1. Place heavier furnishings and appliances in the truck first, preferably against the front wall adjacent to the cab. This helps keep the weight centered along the entirety of the truck and decreases the chance of something heavy falling. Make sure that you balance the load in the truck. For example, if the washing machine is on the right side then place the dyer on the left. This will help keep the rig controllable while driving.
2. Long items are next to be loaded. These could include sofas, mattresses, and headboards among other items. They should be pushed up against the outer walls (or side walls) to best make use of the space and to better secure them with tie downs if necessary.
3. Lighter boxes or objects should be place on top of the heavier objects particularly if they’re not fragile.
4. Fragile items need to be packed with a certain care. It doesn’t matter so much if they’re packed high or low as long as they are secured and cannot move or fall. This is why in the case of dinner and glassware I suggest putting these items in a separate car if possible.
5. Anything that you don’t want scratched up needs to be covered with a blanket or surrounded by soft stuff. Things that could require covering may tables, night stands or any furnishing made of wood or stainless steel.
6. Flat breakable items, such as mirrors or portraits, should be fitted between two soft, flat objects. Generally, the best thing that fits this requirement would be your mattress and box spring.
7. Soft items, such as pillows, are great as fillers. Use these items to fill the gaps between items to ensure they don’t bounce around or fall.
8. Fill the space under tables, chairs or any other furnishings that create gaps. This will help stabilize the objects and be the most effective use of space that you can achieve.

I suggest, before even renting out the truck, that you plan ahead of time using these tips as guidance. It will make packing the truck easier and you won’t waste valuable moving time that could cost you in the end. Getting your belongings from point A to point B is important for your own mental well being and your pocket book, so make sure to load everything up the right way before leaving your old home behind.

Using a dolly is relatively simple for most folks. Take it to the edge of a large, heavy appliance, lift the bottom edge of the appliance and slip the dolly underneath. Make sure to center the dolly so that the weight of the appliance is even on both sides. It’s not always necessary, but strapping the appliance to the dolly frame is a good idea for stability. Lastly, tip the dolly back on its wheels and move the heavy object.

Don’t be like most folks and try to carry everything with brute strength. This is how you hurt yourself, while moving heavy objects. Get a dolly, call over a friend, and properly move the safe way in order to insure that no body needless gets hurt.

Plates: Don’t stack plates like you would in a cabinet. The top and bottom surface of a plate is actually its weakest point which means if you place them in a box this way they’re less likely to make it the whole trip. To avoid this problem, it’s best to pack plates on their side instead of on top of each other. It sounds counter-intuitive but it’s the geometry of a plate that allows this to work.

Bowls: Because the walls of a bowl are rounded, they’re better off stacked on top of each other. In other words, pack them the same way you would stack them in the cabinet and opposite of how you should pack your plates.

Knives: If stored in a wooden block, it’s best to keep them in said block. This prevents them from stabbing other items or you when unpacking. If you don’t have a block set, then wrap each knife individually in paper and then bound all the knives together so they cannot cause unnecessary damage.

Pots and Pans: These aren’t likely to break but can be a pain to pack nice and neatly because of handles and lids. Flipping lid, so that the handle on top are inside the pot, can make it easier to pack them. If you have a set, it may be wise to stack the pots inside each other as best possible instead of flipping their lids.

Glasses: Using a cardboard cell divider, the same kind of thing that the glassware originally came in, is a great way to keep everything from bouncing off each other. Fill in any extra space with paper or packing peanuts; this will keep your glassware from bouncing around inside their cells. If you cannot find a cell divider then do you’re best to use paper to keep the glasses from shifting around in the box.

Stemware: Like packing glasses, stemware will benefit from a cardboard divider and paper. They do have one extra weak point though and that is the actual stem. Wrap an inflated tube, bubble wrap, or other supporting objects around the stem  to better brace the it.

These tips should improve the odds of your dinnerware and glassware surviving the move in one piece. There is still no guarantee, sometimes stuff breaks no matter how protected a piece may be. If you’re driving to your new home, I suggest taking the boxes of fragile items with you as they’re less likely to bounce around inside your own vehicle. Here’s to not opening a box of glass or ceramic shards the next time you move!

