Moving? 5 Prep Tips to Get an Accurate Estimate

Your moving estimate is a key element in budgeting successfully for a move. And while you rely on the moving company to provide as accurate an estimate as possible, you can also take a few steps to help ensure your estimate is thorough. Here are five of these steps and how they help the estimating process.

1. Ask for an In-Home Estimate

The most accurate estimate comes from an in-person visit by the moving professionals to your home. This allows them to walk through the house to assess furniture, outdoor equipment, and other potentially challenging pieces with the practiced eye of their experience.

However, if you can't schedule an in-home estimate for some reason, be the eyes and ears of your movers. Walk through your house and try to think like the person who has to move items. Ideally, have a friend or relative who doesn't live in the house walk through with you and ask questions or make notes.

2. Think About the Challenges

The amount of time you need to schedule to pack your home depends on more than just the volume. Many items could create additional challenges. These include:

• Items that must be disassembled
• Large, heavy, or bulky pieces that require moving equipment or multiple people to move
• Anything that may not fit through a door or on stairs
• Parking or timing restrictions around your home
• Multiple levels in the home
• Unusually shaped items like plants or outdoor toys
• Fragile items

Let your movers know about any of these extra challenges early on. The fewer delays that are overlooked, the more accurate your estimate will be.

3. Ask About Other Services

Even if you plan to do all the prep work on your own, ask the moving company for estimates for additional services. This gives you options at different price points to help you budget if you need to change plans as you get closer to moving day. Ask about pricing for packing certain rooms or the entire house, reassembly, final cleaning, vehicle transportation, and even taking items to the landfill or recycling centers.

4. Make a Detailed Inventory

Inventory your home, especially if the moving company cannot come for an in-person estimate. Your inventory should provide as many relevant details as possible, such as the dimensions of each room, the types and amount of furnishings in it, the numbers of boxes, the volume of miscellaneous items (such as in the kitchen or garage). Include information on whether original boxes exist and which items need kept together.

5. Know Your Schedule

Finally, have in mind an idea of when you are planning to move. If possible, identify target dates for the most accurate estimate. This can be important because the availability of trucks and labor changes depending on the time of year, days of the week, and even hours of the day. That availability affects how long your move will take, what equipment will be used, and how many people can be involved.

If you don't yet know your specific moving date, get as close as you can - in particular, you should know the month and day of the week you plan to use. Consider asking for pricing for a weekend day and a weekday or different dates in the month to allow for pricing options in Plan A doesn't work out.

Where to Start

Want to know more ways you can prepare in order to help your moving estimate be as correct as it can be? Begin by consulting with the moving pros at Coffee's Moving and Storage. Our knowledgeable team will work with you to make your moving day as smooth and stress-free as possible, no matter how large or small your home. Call today to get started.