Tips For Moving A Short Distance

Couple Moving In Gainesville, FL

Not every move crosses state lines or time zones. Many are short-distance relocations, where people ZIP codes change but the city doesn’t. These types of moves could include college students who are upgrading from stuffy dorms to spacious apartments, or young couples or families who are pursuing their American dreams by becoming homeowners. Whatever the motivations behind your local move, check out these short haul moving tips from UF Mover Guys to achieve a low-cost, drama-free, yet fun moving experience.

Take Your Time

Even though moving can be stressful, this is only a possibility and not a foregone conclusion. One of the chief inducements to stress is time pressure: what happens if you don’t have those boxes packed, loaded, and shipped on time? Is your move ruined? While tardiness might disrupt a long distance move — for example, by causing you to have to reschedule the movers or rearrange your travel plans — the penalties aren’t as stiff during local moves.

Since you’re moving locally, you have something most people only dream about having: ready access to your next home or apartment. Whereas cross-country moves have to be completed in one fell swoop, your relocation can be accomplished in multiple stages across several days.

Once you have the new keys, head over to the place to measure the rooms. If you’ll have less space, plan on downsizing before changing addresses. You should also start bringing over items as soon as can. Your personal transportation should work for carrying smaller items. Although, when it comes to the big stuff, you’ll probably need a truck.

Many of the moving companies in Gainesville rent only medium- and large-size trucks, which cost the same amount of money no matter if you’re moving one piece of furniture or a household’s worth. But UF Mover Guys rents all sizes of trucks, including small ones, for DIY moves, or we’ll load up and transport everything for you. Smaller vehicles aren’t just cheaper on fuel (especially if you’re making several trips in town), but they’re also better on the environment.

Borrow, Don’t Buy

It’s hard to move without moving supplies. Penny-pinchers aim to save money on moves by using materials they own, such as plastic bins instead of boxes, or towels in place of packing peanuts. But the issue many run into is not having enough of these materials to finish the job. The fact that you’re sticking around town means you can borrow supplies — including bins, bags, and even large equipment like dollies — from people you know, and return them after your move. And if those friends move, you can reciprocate by lending them supplies.

Move Non-Essentials First

If you’re moving over several days, you’d be wise to hold off packing your most essential items — bed, TV, microwave, shower curtain — until you’re ready to move into the new home. This way, your current place is still livable as you transition out of it. Alternatively, if you plan to extend the move long enough to spend significant amounts of time at both locations, then you’ll want to divide essentials between both addresses as best you can.

Remember to have the utilities turned on at the new address and cancel them at your current location. To save money, you should wait to do this until you’re ready to move in, but schedule the installations ahead of time, so you know the technicians will be available when you need them. Many service providers of Internet, cable, and electricity offer either complimentary moving services or charge a modest relocation fee.

Downsize Gradually

Moving is an opportune time to downsize by getting rid of any unnecessary property, like old clothes, outdated electronics, and extra toys, games, and more. What’s nice about moving locally is that, if you have items for sale, you don’t have to relist them after you move. Even if they don’t sell, you can merely leave the ads online and wait for offers. If space is a concern, you can either donate the goods to charity or store them in a climate-controlled unit.

Manage Your Expectations

It’s true that short distance moves are easier, in many respects, than long distance moves. But when you get down to it, both involve the same amount of work — minus travel time.

If you don’t have the time, energy, or inclination to pull off a moving job, even locally, don’t sweat it — just look to UF Mover Guys. Our short haul movers use the right tools and vehicles to relocate your items efficiently and for the lowest available cost — did we mention we charge no travel or fuel fees for local moves in Gainesville? Request a free moving quote today!

Settle In With This Post-Move Checklist

Moving day ends when you unload the truck at your new house or apartment. However, the moving process continues for several days as boxes need unpacking, furniture needs arranging, etc. In order to help you settle in faster, our movers in Gainesville made this easy-to-follow, post-move checklist divided by timeframes — feel free to add or subtract tasks per your situation!

Unpacking New Home After Moving In Gainesville, FL

Moving Day Preparations

1. Set Up Utilities

Before moving into your new home, be sure to set up the utilities, so you don’t have to spend the first night with no electricity or (gasp) Internet.

