Moving on the Cheap

If you look, you can find many pointers about moving, Mostly, they will tell you how to select a mover, or moving company, or some other overly expensive alternative. Myself and my wife recently moved from Florida to Oregon, and did it for less than 1,000.00, including driving ourselves across the country. We would much rather spend our money on a good vacation or the like than give it over to a moving company. No company I researched was coming in under well, thousands. I even called about renting one of those “Pods”, another grand waste of money. If you are bent on not doing yourself, go ahead. If not, I will tell you what we did, and maybe you can find some ideas you can use.

First, get rid of what you don’t really want or need. A garage sale before you go can help, and you can find one on the other end that can replace what you sold. If you reduce what you are moving, all the better. Goodwill or the Salvation Army would be more than happy to take things you don’t need off your hands. Follow this rule: If you haven’t used it (or maybe even seen it) for months, and it’s not an antique or heirloom, then you probably don’t need it. Get rid of said item.

Second, buy a trailer. That’s right, I said buy. You can find many to choose from, with a wide price range. We bought an uncovered utility trailer for 800.00. Here is the good part. When you get where you are going, sell it. You will only be out the cost of licensing. And…good part part II-if you do it quickly, you will only have to pay for a temporary. When you go to the DMV, just get a temp, than sell the thing after you get to your destination. On our trailer we put a couch, large TV, chair, bookcase, and many household items. the rest of our stuff fit in the back of our Ford Explorer. I made a tarp netting that protected our stuff through 70mph winds in Wyoming, snow in Utah, and rain in Oregon. A word of caution: If you do this, make sure you do your tarp netting good. Water can get into your stuff if your not careful. Of course, you could buy a covered trailer. We just didn’t want to lay out that kind of money.

Third, stay with friends or family. Granted, this will only work if you have friends or family between where you are leaving and your destination. But if you can, it saves on hotel bills, and you get to visit them. We stayed in Kansas City with friends and in Denver with family. We stayed in two hotels. If it had been summer, we might have camped.

Fourth, plan your meal stops. We found that a light snack with coffee (tea for my wife) in the morning, a buffet about mid-afternoon, and an evening snack while driving worked great for us. Again, not everyone likes the buffet option. They can vary widely in quality. But for those that like them, it only takes a little research.

Fifth, don’t be afraid to stop and smell the roses, as the saying goes. Stop and take in some of the sights, smells, and tastes of the areas you are passing through. So much of the time we only fly over the country, it was nice to see it again from “ground level.” See at least some of the sights, and be ready for the surprise you didn’t expect to see.

In closing, there are some good alternatives for anyone not wanting to spend alto of money moving. I hope that our experience gives you some ideas for your move.