Before you start to pack your valuables, make sure that you have packed up almost everything else in your house or apartment. Packing breakables generally takes a long time and when people start with their breakables they will take too long and then realize that they have a day left and an entire house to pack because they have spent such a long time packing breakables. We will often suggest to people to pack their breakables last and if they need any extra help to pack them, then they can call for our help of they need it, but please make sure to take plenty of time to do ALL of your packing.

Items that are easily breakable should be carefully wrapped in “unprinted” newspaper before being placed into a box. If you are not using a professional mover or packer to help you with your move, you will want to take some extra caution when packing breakables and line the bottom of the box with bubble wrap or some sort of extra cushioning. With items of significant monetary or sentimental value we would advise that you use bubble wrap. If you do use bubble wrap for your breakables and you are on a budget, you should use it sparingly as it can be quite expensive (a great option for wrapping  items in bubble wrap can also be tissue paper and it is less expensive, so be sure to ask your moving coordinator about it). It is also advisable to pack your breakables into a type of box known as a dish pack. These are made of much thicker cardboard that will better absorb the shock of a puncture or sudden movement to the box. Although these boxes are more expensive, they are a great way to further protect your valuables.  Also, it is very important to pack your valuables very tightly into your box, so when you are done packing a box make sure put crumpled up unprinted newspaper into any crevices, plus the bottom, sides, and top inside of the box.  Click here for more packing tips.

If you decide that you don’t have the time or money to pack your breakables properly and are moving locally, it is advisable you transport your breakables yourselves because any box that you pack yourself and is transported by ANY moving company (that wasn’t physically damaged in transit) will not be covered by insurance other than the standard $.60 per pound.  But if you decide to let a moving company transport these items even though you know they aren’t packed properly, and while this may seem like obvious advice, one should always remember to mark boxes as being “Fragile.” Even though they aren’t packed properly, the movers will take extra precautions when moving these items.  Although, we at Craddock Moving and Storage would never advise that you transport ANY breakables that aren’t packed properly.

These are just a few ideas that one could implement during their packing to help ensure that his or her valuables are not damaged during the moving process. While these techniques do decrease the likelihood of something being broken, one’s best bet is to hire professional movers that offer a packing service, as they have been well trained in the art of packing and moving valuables.

First things first, do your homework. If you have had any family or friends that have moved in the last five years, then consult with them to see how their movers performed. Talking to someone that you trust is often the best source of information when it comes to choosing Fort Worth movers. If you can’t consult any friends or family about choosing a mover, then you need to do your own homework and the internet can be a good source of information. With sites like www.yelp.com and Google reviews, you can often find a good source of information regarding movers in Fort Worth. If you see a lot of negative reviews on a company that you are looking at then it is probably a good idea to look elsewhere. Finally, when doing your homework, check with the Better Business Bureau to see if the company that you are considering has had any complaints in the last 7 years. If they have quite a few complaints or a low grade with BBB, then move on. I have never personally made a complaint to the BBB regarding anything so if someone has complained to the BBB it is likely that a consumer was very unhappy with their mover.

After you have done a bit of homework then it is time to get some estimates. As I have said in previous blogs, make sure that you get at least three estimates and make sure that they come to your home to give you an estimate. If you encounter a company that refuses to come to your home to give you an estimate, then move on. It is likely that the moving company that you are dealing with is somehow trying to scam you out of money, so don’t even bother wasting your time.

Once you have at least three to four estimates, then it is time to take a look at them. If you have an estimate that is quite a bit lower than the others then you are probably thinking that is too good to be true, and most of the time it is. Don’t look at this as an opportunity to save hundreds of dollars, look at this as a red flag. There are many moving companies that will try to win you over with a low bid and this can be a problem in a couple of areas. If you are moving locally in the Fort Worth area, moving companies will likely give you an hourly rate. If one of them gave you an hourly rate that is much lower than the others, then it is likely that the company doesn’t pay their help very well at all and their employees could be grossly inexperienced. You are paying to have all of your belongings professionally moved; do you really want three inexperienced movers showing up in a pickup truck and a horse trailer to move your items? (Trust me, this happens!) Also, if you get an hourly rate that is comparable to the others but the amount of hours that they estimated is much less than the other estimates, then this moving company is likely not being honest an if they aren’t being honest with you from the beginning, then why would you want them to move almost everything that you own? Like I said earlier, sometimes the lowest estimate is not always the best choice.

