<p>One nice advantage of using pods is that ABF will store it at your final destination at a reasonable price until you have a final address. My S took his time looking for an apt at a new city and did not have to worry about unload/load at a storage if he had used a moving van service.
For those of us who wish to spare aching backs, we’ve found great help load/unload using this site, movinghelp dot com. They are able to better secure boxes, furniture and to fit so much more into a pod or moving van than we ever could have imagined.</p>
<p>My DS needed to move at end of month. Husband and I went to his apt, picked him up and went to Budget with our reservation in hand. </p>
<p>No trucks. All rented. Overbooked. </p>
<p>Thet admitted it was a bad practice, but it was typical, especially at end of each month. </p>
<p>This was a military area with 3 colleges nearby - for us, we were anle to reserve a truck for a few days later and son had a place to stay…but it took dozens of phone calls, a wasted day for my husband and me. Very frustrating. </p>
<p>In the end, UHaul saved us - and didn’t have any issues with price, service or quality of truck.</p>
<p>Thank you, everyone, for all of the excellent advice. The depth and breadth of knowledge on these boards on so many topics is truly remarkable. I got quotes from PODS and the ABF pods which were almost identical and, once the cost of gas was figured in, would end up costing less any of the truck rentals. So right now, I’m leaning toward doing a pods-move and hiring moving help on each end. Much as I would love to have professional movers do the job, all the quotes we got were nearly $10k which, with two kids still in college, we just couldn’t swing right now.</p>
<p>We just returned from moving D. Budget was by far the cheapest for one-way. The AARP discount is great, and it includes the $0 deductible damage coverage for $10 a day (instead of $30). There are a number of Budget locations in our area, and we called around to find one that was willing to tell us that there was a very strong likelihood there would be a truck available (they cannot “guarantee” one).</p>
<p>I just moved nearly 700 miles with my fiance to start a PhD program this fall. We went with Penske, and we’re so glad we bought their insurance.</p>
<p>Along the move, both tires on the rear driver’s side of the truck blew out, to the point where the first person Penske sent out to repair it said it couldn’t be fixed and most likely had not been installed properly in the first place. The truck had to be towed for the 3 hours left in the journey.</p>
<p>It was a nightmare but Penske at least gave us all of our money back…</p>
<p>I’ve done several interstate moves using both professional movers and DIY trucks.
For DIY, I’ve used Ryder, Budget, and U-Haul. They were all fine. The only problem I’ve ever had was during a move from N. Indiana to Nashville with a national moving co. By the time we got to Indianapolis, it began to rain, a driving rain, which continued all the way into TN. Their truck leaked and some boxes got wet. The boxes had books in them, but fortunately, my wife put the contents of the boxes in a big clear plastic bag before packing and sealing the boxes. It was only later that we realized, we were moving in Katrina rain. (BTW, all movers come to hate people who have a lot of books to move since the boxes are heavy.)</p>
<p>If you’re doing it yourself, get mattress bags, wardrobe boxes, a dolly, and some pads from the truck rental company. For your piece of mind, get the insurance. Get your own lock and ratchet straps.</p>
<p>Pack everything yourself in file boxes (can be expensive at Office Max or Staples) and/or bins (inexpensive at WalMart). This will give you standard sizes that will stack easily. Bubble wrap is useful, but somewhat expensive. Tape and label the boxes.</p>
<p>Instead of loading and unloading the truck yourself, it’s well worth the extra cost to hire local movers at both ends to do it for you. They charge by the hour. It would take you all day to do what they can do in no time at all (they can load the contents of a small house or a 3 BR apt. in a couple of hours, a bit longer to unload), and they know how to load and unload a truck. I’d look on the internet and find a local companies that are bonded and insured rather than calling national companies or truck rental companies that also will find the moving labor for you. I’ve had very good luck with these local movers. Tip them well—they deserve it.</p>
<p>We do have a lot of books, but we were going to send them media mail so as to minimize what had to be trucked. I’m curious about how things are secured inside the pod or truck? If you hire moving help, do they do this for you?</p>