One of my best friends is moving back to New York. I love her and would do anything for her.But Damn...
She is so disorganized, it is playing havoc with my time and my patience has run out... after all, she's the one moving - not me!
How can you avoid making mistakes when you’re gearing up for a move?
Get multiple references when booking movers. Just as you’d get references with the company that moves your belongings, take similar care when choosing a new city. Read the area’s local newspapers, talk to moms outside the school where your kids would go, knock on the doors of your potential new neighbors. Ask what people like and don’t like about the city. A Chamber of Commerce is also a good place to get detailed info. Use any information you get there as a launching pad for questions of your own.
Study a moving company’s contract in detail. Is the price truly guaranteed, or is there a chance it will increase upon delivery? Exactly what insurance are they offering, and will it really cover your losses if something happens? Are they guaranteeing an arrival day, or will you possibly be sitting in your new home with no belongings for a few days?
Avoid Rushing. You’re more apt to end up with a moving company you don’t like — not to mention a house you don’t like — if you don’t give yourself time. When Darci Smith moved from Grand Rapids, Mich., to Chicago in 2004, an unexpectedly quick sale of her house meant she had just two days to find an apartment. “ I found a nice place but didn't take into account that it was a neighborhood that didn't satisfy my reasons for moving to a big city," she says. A year later, she bought a condo — making sure it was in the midst of a thriving area.
Time It Right. Summer tends to be the busiest and most expensive time to hire a moving company. (No one wants to lug sofas around or push dollies through snowy driveways.) If you have kids, though, summer is often the best way to avoid disrupting school. However, the younger your kids, the easier it is on them to move midyear; younger children aren’t quite as entrenched with cliques of friends, sports and after-school activities and they tend to make new friends easier.
Nods to Homestore, Inc.