Moving across the country - advice, stories, etc.

You can't even afford a lot lizard with that relocation money.

 

It was really interesting to see how my last paper financed my move. They told me if I moved myself, they would cover everything. I asked my SE what my cap would be and he said, "Anything under $4K will be fine as long as you have receipts." I came in just under that.

I found out when I arrived that the most they could give me for the move was $2500. They paid me that in a lump sum and then I had to submit mileage separately, which was another $500. Then my boss falsified something that said I stayed in a hotel for a lot longer than I actually had to get the extra $1,000. It made me really uneasy and it should have been a sign of how they did business at that place... I was glad to get reimbursed, but it was a bit of an ordeal.

It's amazing these days that people either get nothing or if they do, it's either secretive or disguised as a signing bonus because they don't want any precedent set.

 

I worked as a mover for a while. We never had more than one client's stuff on the truck at once. And we were a pretty shady outfit.

 

That's not true, either. We moved boxes that people had packed all the time. In my time as a mover, I think I spent one day packing boxes.

 

I think it's been mentioned already, but no matter what you do, hire loaders and unloaders on each end.

You can find ratings on local loaders/unloaders here: http://www.uhaul.com/MovingHelp.

Seriously, it's the best money we ever spent. They had everything off the truck and in the right room in 90 minutes (my wife color-coded the boxes by room and labeled each one in detail, which made all the difference in the world) and I didn't even break a sweat.

 

I moved from New Jersey to Guam and from Guam to California.
You've got to travel light.

 

So much truth here. Having packed up my life and moved across large bodies of water more times than I care to count, lighter is always better. I never thought I would get to the point of swapping physical books for an e-reader, but the expense and hassle of transporting boxes of books across the Pacific finally convinced me.

Like joe and Amy said earlier, use this opportunity to pare down your possessions. Sentiment can be a real hindrance in this, but odds are in the long run you'll be glad you did -- much less stress during the move and maybe a nice addition to your wallet.

 

That's interesting. I'm just going by my experience when I moved -- both times the moving company told me that they wouldn't load any boxes that I packed myself.

 

It does depend on the company, I'm sure. Like I said, I wouldn't say we were the most reputable moving company.

 

Your couch has a wet bar connected to it? Holy hell! Have any pics of this?

 

We demand pictures of this couch. It sounds like the coolest thing that has ever existed.