Best Bang for Buck - In-state Move?

Our move from California was paid by the government as it was Tyler's last military move. We were packed out and unloaded by a moving company. We were done by weight, not by room.

We were ready to go when the movers came. We had already dumped everything we were not going to take with us. We had yard sales and donated for a month before the movers were expected.

We used everything in the freezer we could, what was still there? We gave to our friends and neighbors. Unopened food? We donated to a local food pantry since food is a heavy item. Your move is not far, ours was across country so we knew the food wasn't going to be in a temperature controlled room while it was in transit.

We got rid of a lot of furniture. That's really heavy too. We had planned on buying a new home when we got here. Kinda starting "fresh". We got rid of all the mattresses too. Again, ours was a cross country move, not 4 hours. We were trying to keep our weight down and it was going to be 30 to 45 days from TMO to arrange for our HHGs to be delivered here in Georgia.

We made sure our bed frames were kept together. Tyler and the boys went through each room and disassembled the bed frames. They took pictures and put the screws in a ziploc bag and taped it to the frame of the bed.

We packed what we were going to take with us in the cars for our trip and put those in the cars before the movers arrived.

We photographed our furniture we were taking with us. Photograph all angles so you could see the condition. Any damage? We noted on our inventory list.

We photographed and logged our DVD collection.

We photographed our portraits and expensive art work. We have a few numbered and signed pieces, so we got close ups of those and the certificates of authenticity. We scanned those in and kept the thumb drive with us.
Since we have made many moves, we knew not to label the boxes other than master, kitchen, glass, etc.

Don't wait until the last minute to do everything.

Make a list of what needs to be accomplished daily 4 weeks prior to the move.
If you have the funds, buy plastic bins that are different colors and use a color for each room. If you don't? Colored tape works well.

I can't stress enough how much you need to get rid of anything you haven't use or won't use. It's wasted weight and use of space.

Do have your own inventory list. This will help you keep track of stuff and you can actually go over and ask yourself "do we REALLY need this"? If the answer is no? Donate or sell it. Do NOT keep it.

My best advise? PURGE!! PURGE!!! PURGE!!!

P..

The first thing you do is have multiple yard sales to get rid of the stuff you don't need or no longer want.

Then you ask moving companies to come in and price out taking the BOXES to the truck and unloading in San Antonio.

DO NOT pack ANY valuables or guns. Take them in the car with you.
DO NOT pack anything you are not going to use when you get to your new home.

DO pay for GOOD boxes. You can save a boatload of money by getting boxes from your local grocery store and liquor stores - but your best bet is to get moving boxes. Check your local "nextdoor.com" - I always see free moving boxes listed.

If you are taking appliances? Make sure that is IN THE QUOTE for loading and unloading.

Ensure foodstuffs are packed in smaller boxes and properly marked.
Ensure all boxes are labeled BED 1 - BED 2, etc.
DO NOT list what is in the box. Just BED - KITCHEN - LVG ROOM.

Books should be in smaller boxes and labeled boxes or professional gear.

Use colored tape if you don't want to label rooms. Have a diagram of the new house on a stand for the movers. And the color tape on the door of the room. It works too.

Ensure you have sealable baggies for your bed frames to put the screws and brackets in. Labeled what bed they go to or taped around one of the frames.

TVs should be wrapped in the original box. If you don't have that? Get the quilted blankets. Ensure all the cables are in a sealable baggie (the 2 gallon hefty bags are great).

For your TVs, CD players, etc.? Ensure you have the serial number of each. Take pictures BEFORE you wrap it up and after.

Hope this helps.

I would get pricing options from companies.

You are talking a lot of sweat equity ( nog afraid of that) and possible issues that a pro can manage with less the stress.

I'd make one swift move without multiple trips on the road, etc.

Your time also = money.

I understand saving $$ but you never know with timing and a moving company might have a truck in the area that would like to get to/from Antonio with a loaded truck vs empty truck.

As you know, I run my company of raw materials (plastics) and I use transportation companies all the time ( not moving companies) and many routes are common so I get better pricing if I hire a truck to go either way with a load vs without a load. They want to be loaded!!

Check with local TX movers to see if they have regular routes between San Antonio and Fort Worth for possibly discounted rates.

