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My fiance and I will soon be relocating from Buffalo NY to the North Salt Lake City area of UT and we are shopping for movers. We have debated on doing it ourselves since the cost seems lower but does anybody here have any recommendations? We have about a 14' truck worth of household goods, the biggest being a 4 piece sectional and then our queen sized bed. The 14' truck will run about $1200 + gas + insurance, so I was thinking about $2000 total. We have gotten quotes for U-pack, U-box, PODS, etc but they are either way too small or way too expensive. The u-pack was nearly $2k for a tiny box that would barely fit just our boxes. The PODS was a large size, perfect for us but was nearly $3500... anybody have any recommendations? We don't mind driving but we want to see what others have experienced to make sure we do this as efficient as possible. Thanks all!
Just a thought-
the other options maybe more expensive but at least you won't have to worry about what if's to deal with. What if you get in an accident with all that stuff on the side of the road? Or what if you have a flat tire? Have you driven a large truck before and considered how tricky it is to get in and out of gas stations, or when you need to stop for the day how crazy it is to try to park around where ever you are staying/parking lot drama.
I moved many and I mean many times due to military... some choose to move themselves to save money, I always chose a company. It's more expensive but it is worry free, stress free, oh and if accident or something unfortunate happens your stuff will be insured. If you do it yourself and something unfortunate happens, you are dealing with all of it and whatever is damaged from your stuff it's basically a lost (unless you have specific insurance while moving).
I like to live as stress free as possible There are some things in my life that I have not much control over so when it comes to moving I am dealing with it as worry free as possible
Thanks Hattie. I also will be moving for a military relocation but none of my expenses are reimbursed at this time so we're trying to save the most money. The other benefit is that I can claim this on my taxes next year but either way, I don't want to fork out thousands of dollars for a move lol.
Can you keep only your clothing (anything that does not need donated or tossed), a few sentimental items and sell the rest then replace when you get to your location?
Otherwise I would suggest the POD, the cost is not really that bad in my opnion and it does save a lot of time and frustration with the driving situation.
I will most likely have all my clothes at our destination as I am going there in February and we are moving the rest in May. I may consider a POD at some point but I would've liked to be under $2k for it.
Have you heard of place like rent to own household goods, maybe you can sell your bed and big items to a place like that, and get a smaller truck? Easier and cheaper.
Have you gotten a quote from ABF? They have a u-pack trailer and you only end up paying for the space you actually use. Their quote will be based on the info you share -- where the trailer will get dropped off, where it will get delivered, how large of a place do you currently live. Not only should you get a basic quote, but also a per foot price so that you will know how much your bill will be reduced if you use one foot less (or more) of the quoted space, or how much will be added to your bill for each additional foot.
Our family has used ABF twice for long-distance moves. We loaded up the trailer with family and friends helping, called ABF and they came to pick up the trailer. We received a tracking number so that we could keep track of its progress to our final destination. Whenever we were ready, we gave them a call to have it dropped off.
The only negative we have found so far is the difficulty in our current location with parking anything overnight on the narrow association streets. We ended up having the trailer dropped off at the curb on the street just outside our association (where street parking is allowed) and then just rented a U-Haul pickup to load items from the trailer, drive in to the condo association and unload into our garage. Back and forth and worked very well. Less than a full day of rental on the pickup turned this mistake into a small inconvenience. And we didn't have to drive a loaded trailer cross-country!
Thanks Hattie. I also will be moving for a military relocation but none of my expenses are reimbursed at this time so we're trying to save the most money. The other benefit is that I can claim this on my taxes next year but either way, I don't want to fork out thousands of dollars for a move lol.
Are you PCSing?? If so why not let the movers just send your stuff and the military takes care of it
That is a hard decision. My husband and I recently moved across the country, so I know how you feel. I was so worried about the move, so my husband tried to make it as easy as possible. We ended up hiring movers, and it was so much less stressful. It was pretty expensive, very close to the estimate you were given. But for me, it was so worth it.
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There are some things in my life that I have not much control over so when it comes to moving I am dealing with it as worry free as possible 
