Should You Move Yourself or Hire a Professional Mover?

The moving process is challenging and comes with plenty of options. Besides debating on the best house to buy/rent, which realtor to consult, and whether you should move your furniture, you should also figure out if you can move yourself or hire a professional moving company. You should choose between hiring movers and moving yourself based on your budget, complexity of the move, personality, and proximity to the new house.

Hiring professional movers is a better option if you can’t handle the heavy lifting or don’t have friends and family who can help with the move. However, many have completed DIY moves successfully. You should consider the following to choose between these options.

 

When to Hire Professional Movers

You should consider hiring professional movers if you fit into the following categories:

• If you need to move quickly – home and business owners with a tight schedule and need immediate relocation should consider hiring movers. Movers take away the heavy lifting, which involves planning the move, packing, loading, transporting your items, unloading, and unpacking in your new home. Professionals work quickly and efficiently, which suits individuals on a tight schedule.
• If you are moving with old family members – you should also consider professional movers if you have aging parents under your care. Planning the move can make it impossible to care for their daily needs.
• If you need to start a new job – the need to relocate might be occasioned by a new job offer requiring you to report earlier than your family. Hiring a moving company enables you to focus on job priorities as professionals take care of the moving.
• Individuals with specialty items – you should hire movers if you have fragile and expensive items, such as pool tables, antique furniture, and piano. Professionals have years of experience and relevant equipment for packing and handling such items.

 

Benefits of Hiring Professional Movers

While hiring professional movers is more expensive than moving yourself, it is beneficial in the following ways:

• No heavy lifting – professionals take away the heavy lifting of the moving process. After choosing your preferred company, your only task is to provide suitable moving dates, and the company plans the rest.
• Less stress – moving to a new neighborhood or state is challenging enough. Having to figure out important logistics of transporting your belongings is an added problem. Hiring professionals frees you to focus on family, job, and settling in the new home.
• Customized move – professionals can customize the move to meet your specific needs. This includes how fragile furniture and antiques are packed, moving dates, and more.
• Professional drivers – moving companies hire drivers with unmatched experience driving large commercial vehicles. This is better for homeowners who can’t hire moving trucks because they can’t drive commercial vehicles.

 

When to Move Yourself

Completing the move DIY instead of hiring a company is better if:

• You want to move affordably – moving yourself is much more affordable than hiring professional movers. Doing it yourself eliminates the cost of packing, loading, transporting, unloading, and unpacking. However, you still need a moving budget to guide the move.
• You are moving locally – you can DIY the move if your new home is less than a hundred miles away. The short distance limits the possibility that something unpredictable can happen.
• You can drive large vehicles – you can rent a moving truck for the move if you can drive commercial-grade vehicles. Renting a moving truck is cheaper than hiring movers.
• Your schedule is free – homeowners who don’t have a tight schedule have a lot of time to prepare for the move.

 

Benefits of Moving Yourself

While moving yourself is quite stressful, it has the following benefits:

• Cost saving – moving yourself is cheaper than hiring professional movers. You won’t incur the costs of paying for packing, loading, and paying the moving company. The only significant expense of moving yourself is the cost of hiring and fueling a moving truck.
• Control over the move – moving yourself allows you to personalize the move. You get to choose the packing materials, vehicles to use, and moving times/dates.
• No hidden costs – hiring professional movers has several unexpected costs. For instance, most movers charge for extra miles and fuel costs if the route changes because of bad weather or road work. You should also budget for insurance fees, which aren’t included in the initial quote.
• No strangers involved – hiring moving companies makes moving impersonal. Employees of the company are ideally professionals paid to complete their assigned tasks. Though rare, some employees are rude and ignorant. DIYing the move eliminates the hassle of dealing with strangers and unpredictable persons.

 

Conclusion: Should you DIY Moving or Hire Professionals?

Moving, whether in-state or across-state, is time-consuming, expensive, and stressful. Before moving, you should figure out several things, such as packing, moving budget, and whether to hire professional movers. Hiring professionals is a good option for homeowners who don’t want the stress that comes with various moving activities. If you have a flexible schedule and want to save money, consider DIYing the move.