Renting a uhaul truck and help with loading and unloading was what we did in 2007.
Lighten the load as much as you can - donate, sell, throw out - anything you don't want to take with you.
Our old sofa wasn't worth moving (was close to 17 yrs old and falling apart) - we threw it away and bought new at the new house.
We got moving boxes through Craigs List and Free Cycle - and got rid of them the same way when we unpacked.
Empty out/use up your pantry/fridge/freezer - no point in moving all that - do delivered or take out pizza/subs/etc on both ends of the move until you can restock in your new location and have your kitchen set up.
Move your valuables with you in your own vehicle - jewelry, weapons, house plants, family photo albums, important papers, etc - don't leave those where any moving help can get their hands on them.
Also keep a box with your toothbrush, medications, etc with you.

Do you have a Freecycle group near you? It's a fantastic place to get things like moving boxes. You have to give something away before you can request something, so do take advantage of the change to get rid of some stuff you don't want.

A friend rented one of those PODS and loaded it herself with friends, but she was super organized and had it loaded in a very balanced way. Otherwise, stuff shifts and falls and breaks. But it's economical.

I can't imagine a UHaul is enough for a full household of stuff - I think of it more for grad students. Think it through. I'll bet you have WAY more stuff than you think you have! Really, really look at stuff that is still in the boxes you moved to the current house 10 years ago! Be ruthless!

Friends moved form the neighborhood recently, and one thing she loved about her movers was that they put the fridge on the truck last, which means it was off-loaded first at the other end. She was able to put food in a cooler and quickly plug in the fridge at the new house and get things set up.

Color code boxes on top but also on the side - once they are stacked, you can't see what it says on the top. Have a map/layout of the new house at all entrances and put a sign on each door of the new rooms. You do NOT want to stand there and direct movers/laborers on every single box.

If you pack valuables/breakables, they are not insured. If movers do it, they are. But keep track of things especially if you use a low-end mover. Make sure all mover crews are bonded.

There are a lot of options since you live in such a huge community.

I would rent the truck for 3 days. Get everything packed and organized where heaviest stuff is lined up to be loaded first.

Day 1. Go pick up the truck. Start loading everything. Heavy stuff first, weight needs to be in front of the back axle or it won't touch the ground correctly with the front tires.

Pack up your vehicles too. You can pull one behind the truck and drive one with toiletries and snacks for the family.

Spend day 1 loading the truck and cleaning the house. Spend the night in a hotel that night or leave really late and drive to the new place.

Day 2. Either finish up the old house then leave or you left the day before and you arrived. Time to unload the truck. You can take it back if you get it empty.

Having that 3rd day reserved gives you an extra 24 hours to load and unload.

I would have friends and family come help load then maybe hire some company to help you get the stuff in the new house.

I'd also check Groupon for deals with moving companies to see if it would be worth it just to have them do it all. Renting a truck seems cheap, but it always seems like there are those "nickel and dime" charges that really add up.

Good luck and safe move (I was just in San Antonio recently - very lovely!)

In a larger city it might not be as much of an issue, but I had a horrible time with Uhaul two of the three times I used them. Making a reservation on a truck is not a guarantee that there will be a truck there when you go to pick it up. They can say a truck will be available, but if the previous renter doesn't return it on time there won't necessarily be one for you. You may end up with a different sized truck or no truck. Once I wasn't able to pick up my truck until two days later. A second time I found a different company that did have a last minute truck available for me. I've also had several family and friends who have had to deal with mechanical problems on trucks from national brands.

You might also check with local owned businesses. The last move I made (about a 2 hour distance) we were able to rent a truck at a locally owned car dealership in the town I was moving to for far less money than any of the national brands. Even paying for the gas two ways it was cheaper.

If you don't have family or friends who are available and willing to help load and unload a truck it would be well worth the money to hire someone.

Inventory everything and make sure it is insured!! A former coworker of mine moved to Texas from Minnesota last year with a Uhaul truck. They were rear ended by a semi in a construction zone. Their Uhaul burst into flames and they lost almost everything they owned. They hadn't inventoried specific things (like titles in her personal professional library) and had a hard time remembering specific things they had lost (including brand new wedding gifts). Their insurance did cover the majority of their loss.