moving-checklist

Apartment Moving Checklist: What to Do Before Move-In Day

05/04/2018 route460 No Comments Apartment Moving Checklist

Moving into a new apartment can be an exciting experience. For some, it may represent the first time that they have lived without any parental supervision. For others, it may represent a fresh start in their lives. Regardless of why you are moving, there are many tasks that you need to complete before move-in day.

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1. Figure Out What You Need to Furnish Your Apartment

If your apartment is not already furnished, you may need to bring your couch, bed, and dining room table. If you don’t have a couch or table already, you may need to buy one. It may also be necessary to bring or buy curtains, rugs and other items to create a space that you will enjoy living in.

2. What Will You Do With Your Pet?

Not all apartment complexes allow pets. In some cases, the landlord may not allow the type of animal that you have to live in your new place. Therefore, it may be necessary to give your pet to a friend or ask mom and dad if it can stay at their place. If you are allowed to bring your pet, make sure that there is a vet nearby and that your pup is suited to apartment living. You should also make sure that it has been trained to interact with other people and animals appropriately.

3. Talk With Your Roommates

It isn’t uncommon for an individual to share a home or townhouse with other people. If you are moving in with roommates who you haven’t met before, it is a good idea to have a conversation with them. This may give you the opportunity to learn more about the people who live there and any ground rules that they may have. For instance, it may be frowned upon to make noise before noon because the others work overnight and don’t have a typical sleep schedule.

4. Schedule Appointments to Get the Utilities Turned On

Most apartments will advertise the fact that they are cable ready. However, this merely means that there is cable available if you choose to have it hooked up. You may also need to call the power and water companies to have those services activated.

As a general rule, a landlord may handle heat and hot water while requiring that you put other services in your own name. If you are moving from an apartment that you are currently renting, it may be possible to transfer service, which may allow it to be ready when you arrive.

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Ideally, the apartment that you live in will be both affordable and located in a convenient location. If you have pets, make sure that the place you rent takes their needs into account too. And don’t forget to book your movers (see this site for cheap rates) at least a few days ahead of the move. By preparing in advance of your move, you can reduce the stress that is often felt on moving day.

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How to Protect a Leather Couch When Moving

17/03/2018 route460 No Comments Protect Leather Couch

A leather couch requires careful handling when you’re packing to move. It’s easy to damage leather furniture if you’re careless. And moving something as large as a couch presents many opportunities to cause costly damage. Using the correct methods and supplies for packing and moving a leather couch is the best way to avoid damage.

Protective Packing

There are specific steps to take when packing a leather couch. Tossing it carelessly into the back of a moving truck is a terrible idea. Instead, a better option for safely packing a couch is to apply protective covering.

Wrap the couch in moving blankets or moving pads. These cushioned blankets and pads are designed explicitly for protecting furniture. Covering your couch this way protects the leather from dirt, rips, and scratches. You’ll need to use tape to secure the protective covering in place.

Make sure to keep the tape away from the leather. The tape belongs on the protective covering and not on the leather couch. Costly damage can occur if the tape comes in direct contact with the leather.

Considering the risk, the thought of putting tape anywhere near your leather might give you chills. If so, then another option is to use shrink wrap. The shrink wrap can secure the protective covering in place the same as tape. As long as the couch is already covered, the shrink wrap won’t cause any damage.

Keeping the shrink wrap off of the leather is important. Direct exposure could mean disaster for your leather. Plastic wrap can trap condensation, and cause mildew to form on your couch. Also, if the couch will be in a hot climate, the plastic could stick to the leather.

Preparing to Move the Couch

Choose the best route for moving the couch. Make sure you can easily move the couch through hallways and doorways. If there’s a stairway, then make sure it’s wide enough for the couch. Check your pathway for sharp edges that could rip the protective covering. If the covering becomes ripped, then that means the leather can rip as well.

If you plan to store the couch temporarily, then this moving company in Atlanta, GA recommends finding a climate-controlled storage unit. Heat and dryness can cause leather to peel and crack. And dampness and humidity can cause mold and bugs. A climate-controlled storage unit will provide the best conditions under which to store your leather couch.

Getting a Move On

The information provided here will help keep your leather couch safe during your move. In addition to careful packing, it’s also important to move the couch with care. Getting help moving the couch will not only make it easier, but it’s safer as well.

moving-companies

How Moving Companies Calculate Cost and Other Moving Day Questions

07/08/2017 route460 No Comments Moving Companies

Have you ever wondered how moving companies calculate the cost of moving? In general, some of the major factors that determine the moving cost include the distance, time of year, volume of personal belongings, location, the type of stuff you’re moving, and of course, the company you choose. We spoke with agents from a moving company, to get a better understanding of what goes into the cost of a move. Here is an illustration of how your potential moving company of choice will calculate your moving cost, along with answers to some other frequently asked moving questions.

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Local Moves

Moving companies have different rates depending on the moving services they provide. In normal practice, most moving companies will charge you a fee on an hourly basis for local moves, which is also dependent on the number of moving crew. For example, a moving company can charge you about $100 an hour for a two-man moving crew. The fees for local moves is a flat rate per hour, which will be charged by counting the hours that the entire moving process will take. Therefore, if you have a larger home with several furniture pieces and appliances, you may be charged an extra $50 per hour for the move. That is why credible moving companies don’t give quotes over the phone without visiting your home to assess your moving needs.

