How to Avoid Stress on Your Long Distance Move

Moving, in general, is very stressful. Whether its moving down the street or moving across the country, stress and moving will coincide. However, there’s something about moving all of your worldly possessions from East Coast to West Coast in a 26 foot box truck that may keep you up at night. While the stress cannot be fully removed, here are some tips that can make your long distance move a little less stressful.

Give yourself time:

One of the most important factors to moving across the country is time. Giving yourself time to plan accordingly, find an acceptable place to live in your new state, find where the best schools are for your children, or even finding the best route from your new house to your new job to avoid that dreaded morning traffic. One month should be the appropriate amount of time to get this research done and start planning your next steps. 

Movers for hire:

The next step would be to figure out the most cost effective option for your long distance move.  You may decide to rent a UHaul, pay someone to load your items or just load them yourself, drive it yourself, and again either pay someone to unload your items or unload yourself.  

Another option would be to hire a mover to drive your truck for you. You would still be responsible for renting the truck as well as the loading and unloading of the truck.

A third option could be PODS. Using PODS is one of the more cost effective options but it has its downfalls as well. There is no real guaranteed delivery date and once the doors of the PODS are closed the items could get damaged during transport if not loaded correctly. 

The last option is hiring a full service moving company to load, drive, and unload your materials with a guaranteed delivery date. While this option may seem a bit more pricey, it is also the most effective. With a good, reliable company, you will get your items on the agreed upon date.

Fortunately for you, the reader, Moving Ahead Services would be able to help you with any of the above options. We can help you load your rental truck or POD, or even help you unload it if it’s in the area of one of our four locations. We also have capable drivers to drive your rental truck for you. Lastly, our full service long distance moves speaks for itself, check our reviews online if you don’t believe us. 

So now that you have decided to move across the country, and have figured out the best cost effective option for you, whats next?

This or that?:

The next thing you need to do to make your cross country move less stressful is to decide what you actually want to move. Some people prefer to buy all new furniture in their new state and only move their essentials, such as clothes, dishes and glasses, electronics among other things. Other people may decide to empty their current home and take everything they have to their new home. Whichever person you are we, at Moving Ahead Services, can help accommodate your needs. 

Now that you have decided what you are moving, whats next?

Packing:

Packing is one of the most tedious things to do, especially when moving. Putting all of your loose or fragile items into cardboard boxes and shipping across the country is enough to wake up anyone from a deep sleep. Packing is something that needs thought and time. If this process is rushed it may end up in damaged items. Packing is one of the most important parts of the moving process. If it is not done correctly or rushed, then a disaster could happen. Well, some good news is that Moving Ahead Services offer professional packing services. Our packers are trained to ensure the safe transport of your valuable items. If you decide not to go with professional packers then there are plenty of resources online in order to protect your items during your packing and moving process. 

Inventory, inventory:

So, maybe we lied, packing may not be the most tedious part of moving. Depending on who you ask, inventories can be the most tedious part of the moving process. If you are moving by yourself, keeping an inventory as you go is the best way to keep yourself from forgetting anything. Inventory sheets are available online and there are several stickers that could be used to help you keep your accurate inventory.  If you are using the moving company route, any professional and reliable company will make sure to take an inventory of your items. The inventory is for your record as well as the companies. Many companies will have customers sign the inventory to ensure both parties agree that the inventory is accurate. Moving Ahead Services ensures that any large local job or any long distance job, large or small, has an inventory. We try our best to relieve the stress that moving causes, and we hope that we can do that for you as well.

Bring your car, without the added miles:

Some people are moving at a reasonable distance where they can drive their own cars. However, if someone is moving from Virginia to Oregon, then that might be a different story. There are some options when it comes to moving your car across America. One option is to find a bulk auto transporter. They will pick up your car and they will give you a time frame in which your car should arrive. Notice we said should. Sometimes, with these transporters, some of their communication is not the best and you may get your car at the latter end of that date range. Another option is certain moving companies may be able to tow your car for you. At Moving Ahead Services, we offer to have your car towed behind your moving truck and your car will be delivered at the same time as your items. All four wheels would be off of the ground and your car would be safely secured on a car trailer. We suggest that this is the best possible way to transport your car. 

All said and done:

After you have decided on what you want to do at each step and completed each step, the next thing to do is to enjoy your new home. Once your moving process is over, all you have to do is kick back, relax, and unpack your boxes. Enjoy some of the things you researched to do in your new city. Whether it’s to try that restaurant with great reviews, a hike in the state park, taking a stroll downtown. Take the time to enjoy the start of your new chapter.