Are you in the boat with me renting for a number of reasons? Maybe low credit or maybe you just don’t know where you want to live. My lease is up and I may be moving again so I wanted to mention a few ideas that may help you in a moving situation.
You may hate this advice, but one of the best times to get the best deals on rental properties is November or December, because no one wants to move during the holiday season. Once you are in you can always negotiate to move the lease to Jan . 1st. No one wants to move then so that is what makes it the best time if you can deal with moving over the holidays.
Make sure it makes sense to make the move as it will cost several hundred of dollars to pay for the move, deposits, and the wear and tear on yourself. If you are only moving because your landlord is raising the rent $50 then you may want to reconsider. However these days many owners are downsizing and moving back into their rental properties and you may find that you must move.
Here are some of the things I do when I find myself in the position of having to move.
1st- write down everything you need to change during the moving process such as your address, your utilities, your cable, etc. If you have moved several times, keep a list of your addresses as you may need them for credit reasons.
2nd Go through every room packing and lableling your items. If you find items that you have not used either give them away or sell them. These are items that you have not used in a year or know that you will not be using any time soon. This is the best time to sell or let go of items that you no longer need. It’s hard I know but let them go…
Go from room to room packing your Bedroom, living room, kitchen and so forth.
For me, I know it is easier on my health and well being to save money and hire a local mover, but when I was younger I always paid friends or people I worked with to help me move. Either way, you have to take some money and put it aside for moving, even if it’s only for a truck if you have the advantage of having people who will move you for free.
Something to always keep in mind is that if you choose to use a moving company, make sure you have a contract in place. Yes, I am one of those tragic stories where I used a large company and had a quote over the phone. Everything was fine until we got to my new location and then they wouldn’t unload until I paid an extra 500.00 which was not part of the deal but I had no signed contract to refer back to so I ended up going to get a payday advance just to get my furniture and boxes off of the truck. I will never make that mistake again. Even filing with the BBB didn’t help me get my money back so always have a contract.
