Small Ideas to Save Big When Moving

Whenever you are planning a move, there are going to be costs involved and those costs will go up the further away you move, so you may be wondering what are some ways in which you can save on moving. While there are many considerations that can be looked at in order to figure out various ways to save some green backs in your move, there are also a number of small ideas that can all add up to make one big dent in the total cost.

These small ideas will not take you much time to come up with. In fact, some of these small ideas may even save you some time when you are moving so it is worth it to you to try to come up with some. All that is required in order to come up with these small ideas is a little bit of your time and a little bit of your imagination. Here are some small ideas that can end up saving you big when you move:

•    Boxes and Shipping Materials: Whenever you move, you will certainly need a lot of moving boxes and shipping supplies such as packing tape, bubble wrap, and even packing peanuts. You can save yourself a great deal of money by getting a lot of this stuff for free. There are multiple stores that you can visit in order to obtain an almost endless supply of boxes. As for packing materials, there many large businesses that will not simply throw away packing peanuts and bubble wrap, but will instead recycle them. If you take a little time and go around to some different business and ask them if they have any of that stuff lying around, you may be surprised at just how much you can get for free.

•    Make the Most of Your Rental Truck: Rental trucks when moving are a must and they can represent one of the biggest costs as well. Sure the truck itself might only be $19.95 per day to rent, but then you get hit with a mileage fee, like $0.89 per mile for example. You also have to remember that whatever fuel comes out of the truck, has to be replaced. If you drive off the rental lot with a full tank of fuel in the rental truck, then the rental truck has to come back with a full tank. With that in mind, be sure you are getting the most out of your rental truck with the way you pack it. If you can pack everything into the rental truck and only have to make one trip, you will save yourself a considerable amount of money. One trip means less mileage and fuel uses for a savings that can be quite significant.

•    Move on a Weekday: Almost everybody who moves almost always does so on a weekend. This is mainly because they want to be able to rely on some friends to help, but you can often save yourself money by moving on a weekday. For one thing, you won’t have any trouble finding a rental truck like you might on a weekend as hardly anyone moves on weekdays and that is when the truck rental lots are at their fullest. They may even offer you a better deal on price or mileage. Additionally, you will save money on the driving itself. Because you will be moving and driving while the majority of America is a work, you won’t have to deal with all that stop and go weekend traffic and you will be able to easily save yourself on fuel charges because you will use so much less.

•    Don’t Move it All: Before you move all of your stuff take some time and really go through what you have. Do you really need everything to go with you? Often times, people find that they not only have some excess junk to throw away, but they also come up with a good pile of stuff to sell, like at a garage sale or moving sale. The sale you have will allow you to raise some quick cash and you can use those proceeds to help you offset your moving costs. Any leftover stuff from your sale can be donated and as long as you get a receipt you can write that off come tax time. Also, with less stuff means you can use fewer boxes, fewer packing materials, and maybe even a smaller rental truck. Once again, you save some money.

•    Play as Many ‘Friend Cards’ as You Can: If you have a lot of friends that you typically do favors for then moving is the time to lay down some ‘friend cards’ and call in some favors of your own. See how many of your friends have trucks and/or SUVs and then compare that with your stuff. While this obviously won’t work for a cross-country move, if your new home is only a couple of miles away then your friends will likely be more than happy to lend a hand and their vehicles. Instead of buying them all fuel, you can reward them for their efforts by buying them some pizza and beverages at the end of the move. The end result is no moving truck to worry about, which will save you money on fuel, mileage, and the actual rental fee itself. The only drawback with this method is that you may owe a couple of your friends a favor when it is all said and done.

As you can see, some small ideas can add up to be a really significant savings for your move. You will spend plenty of money on your move as it is and it is certainly in your best interest to apply as many small ideas to that move as you possibly can, especially if the ideas will save you money. Simply use your imagination and you will find that there are many small ideas that can end up saving you big time money.

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