Moving: Hire a pro or do it yourself? | Armonk Homes

There are a zillion decisions to be made when you move a household. The first one seems simple: Do it yourself or pay for full-service movers to swoop in, pack up all your belongings and ship them to your new home?

It may surprise you, though, to know that there is a broad spectrum of choices that you can mix and match. Moving is a big American preoccupation — 15% to 20% of the entire population was on the move yearly before the recession slowed things down. In response, the moving industry has come up with an array of ways to configure your move. You can do some jobs yourself and hire experts for others. Ultimately, your decision boils down to the classic tradeoff: spend your money or spend your time.

 

Before considering the options, a word about preparation: You can’t start too soon. That’s true especially if you are doing part or all of the move yourself, says Barry Izsak, a professional organizer whose Austin, Texas, company, Arranging it All, specializes in relocations. It’s expensive to move things you don’t use – unfinished projects, broken and long-unused furniture, exercise equipment, books, toys, clothes and odds and ends you can’t relinquish. “Start going through your home room by room. Look at each closet, cupboard, drawer and ask yourself if you really need this stuff,” Izsak says.

The moving industry is rife with scams, fraud and slick operators. (Read “Consumers Still Held Hostage by Movers,” at ConsumerAffairs.com, about a government investigation into the moving industry and learn more about estimates from the American Moving and Storage Association.)