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Are you planning a move?

If so, you’re not alone. Roughly 40 million Americans move every year.

Moving across the country, or even across state lines, can be a stressful experience. The good news is that there are things you can do to alleviate some of that stress.

Check out these five long distance moving tips that will make your life easier.

1. Declutter and Minimize

First things first, when preparing for a long distance move, take the opportunity to declutter and minimize your stuff. You accumulate many things throughout the years, and there’s a good chance that you don’t need it all.

Now is the ideal time to downsize your home. This prevents you from taking unnecessary clutter to your new home. Many people plan to discard things out once they reach their new home, but save yourself the trouble and do it before the move. It can save you money now and time later.

2. Organize and Label

Before you start packing the truck, make sure that your belongings are well organized. This helps save time when unpacking. Label each side of every box with what’s inside and what room it will go in.

Staying organized will save you the headache of wondering why the silverware is packed with your DVD collection.

3. Keep Your Essentials Separate

Before you load up the long distance moving trucks, you should separate your essentials. This includes essential documents, a change of clothes, toiletries, medications, and your phone charger. Pack things that you’ll need for your arrival and keep those with you.

Unexpected things happen in life, and your move is no different. Make sure that you have all the essential items with you in your car.

4. Are You Insured?

An important tip when it comes to figuring out how to move long distance is to be sure that you’re insured. This may not be something you think of, but you want to ensure that your belongings are protected.

You have several options when it comes to insurance.

• basic coverage
• expanded mover coverage
• possible coverage through homeowner’s insurance

It’s important to research what type of coverage is best for you. When using a moving company, discuss the standard protection plan and determine if more is needed.

5. Hire a Reputable Moving Company

Above all else, you need to be sure to hire a reputable moving company with experienced long haul movers. Your items are precious to you, so you want to trust the company to get your belongings to your destination safely.

The long distance movers you hire will be carrying your furniture as well as memories, so choose a company that you feel confident in.

Long Distance Moving Tips Can Make Your Life Easier

You have a long list of things to do before you start your move. You can rest assured that these long distance moving tips are sure to take some weight off your shoulders.

Are you planning a move soon? Contact us today and request a free quote. We can make your move safe and hassle-free!

You’ve signed the contracts, you’ve planned how to use each room, and you’re looking forward to moving into your new home. If you miss one of the many details that moving requires, it will put a serious damper on the fun.

It might not be as exciting as choosing paint colors, but setting up utilities for a new house is an essential step. Where do you start and what do you need to know?

Here’s your handy guide.

Setting Up Utilities for a New House

The last thing you want to do is forget about your utilities and show up to a new home with no power. Here are the primary services you need to consider.

Gas and Electric

Depending on your home’s power source, you’ll need to set up your gas, electric, or both. Ask your property manager or real estate agent who the providers are for your new house.

If you’ve never had an account with this particular provider before, they may request a utility deposit. The deposit is usually a few hundred dollars that they retain as good faith money. They credit it to your bill after a set number of months.

You may be able to avoid a deposit by getting a letter of good standing from your previous power company. This process can take time, though.

Start the process of setting up your power a few weeks before your local or long-distance move, so you have time to complete all these steps.

Water and Sewer

Your new home’s city will most likely handle the water and sewer. Call them a month before your move to set up your account because it’s not always a quick process.

If your new home is an apartment or townhome, you also need to find out how the water is metered. Does each unit have a separate meter or do they add the whole building’s water together and divide it among the units?

Cable and Internet

While most utilities can be hooked up with a quick phone call, your cable and internet may be a different story. You’re likely to need an installation appointment. To make sure you can get the time frame you need, call about a month in advance.

Keep in mind that you probably only have one or two options for cable and internet providers. Your real estate agent or property manager will be able to tell you what they are.

Trash Pick-Up

Depending on your new home, your trash and recycling pick-up may be the apartment complex or homeowners association’s responsibility.

In other cases, your city or village works with a waste management company to collect trash and recyclables. Contact your city hall to find out if your city handles this arrangement.

Other times it’s your responsibility to subscribe to a local refuse service. If that’s true for your home, it’s a good idea to ask your real estate agent who the primary providers are. You may be able to call around for price comparison.

Getting Your New Home Ready

As excited as you are for your new home, it won’t be nearly as thrilling if it doesn’t have power, running water, or entertainment available. Use the list above for setting up utilities for a new house, so you have everything ready in advance.

Need help with moving to your new home? Call our skilled movers to work out the details.

Almost all of us have experienced the stress of a big move in our lives. And if you’re stressed out, just imagine what your canine pal is going through.

Moving can be a major cause of stress and anxiety in pets as well as humans. This can cause loss of sleep and appetite and other distressed behaviors. As a loving pet owner, of course, you don’t want to see your pooch stressed out.

