What Is The Cheapest Way To Move Locally?

Moving. It one of the most dreaded weekends of a person life (or at least mine, lol). Over the past couple of years, I have perfected the art of moving. Whether it be through moving for the military (ex-husband), for a job or for a better apartment, I have moved so many times that has caused me to become so efficient with it. Granted, it was just me and I didn't have 6 rooms, 20 kids, etc. It still gets costly to move, even without that. So, what is the cheapest way to move locally?Here are a couple of tips that I've picked up along the way that will help make your move a little easier.

Recruit Friends with Trucks 

Never underestimate the power of a friend with a truck (or an SUV for that matter). They can haul some serious stuff! If you are concerned with your stuff getting messed up in a truck, I wouldn't be too concerned about that. There are so many cheap options from protecting your things. When I recently got my bed, I was incredibly paranoid about my bed getting dirty (first major purchase post-divorce, I was really important to me). So I did a little research and I purchased a plastic mattress cover. It was around $10 and it saved my mattress like you would not believe! So all in all, if you get 2 friends that have trucks that can help you with a move, let's say $20 an hour [$20/hr x 2 hours (that's what I averaged at least with each of my moves) x 2 guys= $80. Not a bad deal.

If you have better stuff than I did and are more concerned with if things get broken, stolen (Yikes, I would hope that wouldn't be a concern with your friends but I guess you never know) or that's not an option for you I would definitely recommend Task Rabbit. I waited until the last minute (of course because it's what I do, lol) and they really came through for me. I requested a task rabbit the day before and they were there and on time!!! I couldn't believe it!

Get Free Boxes

I would recommend places like Big lots, Walmart, Walgreen's or liquor stores. Liquor stores were the jackpot because they were really sturdy (My guess is due to the fact that they have some serious alcohol to haul), they were great especially for separating drinking glasses (i.e. wine case boxes), or just breakables in general. Liquor stores are really good about keeping them up front near the cash registers. It's also a plus so that you can save a trip for my next suggestion...

Bribe with Pizza and Beer for Friends

Make it a fun event. Get some pizza, beer, and some good tunes and crank it up! I've come to find that you can make the best, even out of the most boring and mundane tasks. Life doesn't have to be boring! Create Facebook event or GroupMe and say "Hey pizza and beer to help me move a couple of boxes!" I'm telling you I don't care how old you are, it never gets old.

Conclusion 

So, let's do a quick financial recap, shall we? $80 for'Movers' (a.k.a truck buddies)  + $0 for boxes (again liquor stores, I'm telling you it's a gold mine) + ~$20 for pizza and beer (it may be more depending on how many people you have and how you choose to get the pizza, it's up to you!) =$100 BOOM you've got yourself moved! Let me know if you've ever tried something like this or if you have any other cool tips! You never know, it may help someone else! :)