Moving Across the Country.... Again
For the third time we have moved across this country, this time returning home to be near family. It was the easiest move yet transporting all our stuff around, mostly because we didn't do the transportation, just the packing.
To move all of our belongings, we ended up using U-Pack, which are those ABF semi-trucks you see driving around. We went with the semi-trailer instead of their pod system as it was quite cheaper and we get to use as much as the trailer as needed, and only pay for what we use. They gave us the maximum price it would be if we used the full trailer so we knew the max cost and that was all inclusive (fuel, transportation, etc). All the drivers were friendly. They dropped off the trailer at the old house exactly where we wanted, and delivered it exactly where we needed in the yard of the new place.
Before we decided to to use a U-Pack trailer, I had already scheduled pickup and delivery of motorcycle. Had I waited on that, we could have packed the motorcycle on the trailer as there was plenty of room and they even allow that.
Shortly before we left FL, I got a quote on shipping the vehicles and just flying up north. The quote was less than I expected and flights were cheap too (<$300 for the entire family). So we decided to fly up. Unfortunately the week we left, the northern part of FL got some snow and ice which delayed our vehicles leaving by a day or 2.
My off hand estimate of the move was around $10,000. We ended up spending around $6,500 for our belongings, motorcycle, vehicles and airplane tickets.
The one thing I did not like between the various pod companies I talked to is they all wanted your credit card and to lock you in 'right now for the best price'. You could of course cancel for free, but it really makes you think you don't need to keep looking since you already have dates locked in with one company. Most pod quotes we got were in the $8,000 - $10,000 range. U-Pack pods were one of the more cheaper ones, with the trailer being even cheaper.
When we moved to FL we used the U-Haul pods, which were wooden boxes. At the local U-Haul spot where they were storing the pods in FL, one of the boxes broke open and had to be repacked while we waited for our house to be ready. What we found with the pods is you have to pack each pod to where it makes sense individually to maximize the space and reduce the number of pods. There were a few things we left behind as it was cheaper to replace than to get another pod. With the trailer it was just one big 'box' to pack instead of 4+.
Finally, the upside to moving every few years is you get rid of a lot of junk. Stuff you want to keep in case you use it later, but when you start questioning is it worth packing, unpacking, and bringing it with you, it's easier to get rid of. Hopefully we have finished moving around.