavy lifting. You can hire moving labor or ask friends for help. The good news is that the same people will be able to help you both load and unload, which is absolutely impossible when moving cross country.

Must-read: How to load a moving truck; How to unload a moving truck

Cross town movers

If you’re pressed for time or prefer not to risk a DIY-move, you can always count on in-town movers – their expert services will save you a lot of time and effort and will guarantee your smooth and successful relocation. The pros have the specialized equipment, rich experience, and technical know-how to pack, load, and unload your belongings in the safest, fastest, and most efficient way possible. Besides, local movers know their way around town like the palm of their hands, so they will ensure safe transportation and timely delivery too – and your possessions will be insured.  

When looking for a cross town mover, be sure to research all the local moving companies in your area very carefully – visit their websites, compare their rates and conditions, verify their licensing and ensuring information, and read moving reviews left by previous customers. Contact the companies that seem to best suit your needs and requirements and request on-site estimates of your local moving cost. Do not look at the final price only – check exactly what it covers and carefully read the movers documentation, so you can choose the best short distance movers for you.

Must-read: The complete guide to hiring local movers

Now that your moving across checklist is complete, you should have quite a good idea about how to organize a move across town. But one essential question remains: How much does it cost to move across town?

Cost to Move Across Town

Your actual in-town moving cost will depend on the size of your household, the type of your belongings, and the movers’ rates (or truck rental rates) in your town. Without a doubt though, the cheapest way to move across town is to perform a self-move.

Costs to consider when moving across town by yourself:

• Moving truck rental – When renting a moving truck for a local move, the rental price will be based on the size of the vehicle (the typical daily rental rates start at $19.99 for smaller trucks and go up to $79.99 for larger vehicles), the mileage fee (different truck rental companies charge a different fee, but the typical mileage rate is $0.79-$0.99 per mile), and the additional supplies (accessorial moving equipment and packing supplies) you request for your move. You will also be charged an environmental fee and taxes and will have to pay for the fuel required for your trips. All in all, the average cost to rent a moving truck for a local move is between $150 and $300;
• Moving insurance – Insurance coverage will cost you extra $20-$40, depending on the level of protection you want;
• Moving equipment – To successfully perform a DIY move, you’re going to need some specialized moving equipment, such as a dolly and moving pads. You can rent these moving essentials from the truck rental company;
• Packing supplies – as discussed above;
• Rewarding friends who help you move – Good manners dictate that you provide food and beverages to your friends who come to help you relocate and get them small gifts to show your gratitude.

See also: Forgotten costs of moving on your own

If you decide to use professional moving services, the final cost of your move will be slightly higher, but it will be worth it – your cross town move will be safe, effortless, hassle-free, and stress-free.

Costs to consider when hiring cross town movers:

• Movers’ rates – Local movers charge by the hour (about $25-$40 per mover per hour) – so the number of your items and the complexity of the job will define your final moving cost;
• Additional insurance – When using professional moving services, you get basic coverage for free, but it is really minimal ($0.60 per pound per item), so you may want to purchase additional insurance, at least for your more valuable possessions;
• Tips for movers – If you are pleased with your hired movers’ services (and if you found a reliable local moving company to work with, you most probably will be), it is customary to reward the movers. Some snacks and refreshing drinks will also be appreciated, so plan for such small details in advance.

All things taken into consideration, you can perform your local move for as little as $500-$1,500.

Bonus tip: The average cost of moving across town is much lower during the off-season (October to April). Therefore, you can reduce your relocation cost by scheduling your move for a weekday during the autumn or winter months. Booking the services of your chosen cross-town movers well in advance and packing your items yourself will also help you to save on your move. (See also: How to cut moving costs and expenses)

Now that you know the best way to move across town, the entire relocation process should go like clockwork. Throw a housewarming party to celebrate the successful end of your short distance moving adventure (invite not only your old friends, but also your new neighbors), have fun, and enjoy the fresh start in your life.

A cross town move has one tremendous advantage – it provides new opportunities without stealing your old lifestyle from you. You can easily stay in touch with your friends, you can visit your favorite places and enjoy your favorite hobbies – your old world is just an hour or so away. And, at the same time, you have the chance to meet new people, make new friends, and try new experiences. What else can you wish for?