1. Make a Budget: This is so often overlooked. You need to know where your income is coming from and how much it is as this will influence the kind of places that you can afford and the furnishing they can be filled with. Also, budget out all your costs: how much it costs to eat, drive to work, bills, etc. All vital are areas that will take a chunk of your income and must be considered.

2. Choosing the Apartment: Research all the apartment rental companies in the area as they will have a variety of properties to choose. Quality is going to be huge so if you can get a nice apartment for cheap by being first to the door, all the better. Placement of the apartment is also critical. Does it have a good proximity to where you work, shop, buy groceries, etc? This decision can cost you in the long run with gas or transportation and is trumped only by the overall rent of the apartment.

3. Initial Things You Need: It’s easy to overlook things when living with other’s support. Cookware is needed to be purchased in order to cook food as well as plates and other items to eat off. You can get these kinds of items somewhere online or at thrift stores. Initial furniture is also a major need. These too can be found for sale online or in thrift stores. Filling the cabinets with food initially will also take a decent investment. Luckily, stuff like pasta, flour, cereals, etc last awhile so the initial costs will even out over the long run.

4. Get All Bills in Order: If you haven’t lived on your own then you probably haven’t considered many of these bills, however, there can potentially be a number of them. Some include electricity, WSG (water, sewage, and garbage), renter’s insurance, and other insurances (like health, car, etc.). These too need to be included in your budget that was mentioned before and some care needs to be taken to keep these costs in check.

This is far from an all inclusive list. Check with the rental property managers for a complete list of everything that needs to be covered or changed into your name. Certain areas will have special insurance needs depending on flood plains and other problems. However, this checklist should cover some of the major issues that you’re going to face when moving in to a new place.

U-Haul rates are quite high for cross country prices. Going from the middle of the country (Chicago for example) to a coast will cost you somewhere between $1500 and $2000, which isn’t very good when you consider the services of ABF U-Pack. You also have to factor in the use of gas, which you must pay for and will bleed you dry if you have to move a long distance. It is my opinion that U-Haul trucks are best used for the short distance move, it seems like the only monetarily viable option with the company.

The quality of their services is always of the lower end of the spectrum it seems; in part do the franchising of the U-Haul business. Service will vary from city to city so keep that in mind. Also, read the fine print as hidden costs are one of this company’s biggest complaints and money makers. Damages in trucks are common and you must record them all down before rental. Because of this, renting a U-Haul truck for moving can be a lengthy process as their rentals have been around forever and have accumulated much damage, which they’ll blame you for if you don’t account for it. Be wary of extra equipment as well. Dollies, blankets, and other items are charged for. Oh, and don’t buy any boxes from U-Haul or any other moving company, you can likely get them for free from a local store or something.

U-Haul, ultimately, is best only as short distance moving company. Going to a new apartment or from a college dorm to new digs is the best use for this services. The cost of their moving trucks is just too high to justify spending on cross country moving. The rates and hidden costs are also an issue as is the quality of the service, so dealing with the U-Haul moving company for as little as possible is the best bet.

1. Arrange your move out date: This is important to create a timeline for yourself helping you schedule other things around it. Besides, if you have all the business side of things taken care of, and you’ve dealt your moving service, then you will have less to worry about in the short term.

2. Cancel Bills and Change Addresses: You need to inform all services and business that mail you bills or products of your change of address. In the case of telephone service, cancel as you won’t live there anymore, while a service like Netflix needs the new address to continue service.

3. Get Things Packed Ahead of Time: By packing the non-essentials will cut a number of hours that will needed near the crunch time of moving. It’s also one less thing to do in the near future.

4. Moving Day: Hopefully, relax. If you have children you’ll probably need a babysitter. Same thing for animals. All the arrangements done in advance it should be just a matter of moving everything onto a moving truck and leaving. Now you can stress about the new home or apartment!

