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To Move: Friends or Movers?

When you've moved did you hire movers or did you gather friends and family and moved all your stuff together in cars, trucks, and a rental truck?

My DH and I are currently in the process of getting ready to move and are having a deep discussion on this.   My family has always hired movers and his family thinks its a waste of money when you have perfectly good friends and family to help.      It appears I will lose this battle - as there's a lot of people who have offered and although we're getting stuff from multiple places, it's not too much of hardship travel-wise.   

What are your thoughts on this?  I'm curious to know if I'm in a minority on this or the majority and my husbands family just does it because 'it's how they've always done it.'

Background:  I love that movers know what they're doing and are 'experts' at it for the most part.   I've had great luck with them and would love to use them again, as I personally dislike helping people move, so hate to have to ask them to help me move.   But in DHs family it seems almost like an expectation that they'd help...I just do not get it.
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Re: To Move: Friends or Movers?

  • Somewhere in the middle: I hired people from craigslist to move the heavy stuff, but they just piled it all in one room and I unpacked it from there.  So nowhere near "moving company" service.  Just using muscles on an hourly rate.  I think I paid about $20/hr per guy.

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  • I worked for a moving company, therefore used them the last time I moved, but would never do it again myself!  Soo much easier to just have a few guys know what they are doing get it done quick and easy.   Once you have seen the professionals in action, you realize how much easier moving is when you hire them!

  • edited February 2015
    If people offer, I think it's fine to take them up on it. Of course asking them to not touch anything that's too heavy. If people do help, I think it's only right to have a stopping point - like at 5pm, they've helped enough and you're taking them out to dinner. You'll finish the rest yourself or hire it out. KWIM?

    I don't think it's ok to ask, though. 

    The last two times DH and I have helped people move, they didn't have their shit ready to go. SUPER ANNOYING. By ready to go, I mean having everything in boxes by the door ready to be moved from point A to point B. One guy still had his computer on and his workstation set up (just one example). In the other the couple had about 4 boxes ready and basically expected us to help them pack the rest. Don't be those people.
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  • We hired movers.  So much faster and easier.....well worth the money to us!
  • Both times that I've moved I've moved everything in my own car with the exception of the really large items (bed, dressers, tables, etc...).  For those large items I borrowed the towing trailer from H's parents and asked my brother with a truck to come help.  I gave him gas money and fed him.

    Same thing when we moved H into our current home, loaded everything into our cars and kept making trips until we were done.  No need for a truck or trailer for his items so I didn't have to ask for help from my brother again.
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  • I've done both. My family moved around constantly when I was a kid thanks to the military so I have a pretty biased opinion of movers "professionalism" and "value" and personally prefer to move myself whenever possible, whether I have friends and family helping or not. The times we've moved, my family has helped along with a couple of friends. When the time came, we helped them move too so at least the service was returned (including drinks and dinner).



  • I have always been one to do it myself with some friends and family. The last move was for work, and they hired packers and movers. This was the best thing ever, except the 3 days without a bed. THey put the boxes in the room I told them too, carried everything up or down the respective stairs, ect. I don't think I would do it on my own anymore. 
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  • We always did it ourselves when we were moving in town.. the last time we were moving a 7hr drive away so we hired movers and it was so much easier! Less stress on us with everything else going on and we have decided we will spend the money next time we move!

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  • We've done both, and will always hire movers from here on out - I hurt my back really badly and our friend got a giant gash in his hand from helping.  
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  • My friends had a bunch of friends help move and I use movers. The movers were always worth the money. I don't have to worry about my friends getting hurt or accidentally breaking things, and the movers were always on time and quick.

    A bunch of people offered to help my friends move and had agreed to be there at a specific time, but then half the people bailed completely or were late. It was a cluster each time they moved.

    We will be using movers to move into our new house when the time comes (fingers crossed).
  • Movers. I love it if a friend offers to come over and help put stuff in boxes or do some unpacking with me, but for the actual move professionals all the way. I can afford it and I feel like it's selfish to burden my friends and family with that chore, even if they've offered. And I personally won't help people with the heavy lifting so it feels wrong to accept that.
  • I have never hired movers. I'm pretty type A about my belongings. I like to pack them a certain way, I like to move them in my car so I know exactly which box is which and where it's going and how fragile it is. I think I'd freak out if I just had to sit back and let someone else do that.

    I always move the boxes myself in my car even if takes 10 trips. And then I get guy friends with trucks to do just the furniture.

    That was before I was married. Now DH has a truck and he works for a truck rental company (he can get a discount on a box truck) so when we move this year, we will definitely not be hiring anyone.

                                                                     

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  • Get movers. My parents volunteered me and my husband the last time they moved and it was a huge time commitment plus my husband has back problems. Plus they didn't do a great job of packing to begin with so we moved a ton of stuff that they ended up throwing away when they unpacked everything.

  • esstee33esstee33 member
    First Anniversary First Comment 5 Love Its First Answer
    edited July 2015
    I've never hired movers. I've usually lived in very small places with not a ton of heavy stuff, though. FI grew up with a Navy mom and they're basically pros at moving themselves, so when he and I moved into our current place, we just did it with the three of us. It was just fine. 

