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I wouldn't mind renting a big UHAUL and hauling my a$$ to TX..is this feasible? What to do about the car..have it on a dolly behind the Uhaul truck? Last time I used a dolly to tow car, the tires blew up on the dolly and I had to wait 3-4 hours on the highway for Uhaul customer service to send in local tire replacement.. ended up staying at hotel overnight as it got dark in the process..
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Originally Posted by monstermagnet
Reading is fundamental.
OP said moving "to Dallas from LI." Smart play. I wish him well. Cheapest is always going to be rent a truck and find some helpers you can pay in pizza and beer.
Didn't know they existed. Will take a look. I assume may need to pack things first..or simply photos of all the junk the garage :-)
They pack and ship?
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Originally Posted by gx89
Uship.com
Used them 2x for 1k+ mile trips. Just make sure the carrier is insured. It’s like reverse ebay, you post your listing with all your items photos help. You get bids and then they start to get lower! I used it for a local move recently, bidding started at $1100 I paid $475.
Have family with kids so I think it would be prudent to have them fly separately and I may drive the truck if it comes to that. Have only one car to move. One could also look into shipping the car separately from the stuff. Thank you for the tips, really helpful!
I'm really thinking hard about what to keep and what to get rid of..no point in hauling junk that one tends to accumulate over the years!
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Originally Posted by markjames68
I used a full service mover (corporate relo) but if you DIY...
First step is to cull what you move and what you give away or dump. Most long distance moves charge by the pound instead of purely by volume (or time.)
You mentioned moving one car, are you driving another to Dallas or are you all flying? Consider a U-Haul trailer for one vehicle if driving to take valuable and immediate need personal items (think computers, clothes, some toys for the kids and bathroom items.) Also frees up space in the car for a road trip. I did this twice with a U-Haul trailer and it was great. Just don’t drive on the parkways when leaving NY.
Regardless of using a pod or a mover, make sure you do a good packing job. That’s one area where maybe $1000 invested in professionals can pay off. I’ve recently gone though some boxes that were packed nearly 5 years ago by an excellent mover and nothing was broken. A year ago some other movers did a lousy job and multiple things were broken. If you pack it nothing will be insured against breakage, and you need to keep good records against loss.
Pack heavy on the bottom, lighter on top. If you tow, heavier towards the front, lighter towards the rear and even side to side.
Didn't know they existed. Will take a look. I assume may need to pack things first..or simply photos of all the junk the garage :-)
They pack and ship?
Carriers offer different levels of service. I always packed my own stuff. They will do the furniture and bed with pads, bag etc. Most of them offer white glove, you sit back drink beer and they pack and do all the work. You of course will pay more for this.
How much is the stuff worth? Get rid of it and buy new in Texas.
That’s always an option, and for clothing and personal items you can box them and use a U-Haul trailer. I’ve done that twice in my life when I was single and moving cross country.
Have family with kids so I think it would be prudent to have them fly separately and I may drive the truck if it comes to that. Have only one car to move. One could also look into shipping the car separately from the stuff. Thank you for the tips, really helpful!
I'm really thinking hard about what to keep and what to get rid of..no point in hauling junk that one tends to accumulate over the years!
The fly vs. drive option is a big “it depends”.
There is a cost to fly, but easier for the spouse and kids. They would need to rent a car until yours arrived which is another expense.
Or, you could caravan it together - your wife with the kids and you in the U-Haul, stopping for meals and staying in a hotel each night. That works if your kids aren’t super young.
For my last 2 moves we shipped one car, and I drove the other (with our dog) pulling a trailer with our essentials. But we had movers handle the rest.
We would like to take some of the stuff and leave/get rid of a lot. It's not always the price but convenience factor..something we would need right away when we get there so yes, will only take the essentials and things that we absolutely need and throwing them away would be literally throwing away money..
All this makes sense if the cost of driving truck would be within reasonable limits.. I'm thinking if driving truck by myself cost anywhere close to $2000 (fuel, rent etc) then it's worth it to take some of the stuff with us.
Quote:
Originally Posted by theSteevo
How much is the stuff worth? Get rid of it and buy new in Texas.
Have one car. I checked a random car moving/shipping company, they quoted $1200 to ship the car from LI to Dallas, TX. I think that's probably better option than to have it towed on a car dolly .. those things are not reliable for long distances.
The car is regular sedan so I don't trust it with towing heavier loads for long distance. I'll need to figure cheaper way to get the car over there. Driving it is an option but with young kids it's not feasible.
This article gives some general ideas on costs and options:
It mentions Amtrak, I would look into something like that. That may be cheaper vs the car shipping companies.
Quote:
Originally Posted by markjames68
The fly vs. drive option is a big “it depends”.
There is a cost to fly, but easier for the spouse and kids. They would need to rent a car until yours arrived which is another expense.
Or, you could caravan it together - your wife with the kids and you in the U-Haul, stopping for meals and staying in a hotel each night. That works if your kids aren’t super young.
For my last 2 moves we shipped one car, and I drove the other (with our dog) pulling a trailer with our essentials. But we had movers handle the rest.
Have one car. I checked a random car moving/shipping company, they quoted $1200 to ship the car from LI to Dallas, TX. I think that's probably better option than to have it towed on a car dolly .. those things are not reliable for long distances.
The car is regular sedan so I don't trust it with towing heavier loads for long distance. I'll need to figure cheaper way to get the car over there. Driving it is an option but with young kids it's not feasible.
This article gives some general ideas on costs and options:
It mentions Amtrak, I would look into something like that. That may be cheaper vs the car shipping companies.
Given what you said I’d ship the car. Amtrak I don’t think is a viable option from LI to TX. NYC to Miami maybe. $1200 isn’t a bad rate BTW.
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