Have other tips for moving out? Please leave a comment and tell us…

Hidden fees exist with U-Pack Moving just like other companies, however, at the same time they are better about it then most. There special ramp is the big one, which will cost you over $75 more than likely and isn’t even guaranteed to be available.

As far as long distance movers go, U-Pack rates are better than most when traveling across the country. The prices range from $1100 to $1400 typically for coast to coast moves. If your more centralized U-Pack prices will be lower as will the cost to you. However, also take a look at fuel rate charges. This will have a great effect on the price, possibly doubling it for long haul moving.

For those looking for a more flexible schedule, U-Pack has their ReloCube, something that is not too much unlike a moving pod. An employee will come over, drop the cube off on a flat surface, likely your driveway, and you’re free to place your stuff at your connivance. After you’ve completed packing up, U-pack will come back, pick up the ReloCube and deliver it on the agreed upon date at your new address.

Lastly, ABF U-Pack Moving has local affiliates much like U-Haul does. Service quality will fluctuate depending on who and where you are dealing with. These are typically low paying, thankless jobs so don’t be surprised if the people you are dealing with are of the more surly type. With that said, I had little to no problems with anyone I talked too in Seattle. Ultimately, U-Pack is a moving company that comes highly recommended by me and others, with an Epinions.com score of 4.5 stars and several hundred reviews. If you’re looking to move cross country this is what you’re looking for.

You’re not going to find many complaints about the company’s service on the internet and there is a reason for that, they’re just that good of a service. However, there are a couple problems for your consideration. First, they don’t have the reach that other trucking services have. Penske trucks simply aren’t available in all areas and that can be a problem for those of you who are moving to more remote locations.

Mechanical service can also be a problem with Penske trucks. It can slow down moving around and cause problems with your moving day. This can be a horrible problem for those looking to move in a hurry or are otherwise stressed from other moving activities.

Other than those two chief complaints there isn’t much else to hate on about this service. There trucks are well managed, if just a little old, and come cleaned and ready to go on in day. There is a lift installed on the truck so there isn’t any worry about picking up and setting down boxes multiple times. Overall, Penske is a brand that is known and trusted in the moving truck service world and can be relied upon.

Pickups, vans, and the smaller 10’ truck start out at a reasonable $19.99* for a single day move. Not bad if you don’t already have this kind of moving capacity at home. There is an extra fee of $.79* per mile when using the equipment for only a single day, very reasonable presuming you’re not going very far. There largest trucks, 17’ and 24’, go for $29.99* and $39.99* respectively.

What gets most consumers in trouble with U-Haul is they don’t account for gas charges. You’re responsible for fueling up the truck on long distance moving trips. This can be a costly adventure with gas prices the way they are. If you’re looking to move across the country or to a new city, I don’t know if  U-Haul would be the best way to go, so make sure to consider your alternatives. However, for short distance moves typically within the same city on the same day, U-Haul rates are probably the cheapest out there.

*Prices accurate as of January 2010

For what it’s going to cost, North American Van Lines does provide some quality service at the home. Namely, they handle everything with care. Their service has a track record for not breaking much of anyone’s belongings which is crucial considering how much is being paid for the service. North American Van Lines also offer a storage service for those who are in need of storing their items prior to moving. This allows you to pack up everything prior to moving out, hopefully reducing the workload on the actual day of moving.

The biggest problem for the company is the crazy prices they’re going to cost you for the full service and their disorganization. Their movers are the best at being on time, and this can cost you as they like to hike the price up for the extended moving period. In addition, this company is not a budget mover. You’re looking at spending up to $5000 to $6000 on nationwide moves and at minimum of at least $2000 for most any other move.

There is one more major caveat with their service that should be noted: hidden costs. Moving companies are notorious for these kinds of things in order to increase the prices they can charge to consumers and North American Van Lines are no different then these other companies. Being charged for previous damages, loading up the wrong day, and other common fees can come about. While the company has superb one on one service, the prices and fees make it hard for anyone to truly recommend North American Van Lines for your moving needs you’re better off finding a different moving company.