Let’s face it, moving to a new home — whether it’s across town or across the country — is an exciting prospect. Now if only you could magically get from your old house to the new one with the wave of a magic wand. Abracadabra! Poof! No luck, you’re still faced with the task of packing and moving.
While most people think the best way to save money on a move is to do all or most of the work yourself, this isn’t necessarily accurate. Sure, the bottom line expenditure that you pay to a mover might be less, but there are hidden costs involved that really add up.
Time is Money
If you work, you know your time is valuable. You probably have a dollar-per-hour rate that you work for. If you have to take time away from that job to pack up your house, how much will that cost you in lost productivity and money? If you don’t take time off, that means you are now packing and organizing at night or on weekends, which takes valuable time away from your family and other obligations. How much is that time worth to you?
Daycare
If you have kids, especially younger ones, you know how awesome they are, but also how little work you can get done with them underfoot. One thought is paying a babysitter or daycare to watch them for you while you pack up the good china and crystal without them tripping over the boxes. Or worse yet, tripping you.
Your Health Matters
Moving is stressful, there’s no way around it. And it can also be very demanding on you physically. If you can’t afford to be out of commission due to a pulled muscle or worse, professional movers are a wise choice.
Breakage
With all the boxes, appliances and furniture going back and forth, into and out of trucks and buildings, it’s not uncommon for something to get broken. This is even more prevalent when amateurs are the ones doing the moving. When you use a professional, they are insured for such breakage. Are you? If your buddy who’s working for beer and pizza drops your 50-inch flat screen, is he going to pay for it? Probably not.
While the initial monetary outlay for a mover might be less if you do much or all of the work yourself, hidden costs and having to replace broken items can add up to way more in the long run. Add to that the peace of mind of not having to do it all yourself, and your total is priceless.
