Moving out of state on the cheap!

**Nantahala** · 12-15-2006, 05:12 PM

Hey Villagers!

DH and I are moving in May from Central OH to Western NC. I am moving for family, as I have a family member on hospice and one in need of care at home, among other reasons but that is the primary reason and explains the May date.

We are working to get jobs (I am a social worker and DH can do anything in computers) but we've found it difficult w/o a local address... but I digress.

We plan to move with very little, as we've found that carting it across country is more expensive since we would eventually replace the items as they are worn and at the end of their life (many from the attic of family members). We plan to drive our car, a Jetta, and hitch a sport Uhaul to it. We are trying to keep it as cheap as possible.

We are also planning to media mail our boxes and when we return to OH in July pick up a few things we will store at MIL's house.

So.... any advice at all? Experiences? I am all ears.

**prairie_girl** · 12-15-2006, 08:09 PM

we moved across country about eighteen months ago. Actually may of 2005. Couple tips. don't just leave the things behind, SELL as much as possible. Our stuff in Ontario wasn't perfect, but someone paying YOU ten bucks to take it off your hands is better than you taking the time/gas to dispose of it yourself. You're moving at the perfect time to hit up garage sales to replace your things cheaply too! Make it known at your new jobs that you've recently moved to a new state and didn't bring most of your furnishings etc with you, you'll find that you have offers of stuff free and cheap.

**Nantahala** · 12-16-2006, 08:39 AM

Thanks! I am definitely going to try and sell what we can. Ebay has been a big help so far, lol.

**frugalfriend** · 12-16-2006, 09:36 PM

I'm moving too, this summer, so would love any tips too!!

**ironmaiden** · 12-17-2006, 12:04 PM

Eat everything. No point in moving food. Take a food inventory and eat your stockpile. If your the type that feels insecure about not having food in the house, that's what water and ramen noodles are for. Ramen is cheap, if you really needed it, you'd appreciate it, and if you don't eat it, you wont mind donating it to a food pantry.

**littlemotherhaywood** · 12-18-2006, 01:18 PM

You can also check out the local freecycle list as well as Craiglist for some free and inexpensive household items. I agree. Sell as much as you can if you're not planning on moving it. We didn't move a lot of food with us either. We probably had a few boxes, but it was basic stuff and all of our spices. Moving is a great way to evaluate what you really "need." I found so much stuff we didn't move. You could probably start either saving your gas money or putting some money on gas cards a little bit at a time. I would visit the AAA gas calculator to estimate your travel costs. Also, you've got lots of time to watch for specials for the Uhaul thing you want. Good luck with your move.

**my4littlebuffaloes** · 12-18-2006, 04:18 PM

We moved cross country this summer, from CO to OH. Some mistakes we made were the following -

Not going through things thoroughly before moving. There is so much that we didn't need to move, but we didn't have the time to go through everything ahead of time.

Not totally supervising the loading of the truck. We did not have enough room on the truck for everything and had to leave behind a lot of things. When we unloaded, I took off EMPTY boxes! We had so many people helping that it was somewhat chaotic (I was also watching the 4 kids and people were stopping by to say goodbye, etc) People were just grabbing and loading, not asking, or looking, or wondering why that box was so light! Also, a couple of things were loaded on the truck, straight out of the basement, that I had been unable to go through and those items were damaged.

You should be able to avoid these things, because you have a lot of time to plan for the move. I didn't, unfortunately. Oh, to go back and do it over! I had never moved cross country before, I would certainly do it differently next time.

good luck!

**Nantahala** · 12-20-2006, 09:25 AM

Thank you for all the tips!

**Nantahala** · 12-27-2006, 06:00 PM

Looks like we are moving early. Eek!

**Canongirl** · 12-28-2006, 01:30 PM

Have you considered looking into staying at KOA campgrounds for overnight stays vs. hotel rooms. You can purchase a koa value card and get their kabins for $40.50 a night. This is much less than a hotel room.
You do need to bring your sleeping bag and pillow.
For two people this may not end up being the cheapest way. But for a family of 4 I can see it coming out less.

We have some long term plans to move and are looking at this as an option.

**Telephus44** · 12-28-2006, 04:05 PM

We moved from MA to CO and back again.

*Definetly get used boxes. Freecycle or Craigslist should be the easiest place to get them, but you can also ask at liquor stores and warehouse stores (BJ's or Costco). They generally have really sturdy boxes.
*Sell whatever you can. We must have sold 500lbs of books on Half.com and through various book buyback sites. We sold our 300lb television on eBay (local pick up only). We also gave away a lot of things - good for the karma bank and less stuff that we had to move.
*If possible, do it in the spring or the fall. That way you can sleep in your car and not have to get a hotel room when you stop for the night.
*Bring snacks and drinks in the car. I can't tell you how much we spent on getting sodas and chips everytime we stopped to fill up on gas.
*Wedge the mattress into the truck last - either on top or on the end.
*DH was able to pack the truck well because he had been a package handler at UPS - if you know anyone with similar skills, ask them to help. I know that we fit way more stuff in the U-Haul than I would have thought.
*If you have to leave stuff behind because it won't all fit, ask yourself how much it costs to replace it. We left behind a mop and bucket because we could buy a new one for a lot less than it would take to buy a new vacuum.
*Don't buy cheap tape for the boxes. It doesn't have to be the most expensive tape, but don't buy the cheapest tape. It doesn't hold up.
*Start collecting gas cards ahead of time. If you have $20 to spare now, buy a gas card. These will come in handy!
*Use your towels and blankets to wrap up breakable items - dishes, etc.
*Places in your car to put things: valuables (jewelry, etc) can go in the glove box. You can put things under your seats and in the "pockets" on the doors and behind the seats.

Also - ask a family member if you can use their address on resumes. That's what I've done in the past. Since most of the time people will call you or email you back if they're interested, I figure it doesn't matter if the address is 100% accurate. No one has ever actually knocked on my door. Just make sure that the phone number and email address are ones where you can easily be reached.