If you’re moving to Gainesville, here are links to local utility companies.

Gainesville Regional Utilities (GRU) provides electric, natural gas, water, and other services. Check with your landlord or realtor to confirm which services are your responsibility.

Cox Communications offers cable, Internet, and phone services. It takes a few days to process a new account or transfer your services (and longer if you’re not doing self-installation), so call in advance!

If you’re changing your cellular plan to get a local number, AT&T and Verizon purportedly have the best cell phone coverage in Florida according to WhistleOut. As for the cheapest cell phone plans, NerdWallet reports that Sprint ranks high for non-prepaid plans while T-Mobile ranks high for pay-as-you-go plans. And when you need to buy, sell, trade, or repair a phone in Gainesville, a popular location is Re-Tech in Butler Plaza.

Lastly, before you move, don’t forget to cancel the utility accounts for your previous address. You don’t want the new residents filling their backyard swimming pool while your name remains on the water bill.

2. Inspect Your Furniture & Other Belongings

Once your belongings arrive at your new home, inspect individual pieces of furniture and fragile items. We’re not saying it’s necessary to use a magnifying glass to find hairline scratches, but you should take a quick look over each item as it comes off the truck to ensure the item is in the same condition in which it was loaded.

Professional movers accept liability for damaged items. They also take care not to damage items when moving them. But if you spot any scuffed or broken items, let the movers know.

3. Unpack The Essentials

You’ll have time in the coming days or weeks to finish unpacking, so get to the essentials first. If you planned ahead, you may have set aside boxes with special items to get you through the next couple of days. These might include toiletries, shower items, clothing, and food.

If you didn’t pack a first-day box, hopefully, you at least labeled the boxes. Check which ones contain your toiletries, especially towels, clothes, and kitchen items for cooking.

Steps For The First Week

Now that you’ve gotten through moving day, your attention should turn to tasks that should be completed during the first week.

4. Finish Unpacking

There’s not much to it but to do it. Grab a box, pull out the contents, and put them in their correct places. Finish unpacking one box before moving to another, and always throw away or recycle packing materials to avoid a mess and save the planet.

Not everyone has the stamina to unpack a full house. If that’s the case for you, check with your moving company for packing services. They also can help with assembling furniture, transporting items to storage containers, or carrying bulky items up stairs.

5. Map Out Your Commute

Many of us have to move for purposes related to work or school. Whether you came to Gainesville to attend the University of Florida or Santa Fe College, or you moved here to start a job, it’s helpful to plan your route before your first day’s commute. The best route might not be the shortest distance. Sometimes, preferred routes have the least traffic or the fewest tolls or potholes.

In addition to giving you the shortest route, Google Maps also has filters you can set to find the fastest route and spot traffic well ahead. iPhone users can take advantage of Apple Maps, which lets the user avoid tolls.

Both apps are free. But if you’re willing to cough up some dough, MotionX GPS Drive is another highly rated paid app that gives directions in multiple voices and even remembers your parking spot.

The First Month

After a week, you should be settling into life in your new home. Before you call the move over and done with, you’ll want to address a few final tasks.

6. Head To The DMV

Most states have laws requiring residents to update their driver’s licenses within 10 or so days after changing addresses. If you’re a Gainesville resident, you’ll want to head to the nearest office of the Florida Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles (FLHSMV).

To save time and avoid standing in line, you can take care of new licenses, tags, and plates online.

7. Throw A Housewarming Party

A housewarming party is a great way to meet your new neighbors — once your home is fully unpacked and presentable. If you’re in a residential neighborhood, try going door-to-door to meet your neighbors. Just be mindful of the fact that some people are less welcoming of drop-ins.

If you have friends in the area, be sure to invite them, as well. Having a few familiar faces in the crowd can help to cut through any lulls in conversations between new people who are just getting acquainted.

Whether you’re planning a move, in the middle of one, or finishing up the last steps, UF Mover Guys can help. We offer everything from full-service moves to individual services, such as packing, loading and unloading, and even temporary storage. We also handle local moves within Gainesville as well as long-distance relocations. Contact us to schedule your move!