The typical moving season of the year, for many Americans, is during the summer. Still, it can be a hassle dealing with all of the competition that brings. The best alternative is, therefore, to try moving in winter. Though it might sound complicated, and it does have its challenges, there are some substantial benefits for moving in the winter. Check out some of these pros and cons for relocating during the cold season.
How Do You Move in the Winter
Relocating during cold weather is not ideal at all. Most people’s reasons to move during the summer are because it seems much easier getting organized to move. You will be pleasantly surprised at how simple wintertime relocation can be. Though you’ll have to do some things differently, you can just as easily get relocated during the cold season as you can during the warm season. So, how do you move during wintertime? The key is to start everything early and make sure you communicate with your long-distance moving company.
Check Out the Pros of Scheduling Movers During the Winter
As we mentioned before, relocating during the off-season does have a few benefits. Some would even argue that booking long-distance movers during this season is the best time of the year to move. If you can withstand the weather and stay focused on finishing the task at hand, you will see why. Here are some of the pros of relocating during wintertime.
Moving Your Home During Winter is Cheaper
Many long-distance moving companies are usually crammed with bookings during the summer months. It’s a prevalent time of year to move, but relocation companies will often jack up the pricing during their busiest season. Adding extra expenses to your relocation budget can only add more moving stress. If you choose to book during the off-season, prices go down significantly, so you can free up some extra cash. You can use that extra money to use a storage service for some much-needed space – be sure to book for storage early as well.
You’ll Have Access to More Booking Dates
On average, the typical American will move 12 times in a lifetime. Furthermore, 45 million Americans move per year, and the bulk of them move during the summer. Cross country moving companies are often overbooked, and you’re likely to get beat out of a booking date during summer, especially if you’re moving to another state alone. If you opt for an off-season booking, you would be surprised how many openings there are. Most people do not want to deal with the freezing weather, especially when it comes to a big job like relocating. Just be sure to contact a long-distance moving company and book a few months in advance – you’ll even get a free quote upon request.
Getting Settled in Your New Home Will Be Much Faster
Nothing lights a fire under you like relocating during the off-season, and all oxymorons aside, getting out of the freezing climate is just the right motivation for finishing. Not only that, but your cross country movers will have more time to dedicate to you and help you get settled in quicker – they dislike freezing as much as you do, so you will need to know how to tip movers once the job is done.
The Cons of Moving in the Winter
We’ve talked a lot about the benefits of relocating during the cold months, but what about some drawbacks? There are just as many cons as there are pros, and it would be good for you to know what’s at risk while choosing to move when the weather is freezing. The more you know about the cons of relocating during the off-season, the better you will be able to decide when is the best season for you to move.
It Takes a Longer Time to Prepare
When the weather starts getting nasty, and traffic starts to get more and more congested, it’ll be much harder to move. Considering you’re going to be surrounded by icy roads and lots of snow, you’ll have lots of things to do before moving and plan ahead much farther in advance than usual. Changing your utilities might be a bit harder and more expensive since the price for heating and electricity is increased and in higher demand. Also, traffic can be challenging during the cold months. It might take longer to get packing supplies unless you opt to order packing supplies and hire a long-distance moving company for their packing services. It’s also a big challenge if you have to store or retrieve any items you have in a storage unit.
You Have Less Daylight to Work With
Winter usually comes with faster days and longer nights so that you won’t have that much light to work with during the day. If you try and finish at night, your fingers and toes might freeze off before you get done – bad timing for any last-minute moving. You’ll have to use your day wisely and do your best not to waste any of it. Unfortunately, that means waking up early to get everything taken care of, and the longer you spend getting settled in, the more hours you will have to pay for long-distance moving services.
You Have to Make Sure to Stay Warm
Though we did mention using your hours wisely, it can be hard to do when you need to take a break to stay warm. You and cross country movers will most likely be walking in and out of the house, and being in the snow too long can lead to someone getting sick. You may also have to turn on the heating system in your home occasionally, and that can spike up your utility bill.
Turn the Heat Off and Keep Yourself Warm with These Winter Moving Tips
Now that you have a good idea of the pros and cons of relocating during wintertime, you can decide when to relocate. In case you are considering relocating while it’s freezing , there are some things you can do to make the process go by easier. Check out some of these tips for your snow-filled relocation for stress-free moving.
Check the Weather Forecast a Week in Advance
For the sake of your hired state-to-state movers, you will want to check the weather forecast at least one week in advance. You will be able to check for possible snowstorms, hail storms, or slick and icy roads. You can confirm with your long-distance movers and check up on your booking status and if there are going to be any delays on their side.
Winter Prep Your New Home
Assuming that you’ve made it to your new home before your long-distance movers have, you’re going to need to prepare your home before they get there. You will have to cover the floors, so they don’t get dirty from all of the salt, dirt, and snow being tracked in. You will also have to shovel and salt your driveway, for the truck, and pathway to the front door. Lastly, you’ll need to make sure that your home is nice and warm. This is a lot of work to take on by yourself, but if you’re moving to a smaller home, then it shouldn’t be hard at all. If it’s a larger house, you can hire a landscaping service that will shovel and salt for you.
Take Care of Your Movers
Your hired professionals have a lot of work to take on helping you, so it would be a nice gesture to make sure that they’re taken care of for all their work while outside. They have to pack and unpack all of your belongings, load and unload the truck, etc. You can do simple things like giving them a break to get warm inside or offer them a nice hot drink. A kind act can go a long way with these pros, and it might even give them a boost to get finished faster.