    That said, when we move again, it's almost definitely going to be because his company transfers us, and they'll pay for movers. Since it's going to be a significantly longer distance move, we'll take them up on that. 
  • AprilH81 said:
    Movers (good ones) are worth every penny.

    Moving is exhausting enough without having to do all of the heavy lifting.  We moved in May from a 1,500 sq ft house (3 bedrooms/2.5 baths) and even with speedy professional movers it took about 9 hours and we were beat.  We only moved 2 miles down the road.

    PLUS...  And this might be the biggest issue.  A professional mover will be insured against damage.  If your friends drop your 70 inch tv too bad, so sad.  If the movers drop your 70 inch tv you end up with a new one.

    I'm always the do it yourself/ with friends person but I didn't even think of that...all the times I've moved in the past was one bedroom apartments. 1 bed, 1 dresser, 1 couch. I totally forget that I have a house full of shit now, and about 3 times the furniture. Hmmmm movers may be in my future.

                                                                     

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  • We've done both.    I prefer hired movers.      

    If we ever find a house to buy we will do a mix.    Hire someone to move the big heavy stuff, but we will move the rest, hopefully with some help of some friends.






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  • I will always gladly plunk down the money to hire movers. They are worth every last penny. Not to mention in NYC it's basically a must because it's damn near impossible to park a u-haul legally, so someone needs to stay with the the truck at all times. And one of my moves the elevator was out so the movers had to carry everything down 6 flights of stairs. 

    We always pack/unpack everything ourselves though. 
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  • WinstonsGirlWinstonsGirl member
    First Anniversary First Answer First Comment 5 Love Its
    edited February 2015
    It depends on what/how much you have to move.  Personally, I've always used friends, but I'm cheap and it was mostly boxes.  

    My first place was out of my parents house.  I had a bunch of Ikea furniture I'd been stockpiling, but I never opened the boxes so they were easy to move.  As it was a new duplex, I also got GC's to a local furniture shop with my mortgage, so I had them deliver the couches/mattress/freezer I bought on moving day, so no moving for us.  

    House 2 with DH, we were given access to store our belongings in the garage.  Our house was finished in Aug but we had no power meter till Nov, so the house was finished but we weren't allowed to move it.  As we lost possession of the duplex that summer, we rented a truck and moved the couches and such into the garage.   Lots of our other stuff was still at DH's house, and that came in a second truck on moving day.  One friend came to help us with the truck/garage unloading and he said it was easiest move cos we had so little stuff to actually move.  It only took about 30-45 mins to unload everything.  

    If we were to move now, I'd pay movers.  We have too much shit and I don't want to lift it anymore.  

    ETA - spelling

  • daria24 said:
    I will always gladly plunk down the money to hire movers. They are worth every last penny. Not to mention in NYC it's basically a must because it's damn near impossible to park a u-haul legally, so someone needs to stay with the the truck at all times. And one of my moves the elevator was out so the movers had to carry everything down 6 flights of stairs. 

    We always pack/unpack everything ourselves though. 
    One August I moved from a 4th floor walk up to a 5th floor walk up on the hottest day of the year. I didn't regret a SINGLE PENNY I paid those guys to do it.
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  • We hired movers when we moved into our house in June, and I will never not hire movers now. We still moved some of the fragile stuff our selves, like all our wedding presents that were just sitting in living room still in their boxes. 

    My sister and her husband helped us move the small stuff, and they are the best packers. They packed up my kitchen better than I ever could have. 

    I think once you have more than a bedroom to move, it's best to get movers because they do it so quickly!
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  • Last time we moved, we had a lot of friends offer to help us. We got pizza and beer for everyone who came out. I don't think we would ever higher movers unless we had no one offer to help us. There are certain pieces of furniture I am just not strong enough to assist with. 
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  • sarahufl said:
    At a certain age and income bracket, you hire someone.


    THIS!!!

    Plus, at a certain age and income bracket, pizza and beer are no longer "payment."  I would say that age is around the time you are able to buy your own beer legally.

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  • Hired movers. They do it quickly. You pay them and don't owe anyone anything.

                       
  • We hired movers when we moved into our apartment last June. It was well worth the money. We plan on hiring the same company when we start house hunting next month. 
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  • We just moved in November.  We debated about doing it ourselves, but a co-worker told me about a great moving company he uses.  So we decided to give them a shot.  It was small house, which is why we thought about doing it ourselves.  But those movers were the best and easiest thing that happened to us that day.  They were awesome!  It was worth every penny and H & I have said that we will never move without movers again!
  • I exhausted the whole "hey, wanna help me move" favors in my 20s. Hired movers all the way now.
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  • When we moved into the house were in now, we had friends with a van help us move. The apartment before that it was DH and I and many taxis!

    When my mom moved 10 years ago, we had family and friends. She hired a massive moving van. We also had my Uncle Bob. He had up 95% unpacked and mover in by that night


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  • I've done both and the movers were TERRIBLE. It was an awful experience and I will never repeat it. I will cart my own damn king-sized mattress down ten flights of stairs alone before I'll hire movers again, I swear. I will always pay people I actually know and rent my own u-haul from now on.

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