Picking Fort Worth Movers is not always an easy thing to do, but if you take a few steps before choosing your movers then it is likely that your move will go much smoother with less hassle. I hope you enjoyed part 1 of this blog; part 2 will be coming soon.

First things first, check with your building management to see what insurance requirements your movers will need to work in your building, so when you start contacting moving companies you will know immediately if the moving company that you are contacting meets those requirements. If they can’t produce a certificate of insurance in a timely manner it is likely that you are wasting your time, so move on. I can’t tell you how many times we have received a phone call from a panicked employee who just found out that their movers don’t have enough insurance coverage to work in their building, and they are moving in three days. Office moves usually require extensive planning and man power, so if you’re calling few days before you need to move, you might have a lot of trouble finding an office mover to help you out. So please, check with your building before you do anything.

Second, make sure you get at least 3 quotes for your office relocation. If you contacted 2 moving companies, and one gave you a quote of $2,600 and the other gave you a quote of $1,300 both while working at an hourly rate, how do you know which one is telling you truth? If you got a third estimate that came in at $2,500 you would know immediately that the moving company that the one that quoted you $1,300 either wasn’t being truthful or they simply weren’t experienced enough to estimate your move correctly. Also let’s say that you’ve received 2 fixed quotes, again one for $2,600 and one for $2,500, but you also received a quote to work at an hourly rate for $1,300. Again this is a Fort Worth moving company that is likely not being honest with you or isn’t experienced enough to give you a proper bid on your office move. Experienced moving companies should be able to tell exactly what it takes to move your office, and should be able give you an estimate to reflect that. So if you see an estimate that isn’t even close to others, then you should probably avoid them. In these situations, going with the lowest price is not always the best solution.

Third, when choosing Fort Worth movers to help you with your office move, make sure they have experience in “office moving”. Just because you hired a local Fort Worth moving company to move your house or apartment and they did a wonderful job with that doesn’t mean they will do a wonderful job with your office move. Moving household goods and moving an office are two completely different animals. Moving companies that specialize in moving household goods might not do a great job on an office move. So when you are looking to hire a moving company to help you with your office move, make sure they are experienced. If you are moving a large office and relocating a large number of employees, make sure to ask for a reference of a similarly sized office move so you know they can handle the workload. This process will help you weed out companies that would be in over their head if they attempted to move your office.

By taking a few simple steps before you choose your office mover, you can save yourself a lot of headache down the road. Choosing the right office mover is very important to a successful relocation, so I hope this information helps you with any future decisions.

With all the time spent wrapping presents during the Holidays, the last thing one would want to take on is packing up their own belongings and hauling them to a new location and then go through the process of unpacking them- all the while trying to keep children that are home for the Holiday Break entertained. For these reasons, hiring professional movers to catalogue, pack, and move your household is worth the money. An established moving company can work around your schedule and will understand how to communicate with someone under the stress of a move, even during the Holiday Season.

An established professional mover can also make budgeting for a move much less complicated. One who rents a truck, buys boxes, and packs his or her own belongings will often overlook added budgetary items such as moving supplies and gasoline, while a moving company can assist with an estimate outlining the costs of a move and save one the time of adding up the numbers and prevent unanticipated costs during a move. More importantly, professional movers can help you save on an asset even more valuable than what is in your bank account- time!

Time and money are the two most important assets you have, and a move can easily limit these resources to an extreme degree. Even if hiring professional movers does end up costing a little bit more money than taking on the moving endeavor by yourself, the amount of time you save by doing it more than makes up for it. Time and money aside, some would say the amount of stress hiring movers to assist you doing your holiday move saves you is priceless!

If you are moving to a new city or are stuck between buying and selling a house, apartments are typically the best option when finding a new place to live, whether it be permanent or temporary. Due to the abundance of choices when searching for an apartment, one may find himself or herself confused or frustrated when picking an apartment to move into. The following are a few recommendations one can take into consideration when apartment hunting.

First of all, finding an ideal location within the city you are moving to. One should do some research on the different areas of the city to find the most convenient and safe, as well as the most cost-effective location to move to. One site I recommend is www.neighborhoodscout.com. This website allows you to enter the city you are looking at and subsequently create a Google satellite graph that gives a layout of city, along with a Crime Index (violent and property) of that city. For bigger cities, this will allow you to see which areas have the worst crime index and which of the least. This information is useful when picking out an area to live in, as one can have a better idea of where crime is more common within an area. Another factor that may be useful when picking out an apartment, if you have children, may be the quality of schools within the area. District websites will usually provide reports indicating which schools are performing the best.