The amount of money you’ll pay for the entire moving process depends on how you plan your moving. You will pay more if the moving crew will take part in packing or wrapping up your items, loading them into the moving truck, driving to your new location, and unloading it for you. On the other hand, you’ll pay considerably less if you’re moving a few pre-packed boxes right up the street.

Long Distance Moves

Apple says that moving a distance that is over 100 miles is considered a long distance move. Also known as interestate or cross country moves, the cost of these moves are calculated based on the weight of your items, and the distance of shipping the items. Usually, you’ll be charged a rate per pound and a rate per mile.

It’s advisable to discuss with the moving specialist about the moving details during an in-home estimate to know how much it’ll cost you to move your items beforehand. It’s possible, to have certain additional charges on a long distance move such as fuel, tolls, and other miscellaneous driving expenses. However, you ought to get everything spelled out clearly before you sign any contract to avoid surprises.

Extra Fees

You ought to be clear about the moving services you need and get a precise estimate of what you’ll be required to pay to avoid loopholes for paying more than you bargained for. Some of the services that may require additional costs include:

  • Packing materials: a moving company may ask you to cater for the expenses of purchasing packing materials such as extra boxes, bubble wrap, furniture cloths, tape, and shrink wrap.
  • Packing services: some moving companies may ask you to pay for professional packing services especially for fragile and valuable items in your household. The time of packing may likely be included in the moving costs if you’re moving locally.
  • Furniture handling: ask the company whether you need to pay for the dissembling and assembling of some of your furniture pieces like beds.
  • Customized packing: if you require your furniture to be wrapped in durable and stronger moving blankets to protect them from scratches or dents, you may be asked to pay extra.
  • Insurance: moving companies have an insurance coverage called Released Value Protection. However, if you need extra cover for your valuable items, you may be required to pay extra fees.

With those added fees in mind, always ask for a quote from the moving company and make the necessary arrangements before moving to cut down on costs.

movers

8 Reasons to Hire a Professional Mover

18/07/2017 route460 No Comments Hiring Professional Movers

Changing one’s living situation is one of the most stressful life events, according to many psychological professionals. Not only is it expensive, but it creates an endless to-do list of tasks to accomplish on or before moving day. Hiring professional movers can help alleviate some of this stress so that you can focus on transitioning into your new home. What follows are eight reasons to hire a professional mover for your next move.

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1. Safe, Proper Packing Techniques

They know how to properly pack and prepare furniture for moving, as well as lift and load it into the moving truck safely. If you hire them to pack for you, you can rest assured your things will be padded and wrapped properly with appropriate materials.

2. Saves Time

Hiring movers give you peace of mind and let you focus on other important matters on moving day, such as settling into your new place and directing where to put large furniture, etc. in the proper places. It also gives you the opportunity to prepare your new home for move-in.

 3. Efficient, Prompt Service

Professional movers pride themselves on being able to work efficiently and within a reasonable time frame. They’re well-trained and prepared to handle any situation or snag that might come up on moving day, whether it be bad weather or a late-arriving truck.

4. Affordable

Many people assume that hiring professional movers is expensive, but it doesn’t have to be, especially if you only use them for loading and unloading. They’re paid by the hour, typically, so it’s in their best interest to do a quality job for you. Check out our discussion with nationwide moving, Apple Moving, on the cost of movers.

5. Reliability

Unlike friends and family, moving companies can’t back out at the last minute. Licensed movers operate as a business, so you can rely on them to keep scheduled appointments and get the job done right. You can count on them to keep your belongings safe as well, as movers are specially trained for tasks like this.

6. Professional Inventory

Depending on the specific moving service you request, some companies will take inventory of every item in your home that’s going to be moved, so they have an idea of how much space everything will take up. If they’re doing the packing for you, too, they can devise an efficient labeling system, so you’re not wasting time in your next place tracking down a miscellaneous item sitting in a random box.

7. No Heavy Lifting

One of the biggest benefits to hiring legitimate movers is you won’t have to do any heavy lifting on moving day. This is especially helpful for people who have trouble lifting heavy, unwieldy items. When you hire a moving company, all you have to do is tell them where it goes in the new place.

8. Leave the Driving to Us

Whether you’re moving an apartment or a large single family home, chances are if you DIY the move, you’ll have to rent a moving truck. Even a small U-Haul is difficult to drive if you’re not used to operating large vehicles, but the size truck need to haul a 4-5 bedroom home can be downright unnerving. When you hire a professional moving company instead, you get to leave the driving to us instead! National Van lines like Great Guys hire commercially licensed drivers to haul household goods across the country in large 18-wheelers which leaves customers free of the burden of driving their belongings themselves.

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exam

7 Tips for Passing the CDL Exam

10/07/2017 route460 No Comments CDL Exam

As older generations of truck drivers have begun to retire in waves, positions are opening up rapidly. The average long-haul truck driver’s salary was $62,876 last year, taken from the 12 months preceding July 2017. No matter what state you live in, you must pass the commercial driver’s license exam to operate a big rig […]