That’s why we’ve compiled a list of helpful tips for your furry friend. Here are some of the top ways to relieve your dog’s anxiety after a move.

1. Keep their old toys around

Dogs don’t like to break from their normal schedule. They like to maintain their habits and see the people and places that they know. Needless to say, moving can be a source of stress.

One good countermeasure to this is to arrange their new space in a similar manner to their old space. Putting their toys, bed, and things the way they were is a good way to put their mind at ease.

2. Show the dog around

Once you’ve arranged everything like their old space, take them around the house and let them explore.

It may take some time to adjust so give them some space.

Allow them to sniff around the house and get a feel for the layout and familiarize themselves with their new surroundings. Let them go at their own pace

Do this a few times a day for the first couple of days and your dog will make the new house their home in no time.

3. Keep your old routines

As mentioned, dogs don’t like to break from their normal schedule. They like to be fed and walked at their regular hour.

This is why it’s important to set a routine early on following the move. The closer to their old routine the better.

Walking, feeding, and playing with them at regular times can greatly reduce the stress they feel during the chaos of a move.

This may be a bit difficult to do during moving time but it’s one of the most important things for your dog.

4. Exercise patience

Moving can be a lot to put a dog through. That’s why it is important to exercise patience with your dog during the process. Perhaps even a little more than usual.

It’s not unusual for pets’ behavior to change a bit following an event like a move. Don’t be alarmed if there’s extra kibble leftover in their bowl or they seem more anxious than usual. They may even have a few accidents in the first several days of living in the new place.

Be sympathetic and patient, especially the first night. It’s probably been years since your dog slept anywhere other than your old house.

Tips for Reducing Your Dog’s Anxiety After a Move

Make sure you give your pooch some extra attention during the moving process. They can experience just as much stress as you and you’ll have to be there to help them manage it.

If you’re looking for a reliable moving company to help you and your pet’s relocation, contact us today.

MOVING A BUSINESS? FOCUS ON THESE THINGS TO MAKE YOUR MOVE GO SMOOTHLY.

Packing up and moving a business is a stressful endeavor. It can be expensive as well as disrupt normal operations. 

As an employee, if you want to help your company relocate, follow our set of tips we’ve put together. It’ll help your company and ensure that everything you need to do your job gets there in one piece.

Commercial relocation can be costly. Whether it’s to another state or even just down the street. Here’s how you can make the process go just a bit more smoothly and easier on everybody.

Familiarize Yourself with the Plan

Communication is a crucial part of a business and in the midst of a move is no different. Familiarize yourself with the plan during a move and make sure you and your peers know your role. What’s being left behind? Are you taking the furniture with? Is anything being replaced in the process?

Ensure you know what’s going on. Know who’s responsible for what. Who’s packing what, what’s getting discarded, what’s the timeline, what are the deadlines.

File Cabinets

If you’re the one responsible for the file cabinets, find out your company’s retention policy. You don’t want to get rid of any files you’re meant to hang on to.

Sorting and staying organized is an important part of this job. You’ll likely have three piles: file you’re taking with, ones you’re shredding, and those you can recycle. Getting rid of redundant or unnecessary files is an important part of the process since it can cut costs during the move and make unpacking and setting up a much easier process.

Packing Up Your Own Desk

Packing up your own space is obviously a very important part of the move. Go through every drawer and wrap anything that’s fragile in bubble wrap or packing paper. Don’t put off packing either. Be conscious of your deadlines and make sure you’re on schedule.

Don’t forget to label your boxes and clearly mark who it belongs to so you can avoid any confusion.

The Computers

The moving company your business hired should provide a set of instructions on how to properly pack and protect your computer. Follow these directions carefully. You don’t want to damage expensive equipment like that.

Before you begin the process, backup your data. Take out all disks and drives before the movers get there.

Follow Directions

Your boss and movers should hopefully provide a specific set of instructions for your move.

Follow these carefully and be mindful of the set timelines. Contact your supervisor right away with any questions or concerns you or your peers have.

Working together is a crucial part of a successful move.

Make Yourself Useful

We hope these tips have been useful to you and your upcoming office move. A move is a great time to step up and be a leader for your team. 

For help on your move, contact Arrow Moving & Storage today!

4 Tips for Moving Long Distance on a Budget

Fun fact: Every year, nearly 40 million Americans move their residences.

For some, it’s just a move across the street. While others are packing up and trekking across the country. If you’re planning a long distance move, chances are you’ve looked at the costs are feeling a bit overwhelmed.

But there’s no need to fear.

In this guide, we put together a few tips to help you execute a cross country move on a budget.

1. Downsizing is a Crucial Part of Moving

One of the most important parts of decreasing the cost of a move is decreasing the number of items you’ll be moving.

