It doesn’t matter if you’re about to perform a short distance (cross-town) or long distance (cross-country) move – if you have professional packers and movers come to your house to pack your belongings and load them onto the moving truck, then you’re in luck because your relocation will most likely be a problem- and stress-free one. It is a big help indeed – they will quickly and safely pack your stuff and do all the heavy lifting for you, leaving you enough time for other important things, like going over to your favorite neighbors to say goodbye.
However, even though you’ve called in the pros, there are a number of essential tasks related to organizing your upcoming relocation that you need to do before their arrival to make sure your move will be nothing short of a great success.
Here’s exactly what you need to do to best prepare for professional packers and movers:
Know The Moving Price In Advance
Hopefully, you’ll get a good offer that satisfies your moving needs and requirements, and falls within your relocation budget as well.
In order to avoid unpleasant surprises come Moving day, you’re strongly advised to know how much your move will cost before professional movers knock on your door. Make sure you obtain at least 3 in-home moving cost estimates in writing before you decide which reputable moving company to hire. These binding estimates shouldn’t necessarily be considered the final price – your movers may not honor their written estimate if the household belongings to be moved on moving day appear to be more than the originally estimated number.
A written binding estimate should include the weight/cubic feet of your possessions, all the services that you have requested, the rates and the payment method your moving company will accept. Have in mind that if you have opted for additional moving services or if your movers will have to perform them to get the job done, they will request full payment for all these accessorial services upon delivery and before they start unloading and carrying your goods into your new place of residence.
The moving company you have selected for your relocation will be ready to help you move in any way they can. However, due to legal and safety reasons, they won’t move certain household items for you, and therefore you’re going to have to find a way to relocate them yourself or dispose of them the right way.
Your movers won’t relocate hazardous materials of any kind so dispose of them properly before moving day.
Those prohibited items fall into 4 different categories:
Hazardous materials: it is illegal for movers to transport flammable, corrosive or explosive items, such as aerosol cans, weapons and ammunition, gasoline, oils, chemicals, car batteries, cleaning fluids, liquor, paint, etc.
Perishable food: the moving company won’t relocate perishable food (frozen foods, refrigerated foods, fresh foods) because it can go bad and damage your or their property. Make sure you use up your food supplies before you welcome professional packers and movers to your home.
Pets and plants: pets are not allowed inside the moving trailer under no circumstances, so it’s your responsibility to find a way to transport your loved ones to your new home – they can be easily relocated either in your own car or on the plane with you. Before preparing your favorite plants for the road, think about whether they will survive the long trip. If the chances of that happening are slim, the best course of action is to give them to friends, family or neighbors or to donate them to local hospitals, nursing homes or schools.
Valuable items: pack your valuables long before the moving personnel arrive and do not part with your precious items during the stages of the relocation process. Personal documents, cash, bank cards, keys, medicine, photos and expensive electronic devices are only a small part of your irreplaceable possessions of great sentimental value that you should not leave to packers to pack or hand over to movers to move.
Each moving company has their own list of non-allowable items, so it’s a really good idea to request that list way before you start your moving preparations.
If you find it impossible to relocate your precious collection of cactuses, consider giving it to someone who you know will take good care of it.
Every dollar spent on moving a household item that you don’t really need is a dollar wasted. Your upcoming relocation is the ideal opportunity to do something about all the useless stuff in your home – things you have kept for years and yet have never used.
Inspect your home thoroughly and look for forgotten items that will be of no further use for you. You’re expected to make final decisions whether to keep a particular possession or not based on a number of factors, such as current condition, usability, value (monetary and sentimental), etc.
Some people find it extremely hard to say goodbye to their no-longer-needed belongings even if they do realize that both their living space and breathing room have significantly shrunk because of the excessive junk that they own. If you’re one of these dedicated hoarders, just keep repeating to yourself that more stuff to move means more money out of your own pocket.
Once you’ve successfully decluttered your home, you can sell, give away to friends and family, donate to charity, recycle or just throw away all the unneeded items that you have managed to gather up.
Accidents do happen during a move so consider choosing the best level of protection for your belongings.
Understanding your valuation options before the move takes place is important not only for the safety of your possessions but for your peace of mind as well. There are two main types of coverage offered by moving companies.
Released Value: Also known as Basic Limited Liability Protection, this valuation won’t cost you a penny but it can hardly be categorized as protection at all. Why? Because if any of your stuff gets damaged or goes missing during the transportation, it only covers a meager $0.60 per pound per item which almost always is not enough to replace the item. For example, if your brand new 100-pound 50-inch plasma TV gets accidently smashed during the move, you’ll only get a compensatory payment of $60 under Released Value. Fair, right?
Full Value Protection (FVP): Unlike Released Value, Full Value Protection is truly a full-value protection that costs additional money but offers a good level of reimbursement in case of unfortunate damage or loss of any of your property.
Ultimately, it’s your own property and it’s up to you to choose the best level of protection in your case. Thus said, if you do value your possessions enough, then we strongly recommend the Full Value Protection for the items about to be transported.
It’s already moving day and the professional packers you hired have just arrived and geared up into a highly efficient packing mode. Depending on how big your house is and how much stuff you have for packing, the moving crew may require from a few hours to an entire day, or even more to get your household ready for the move.
Don’t forget to show your gratitude if you’re satisfied with how your professional packers and movers have done their job.
Inform them of your expectations: if you have something important you’d like to tell your packers and movers, do so before they begin their respective jobs. Inform them clearly of any special requirements you may have regarding packing, loading or unloading your household items. Also, you should keep the communication with your hired labor open throughout the entire relocation experience.
Be a good host: think of your professional moving crew as your temporary house guests. Unsurprisingly, they have their needs, just like you. You should offer them bottled water and some snacks to keep their energy and satisfaction levels elevated. Also, designate a bathroom they can use, equipped with liquid soap and disposable hand towels.
Offer tips: if you’re truly satisfied with your professional movers’ job, then it’s customary that you reward their efforts by offering proper tips: $10 per person for 4 hours of work or $20 per person for an 8-hour packing and/or moving shift. It’s a good idea to add to the tips if there are too many heavy furniture pieces to lift and move or too narrow corridors and stairs to navigate, etc. Naturally, if you’re NOT happy with the quality of their packing and moving services, you shouldn’t consider tipping them at all.
Undeniably, having experienced packers and movers do the time-consuming and physically hard work is a great advantage, but you’re going to have to prepare well before their arrival to make your move even more efficient. All these preparation tasks – learning the moving costs beforehand, knowing which items are forbidden to be moved and which are not, moving only the household goods that you do need to cut down the moving expenses, protecting your belongings with the right type of valuation and treating your professional packers and movers properly – will result in plenty of saved time, money and nerves.
My sister and her husband and planning on moving across the country after Christmas. So, it is good to know that they should get rid of their junk and stuff they don’t need. It does seem like decluttering would help make moving a long distance will help make the process easier.
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It doesn’t matter if you’re about to perform a short distance (cross-town) or long distance (cross-country) move – if you have professional packers and movers come to your house to pack your belongings and load them onto the moving truck, then you’re in luck because your relocation will most likely be a problem- and stress-free one. It is a big help indeed – they will quickly and safely pack your stuff and do all the heavy lifting for you, leaving you enough time for other important things, like going over to your favorite neighbors to say goodbye.
My sister and her husband and planning on moving across the country after Christmas. So, it is good to know that they should get rid of their junk and stuff they don’t need. It does seem like decluttering would help make moving a long distance will help make the process easier.