As kids start their summer vacations from school, many Iowa families are planning to move — either across town or to another state. The arrival of May will signal the start of the busy moving season, and Melissa Sullivan, spokeswoman for a moving company, says Iowans will benefit if they can lighten the load before packing any boxes.
“Start taking inventory of everything you own,” Sullivan says. “That couch that’s been sitting in your basement for a few years, is that something you can really picture in your new home? Do that with all of your things. It’s a great time to have a garage sale. The less you have to move and put away, the less stressful it is and the more money you’re going to save.”
If you don’t want the hassle of a garage sale, she suggests donating some of the excess stuff to charity. The busiest season for moving is May through August as the foul winter weather is long gone and the kids are out of school. “But when you do that, that’s the time that everybody else is moving,” Sullivan says. “You’re going to have fewer resources to chose from and probably pay a higher price. If you can move in some of those less-busy months, September or October, you still avoid that winter weather but you’re not moving at the same time as everybody else.”
Sullivan, who works for Mayflower, has a few more tips on how to make the move easier on everyone. “Try moving on a Monday or a Tuesday,” she says. “Everybody’s looking to book those Thursday or Friday slots. You’re really going to save some money, the same with moving toward the beginning of the month or the middle of the month, rather than at the end of the month. Busiest weeks by far are the last week in June and July.”
She says if you can be flexible, it will be easier to find a mover and it likely will be less expensive.