Moving (Advice + Some Whining)
There are some achievements in life that receive recognition and appreciation, but moving is not one of those things. I recently went through two big events: graduating from law school, and moving. Graduation involved a weekend of parties, a ceremony where I received my diploma, and was overall a satisfying conclusion to an accomplishment that took a LOT of work. Meanwhile, moving also took a lot of work, and the only celebration was when I finally found that missing extension cord. (Go me!)
This was my first “big” move - gone are the days when I could stuff all my clothes and books into a car and drive to the next place. Relocating furniture, framed art, rugs, and everything else is a real move, and it is hard. I’m writing this because I benefited from a lot of online research before my move, but there were still some things I wish I’d known. Read on for a major TMI about moving!
Moving Options
My priorities were to minimize costs and time. I looked at PODS, full-service movers, and renting my own truck. I ended up renting a U-Haul because it was by far the cheapest option. I was amazed by the price difference between moving truck rentals. Penske and Budget were both pretty expensive. My 15ft U-Haul was several hundred dollars cheaper than a 12ft Budget truck, and half the cost of a 12ft Penske truck. Penske quoted me for ~$1,200! I would still recommend getting quotes from multiple companies, because pricing varies depending on where in the country you are/going.
FYI, U-Haul’s truck size options are 10ft, 15ft, and up (no 12-footers). I lived in a fairly large one-bedroom apartment in DC, and was on the verge of fitting into a 10ft truck, but after making a diagram I decided to play it safe and get the extra space. It might sound crazy, but I recommend making a diagram after measuring all your furniture and getting the dimensions of the interior truck space – this will help you plan how to pack your truck.
Moving Process and Tips
Loading: Get your friends to help! -- They’re free! And it makes the loading/unloading way more fun. Be sure to have snacks and drinks on hand, or maybe order pizza. Have a plan for loading the truck, so that when people arrive to help you can tell them exactly what you need. I was unprepared and was planning how to organize the truck as we loaded it, which slowed us down. Sorry, friends!
Be Organized – Pack everything before your friends or movers show up. -- There is “pretty much everything” and there is actually everything. I didn’t realize how much stuff I had left not-quite-packed until my friends were there asking what they should bring out to the truck next. Also, give yourself way more time than you think you need to pack. Lesson learned: recognize that you will spend more time than you think organizing and sorting your belongings, and aim to get everything done at least a day ahead of time. Label boxes with a marker to make unloading much easier.
Reduce, Reuse, Recycle -- Don’t fill up your local landfill with items that are useful! While packing, you may find yourself setting aside things you don’t want to keep anymore. Be sure to donate your clothes and household items, or sell on Craigslist, and recycle paper and plastics. Note that CFL lightbulbs should not be thrown away - check with your local recycling service about how/where to dispose of CFLs.
Packing Supplies: Go to liquor stores & U-Haul; buy more than you think you need. -- No matter how equipped you think you are, you’ll need moving supplies. I started by visiting the liquor stores in my neighborhood, and they hooked me up with tons of boxes! Just be nice, and they’ll help you out, they have lots of clean, empty boxes that are otherwise (hopefully) recycled. Even with all those free boxes, I found it wasn’t enough, so I bought additional boxes, tape, and foam to wrap large framed items from Home Depot. Later when I picked up the U-Haul on the day of the move, I compared costs and saw that U-Haul’s moving supplies were priced cheaper than Home Depot! This impressed me, since I figured U-Haul would price gouge people showing up to get their moving truck and needing supplies at the last minute.
Packing supplies to buy: lots of tape (I went through 4 rolls of packing tape), foam or other wrapping for frames, lots of paper to wrap dishes (hopefully you will have some on hand, I used old law outlines, but if not you can buy packing paper).
Again, reduce waste - be sure to recycle those cardboard boxes once you are all moved in.
Strategies for Packing the Truck: I decided to do a wall of boxes in the back of the truck, tie them off, and then load all the furniture. Apparently some people do the furniture first and then the boxes, but I preferred boxes first. It was easy to stack them all, tie them off (you don’t want boxes to go flying while in transit!), and then play around with the remaining space to fit the furniture. Make sure to tie all of your furniture to the sides of the truck. To prevent dings and dents, rent furniture blankets from the truck company and use them generously. I contemplating buying blankets, but I’m glad I saved money by renting – they were all perfectly clean.
Driving: Don’t be in a rush. Have a copilot. -- You absolutely do not want to rush while driving the moving truck. I drove about 60mph on the highway for most of the trip. In the beginning I was going slower as I familiarized myself with the vehicle, but even once I felt comfortable driving the truck I avoided going over 65mph. Whenever I wanted to go faster, I remember that all my belongings were behind me, and I wouldn’t want anything to happen to them. For me, the most important aspect of the drive was having a copilot. A friend came on the trip with me, and her help was essential for parking and navigating. I was able to focus all my attention on driving a big truck, and she handled the rest while we were on the road.
Unloading: Hire movers if you’re alone. -- Once my friend and I arrived in Maine, I didn’t know anyone in town. We were in sort of a unique situation where we only had a day-and-a-half before flying back to DC for graduation. Rather than spend the whole time lugging boxes and furniture, I wanted to maximize our time to unpack boxes and get myself organized. I hired movers for the minimum amount of time I could, which was $150 for two guys for an hour-and-a-half of labor. Big shout out to Local Muscle Movers for being super helpful and providing great service! They got all of my furniture and boxes inside in 45 minutes, and spent the remaining time helping us reassemble furniture (they even stayed a few minutes extra to make sure my bookshelf was completed). Don’t forget to tip, and offer water if the movers are at your place for a while.
Good luck to anyone moving, you can do it!










