The Cost of a Self Move

The moving season is upon us. Whether it is a small move or a sizeable one the notion to move yourself has crossed everyone’s minds. We think it will be the most cost friendly choice to our pocket book than actually hiring someone to do it for us. In some, not all, instances yes it would be cheaper to move myself than hiring a local moving company. However, one thing I have learned working in this industry, just because I think that it might be cheaper doesn’t mean it will. The AMSA (American Moving and Storage Association) has a link on their website that helps you figure out the cost of doing it yourself. Just go to AMSA, click the link to evaluate the cost of a self haul and follow the instructions.

I used my apartment, a one bedroom on the second floor, as an example and filled out everything and came up with a grand total of moving myself of $743.00. Expensive, huh? That is what I thought too. Here is how I came up with this total.

I looked up a local truck rental place and found out how much it would cost me to rent a truck for a day. I chose that I would need my rental for twelve hours since I know it will take me all day to do it myself I figured if I picked it up at 8 am then I should (hopefully) be done by 8 pm. I also rented two furniture dollies and one appliance dolly as well as five dozen furniture pads to wrap all of my belongings. I used their prices for packing materials and just went with the amount of material that they had suggested. It also asks you how much it will cost for me to drive my own car around for the day as well as feeding myself and anyone who helps me. I also allowed myself a $100 miscellanous expense in case any last minute emergencies came up on that day.

My breakdown of the charges:

Truck rental $39.95 plus $0.79/mile

I estimated that I would be traveling 20 miles in the truck that day.

Total $65.00

Utility dolly 2 @ $7.00
Furniture pads 5 dozen @ $ 10.00
Appliance dolly 1 @ $10.00
Ropes & Tie downs 1 @ $24.95

Total $99.00

Packing materials $339.00 (which will be shipped to me in 5-7 business days)
The Dallas movers I choose will bring them out in advance or the day of my move and pack for me. At no additional cost all I am responsible for is the cost of materials.

Driving my own vehicle (cost of gasoline per gallon) $3 for 20 miles $60.00
Cost of feeding myself and whomever helps me $20 per person per day $80.00

Ok...so either way I can not get out of driving myself or feeding the people who help me.

Miscellaneous of $100 (in case of emergencies) Total $ 240

This could be used for the cost of gas and feeding everyone istead of an additional "what if" cost.

This gives me a grand total of $743.00 to do it myself. Not to mention I have already had to pay all the transferal fees of my utilities to my new place, any deposits for the new apartment as well as the first months rent. So I am easily up to over $2000.00 to move myself. I don’t know about you but I would much rather hire a certified local moving company to move me instead. Having two trained professionals come in, wrap and load all of my belongings and potentially get it done in three to four hours sounds a lot better than doing it myself.

Ok…having gone through all that I am a little shell shocked about moving. I know that hiring a moving company could easily be a costly undertaking. However, when I really truly think about it, it is almost always the better choice. I do not do this everyday for a living, why would I not want to hire a mover who does? They are going to be trained and knowledgeable about moving my belongings. Nowadays most homes have specialty items, i.e. plasma tv’s, pianos, antiques, large marble or glass pieces. I am no expert and while I know I would handle my stuff with care I know inevitably I would damage something.

It really is worth it to take the time and do the research about moving yourself versus hiring a moving company. Some of the minor details that you might forget to consider, until last minute like me, have already been taken care of because it is standard for the movers. The day of your move you really just wake up have a cup of coffee, show the movers what to move, watch them load, lead them over to your new house watch them unload everything, and even put your beds back together for you. Pay the bill and wave goodbye…or you can do it all by yourself and depend on the kindness of your friends and family?

Having this knowledge about moving has made me realize that hiring a professional mover is the best, and the most cost efficient way to go.