Secondly, one should use an apartment locator website, such as rent.com, to search for apartments in the areas that seem to be the most appealing. Rent.com will list apartments within this area and allow users to find ones that have vacancies as well as parse out other data that may come in handy (apartment layouts and pet policies, etc.). Often times these websites will run specials that will give you a $100 gift card, or some other incentive for using their services.

Keep in mind when looking for an apartment that most complexes will require deposits and may do a criminal background check. If you have pets, it is important to understand that you will be paying extra money for a pet deposit, and that there are many complexes that will limit the number of pets you have, or refuse to rent to a tenant that has any.

The most obvious step is taking an inventory of the workplace. This is useful not in just planning the size of a move and estimating the cost, but also in planning how you are going to set up your new work place. If you already know the floor plan for your new location, using software such as IKEA’s 2008 Office Planner or SmartDraw (both available for free) can really help you get an idea of where you want all of your furniture to go. It is also practical to allow your employees to take a tour of your new office before the move and allow them to give input on the layout, as they might be able to provide you with useful ideas.

Another important aspect of office moving is knowing that your internet and phone systems will be available immediately. Nothing can be more stressful than moving into a new office and having a delay in access to the internet or phone. Ensure that you are in communication with your phone and internet providers, and make sure you have an available IT person on board with your move so that everything is set up promptly and smoothly.

When picking an office mover, it is wise to pick someone that has extensive experience in the field, for many reasons. First of all, those that specialize in office relocation will often be able to take your business’ needs into consideration during a move. These include understanding which parts of the office require a priority in moving, allowing certain individuals whose jobs are a priority to be up and running quicker. Often times office furniture, such as cubicles, etc. can be much larger than the standard home desk or cabinet, requiring trickier maneuvering into and out of buildings. In a downtown environment, a specialized business moving company will likely have experience moving into and out of certain buildings, thus expediting the moving process.

Whether you are traveling in your own vehicle, or using a rented moving truck, it would be wise to understand how much money you need to set aside for fuel. AAA offers a cost of gas calculator, found at http://fuelcostcalculator.aaa.com/. This can come in handy when plotting a move, as you will have some sort of general idea of what you will be spending on gasoline. As with the budgeting of hotels, it is also wise to set aside additional money for fuel in case of an unexpected event or delay during a move. One way to save money on fuel during a long drive is to utilize cruise control whenever possible. The less you accelerate and decelerate, the less gas you are generally using.

One of the most difficult things to budget during a move is food expenses. When traveling, one does not have access to a lot of storage space for groceries, nor a full kitchen to cook meals. In addition, one will often find the task of preparing food less than appealing after a long day of travel. It is for these reasons that people will turn to the food service industry for their meals during a move. Despite the often cheap prices offered by many fast food restaurants, eating out on a daily basis adds up very quickly. It is for these reasons that one should develop a strict budget for daily food allotments. To help save money, one could keep lunchmeats and condiments in a hotel fridge and transfer it to a cooler during a long drive, using rest stops to prepare picnics. Also, the use of social media sites, such as Foursquare and Groupon, can yield large discounts for when one does decide to eat out during a move.

One of the biggest factors that comes into play when budgeting for your move is understanding what it is you are moving. How many large items do you have? These would include obvious items such as furniture (sofas, beds, book cases, etc.) and large appliances. Make a list of these items and note how much you estimate each one weighs. Many moving companies charge you based on weight, so taking into consideration the weight of your load should give you a better idea of what your bill is going to be. You will also want to know whether if the moving company will be storing these items for you or if they will be moved directly to the new location, as this may come into play when calculating the cost of moving these items.

Smaller items may seem like less of an issue during a move, but all of that stuff you have piled up around your house can add up quickly. Full-service movers, such as Craddock Moving and Storage, can lighten your workload when it comes to boxing these items up, but you will be charged for this service. Decide whether or not you wish to take on this task yourself to save additional money or have the items professionally packed when determining the budget for your move. Once again, having an idea of the quantity of items you are moving will assist greatly in budgeting for your move.

Perhaps the best method of limiting your inventory during a move, and thus saving money, is to aggressively cut down on the clutter in your household which will decrease the weight of your shipment and the time spent to pack and move these items. As I prepared for a move myself recently, I listed all of the items I could part with on Craig’s List and netted well over $2000 in cash, which I could then invest in my move and additional repairs to the house I was selling. Not only does this extra cash come in useful, but reducing the amount of items you are packing can streamline the moving process and make it seem much less of an ordeal.