If you aren’t going to need some of your belongings, don’t bring them. Most household items can be replaced later if you realized that you do need them.

The weight of all your belongings plays a big part in the cost of shipping. Therefore, you should be willing to put the time into deciding what’s really worth bringing.

If, for example, you’ve kept items in storage before your move, chances are you don’t need whatever was in there. Downsize to decrease shipping costs.

Keep in mind bulky and unnecessary items such as oversized entertainment centers, weight sets, etc. Particularly large items cost extra money to ship. Don’t forget to compare the size of your new home and current home to be sure everything you’re planning on taking with you will fit. That’s an easy way to decide if things are worth bringing or not. If they can’t fit, don’t bother.

Additionally, if you have cheap furniture, it may actually cost more to ship than it would to buy new furniture once you arrive.

2. Reuse Materials for Your Move

Rather than go out and buy a ton of moving boxes, it may be worth it to recycle certain materials.

If you’ve got an upcoming move, start saving cardboard boxes.

Hang on to boxes that could be reused during your move. Amazon boxes, cereal boxes, diaper boxes, can all be reused to decrease the amount you spend on moving supplies.

Another great way to get a hold of boxes for free is to ask your local grocery or retail stores if you can have the boxes they use for inventory. These stores usually end up throwing them away anyway so it would be no big deal to pass them along to you. Sites like Craigslist or Freecycle could be great sources for supplies as well.

Your moving company may also offer used boxes at discounted rates as well. So definitely ask them about that.

3. Select the Right Moving Date

The most common time for people to move is during the summer while the kids are out of school. This is when the demand for moving is highest and usually prices are higher during this time.

If you have a flexible timeline, choose time periods that are not as busy. That way rates for moving services and vans are not as expensive. Winter is a cost effective time to move. Just be sure to take weather conditions into account.

Hiring an experienced moving company will also help as they will be familiar when dealing with those adverse conditions. 

4. Research Relocation Packages

If you’re relocating across the country for work, your new company may offer financial assistance.

If you’re lucky enough to have a company that offers assistance, they’ll help with things like moving services, flights, storage, etc. Be sure to give them a call and inquire about any packages they may have.

For long distance moves, that can be a crucial part of decreasing the cost.

Moving Across the Country

For more help performing a cross country move, be sure to talk to professional movers near you.

For moving services in the Cheyenne, Salt Lake, Colorado Springs, or San Antonio area, contact Arrow Moving & Storage for a free moving quote today.

You’re moving with your family. It’s exciting and nerve-racking at the same time. It’s especially emotional when you have children. There are ways to help make a move less stressful (and less scary) for young children. Here are a few tips to make moving with kids easier.

Time to process the move

Give your children time to process the move before it happens. It is sometimes easier to wait to have the hard conversation. But, when it comes to moving, you should let the kids know sooner rather than later. Combined with some additional tips below, this will give them a chance to absorb and process the change rather than be shocked by it.

Get excited about the new home

Find things for your children to be excited about. It can be as simple as a nice backyard or fun playroom to bigger things like the “big city” or “great outdoors”. Try to envision the new area through the eyes of your children. What will get them excited? Perhaps you’ll be closer to a park or pool. Maybe there is a great sports team or theaters. By taking your children’s perspective, you can find things to talk to them about to get them excited to live in the new area.

Be part of the move

Let them be part of the move planning. Children already feel a lack of control, and a move can make that feeling more acute. While planning the move, keep your children in the loop. Where appropriate, ask for their input. The move should not be something that is “happening to them,” it should be something the are apart of.

Get to know the new town

Help them get familiar with the new place before the move. It may not be possible to visit, but if you can, that’s a great step. If not, see about sharing videos or photos of the new house and the area around it. Another great tool is Google Maps. You can take a virtual drive around the new town and neighborhood on the computer. This will help them know what to expect and alleviate some of the uncertainty.

Have a place to be

When it is time to pack, be sure the kids are involved. They should pack their own “essentials box” (you can pack the real one). This is a box of items that they will want to open as soon as they arrive. Having their own box will give them a sense of control both before and right after the move.

Make time for the family

Unpacking can be a consuming process. Before you get to the broader household items, be sure the kids’ rooms are set up. This will help them settle in and give them a comfort zone during those times when you are focused on other parts of getting settled in.

Have an activity plan for the weeks following your move. It is tempting to spend all your time unpacking to get it done. But, your kids need to see where they live and get to know their new home. Make a plan and set aside time for the family to explore the new town, even if it means unpacking takes a little longer. The time you spend early on will help them be happier in the long term.

By communicating, taking your kid’s perspective, and setting aside time, you can help your children make the most of the move. Keep them in the loop and focused on the positive to make them feel good about their new home. We have moved many families over the decades. If you need help or are looking for a professional mover, give us a call.