Relocation is something that many of us really neither think about nor consider before it has come knocking on our door. However, once it’s on our radar, we can’t help but wonder, how much of a dent will it make? Moving is certainly not a negligible ordeal. Therefore, burning through our savings in order to fund it is somewhat expected. Nonetheless, we suffer through it and make sure to foresee what the final cost will be. And then we usually end up spending about 30 percent more than we had expected. This inevitable mistake happens to a lot of people. The reason is, surprisingly, quite simple. It’s actually all about the hidden costs of moving. We’ve set aside some today to make it easier for you to avoid them in the future.
You’ve skipped planning?
Although this doesn’t sound like a hidden cost of moving, many tend to skip it. People don’t usually see planning as something that’s as necessary as it actually is.
Once you’ve skipped this step, you’ve put yourself in danger of forgetting some things. Preparing your finances to move to a new location is all about planning. We recommend sitting down and writing down some essentials. However, if you’re really bad at planning, you could always hire someone to do it for or alongside you. Without this step, you’ll always wonder whether you’ve done everything that you could to save yourself from spending too much unnecessarily.
Cheaper movers?
It’s no secret that hiring movers is almost a no-brainer when it comes to relocation. Many people, in order to save money during their move, tend to go towards companies that are cheaper. Although it might sound appealing at first, we do not recommend this.
One of the more obvious reasons is that if you want a safe relocation across the country you better pay an extra buck or two. Then again, this isn’t the only reason for our caution towards cheaper companies. You could actually end up spending more than you’ve planned on.
Paying more for movers can actually prevent you from falling into the hidden costs of moving.
Alt tag: A person counting money with smartphones in front of him on the desk.
Just think about it, hiring cheaper movers also means hiring someone that’s less experienced, has lower quality equipment and is, overall, significantly worse. They wouldn’t be cheaper otherwise. You’ll then, as a result, have to go through a lot more additional steps so as to fill in the gaps they’ve created. It can be anything from transporting your own things to organizing storage. This is one of the most common hidden costs of moving.
Scams?
A hidden cost of relocation can also be made by not determining whether your movers are the real deal or not. Make sure to watch out for this mistake for it will make a significant dent in your savings. There are some ways to make sure your movers are who they claim to be.
- Prior experience
You need to check whether your movers have had some previous gigs. The more the merrier. You need to dig deep and find some reviews. Go through them until it seems legit enough for your conscience to be clear. - Recommendation works best
Word of mouth is the best form of recommendation you’ll ever get. Of course, do not accept advice from total strangers. You must know someone, either a colleague or a friend, that’s had a good experience with a moving company and is able to vouch for it. Your friends will also surely recommend movers that aren’t so costly. - Contact them and go to their office
Every company worth mentioning will have its headquarters in a well-established location. Take a friend with you and go check out the company that you’re considering to hire.
Hidden costs of moving, such as hiring fraudulent movers, can be prevented by simply contacting the movers of your choice.
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Don’t forget to mention the specifics
Place any rash decision you’ll have to make in ‘the hidden moving costs’ pile right away. Movers, however flexible, friendly and hospitable, don’t mess around with this sort of a thing. Be sure to mention any and all special cases that you might have. This can vary anywhere from items that are easily breakable and need to be handled with care to apartments with smaller doors that are tricky to get everything into or out of.
Insurance?
Transfer insurance is one of the first things you should think about when moving. The ‘it won’t happen to me’ mindset is where this hidden cost of moving is hiding. While accidents are rare, they do happen. This is, again, one of those instances when paying in advance will help you save up later. Keep in mind that this might not be as necessary if the items that you’re relocating aren’t expensive or fragile.
Are you considering the cost of realtors as well?
Moving has many hidden costs. However, since we’re focused on them and what’s coming, we don’t really consider some things we’ll have to do before buying a new home like tying up some loose ends. Selling your home is one of them and it’s anything but easy. And realtors can be very pricy. This is something you should definitely consider before even thinking of going through with your moving process.
Forgetting to cancel some subscriptions is one of the most common hidden costs of moving
Forgetting to deal with the subscriptions that you have on your current address can really add up. This is because, once you’re out of the house, you’ll most likely forget about it for a while. Don’t let this happen. Especially because it’s so easy to do right then and there. While you’re at it, it might be smart to consider having everything transferred to your new address. This way it’ll all be waiting for you in your new home and it’s one chore less for the future you.
Don’t forget to cancel all your previous subscriptions before moving to your new home.
Alt tag: A black screen with the word ‘cancelled’ written all over it.
Sometimes hidden moving costs are inevitable
Of course, all the prepping in the world won’t make your relocation free from at least minimal hidden costs of moving. That’s just a fact. Keeping this in mind will save you a lot of stressful moments. Once you’ve done everything in your power to stop it from happening, your job here is done.
