A typical American family moves at least
once or twice. When the time comes to do so, there are options. Choosing the best option is all about evaluating the circumstances and going from there. Suffice it to say that all the options have their pros and cons. They need to be weighed against budget, circumstances, and other factors before a family makes its decision.
In terms of who actually handles the move, you basically have three options:
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- A DIY Move.
- Hire helpers to give you a hand.
- Leave everything to a professional moving company.
Do you have any preferences? Ideally, I would like my next move to be handled entirely by a moving company. But I have had some bad experiences in the past. I don’t know that I would trust professional movers at this point. So the next best option for me is to hire helpers.
The DIY Move
I would be willing to bet that the DIY move is the most popular way to move to a new house. If you have enough friends with pickup trucks and minivans, you are all set in terms of vehicles. Otherwise, you rent a truck for the day. Everybody shows up at your home at the appointed time and the work begins.
Doing things yourself means paying attention to all the details. It means securing things like moving blankets, tie-down straps, and maybe even a ramp and a dolly. Truck rental companies often provide what you need at an extra charge.
One note about tie-down straps: they aren’t all the same.
Rollercam.com makes their cam straps with strong webbing material and secured by a patented cam buckle. I think they are better than ratchet straps because you can more precisely control the force you apply. They are also better than ropes and bungee cords simply because they are more secure.
Hiring a Crew of Helpers
Maybe you have no interest in doing things yourself. Perhaps you don’t have enough friends and family members willing to give you a hand. No worries. Nearly every major and mid-sized city in America has at least a handful of ‘helping hands’ businesses. These are companies that rent out crews for nearly any task.
I have hired crews to help us move on two occasions. Both times the helping hands company sent out two guys with strong backs and plenty of muscles. They did all the heavy lifting while my wife and I handled the boxes. Between the four of us, we were able to complete both moves in under eight hours.
Hiring a Professional Moving Company
Common sense seems to dictate that professional moving companies are your best bet for a job done right. But common sense does not prevail in this particular area. Unfortunately, there are a lot of sketchy moving companies that think nothing of giving less than their best effort to customers. I know from personal experience.
On one particular move, the company I hired never showed up. This was after I had made a sizable deposit and went to great pains to schedule months in advance. Fortunately, my credit card company was willing to reverse the charges for a full refund.
Not all moving companies are bad apples. Some of them are very good. I would only recommend doing plenty of research – including asking for and verifying references – before hiring a moving company. An inability to find a reputable company I could trust would lead me to hiring helpers or just doing everything myself. Have you had a different experience? Do you have a particular preference?
