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Recent articles by Liz Pulliam Weston: • The 'death tax' is far from dead, 7/2/2005 • How to tell a good charity from a bad one, 6/30/2005 • 5 risky real estate moves to avoid now, 6/29/2005 More... |
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| The hidden costs of moving | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Not only is moving one of life’s most stressful and exhausting experiences, it can cost more than you ever imagined. Here's why. By Liz Pulliam Weston If forced to choose between childbirth and moving a household, I'd pick childbirth any day. Both can be deeply painful and expensive experiences. But on moving day, no one offers you an epidural. And labor tends to produce a wonderful result at the end, while moving just leaves you surrounded by boxes. There's another thing the two ordeals have in common: over time, the most excruciating details tend to fade from memory, which is why we're willing to do it more than once. With that in mind, I thought I'd remind veterans and terrify novices with some of the many hidden costs that accompany shifting from one household to the next. Given that it's prime moving season, some of these details might be helpful to know -- so you can avoid them, plan for them or use them as an excuse to stay put.
The actual move You may think you're prepared for the big expense of hiring professional movers, or at least a rental truck. But that's just the beginning. Moving supplies. Unless a corporate fairy godmother is paying for your move, you'll need to worry about the costs of packing supplies -- boxes, tape, markers, paper, bubble wrap. Boxes alone can run $2 a pop and up, with the average eight-room house requiring more than 100 boxes. You can reduce the cost with a little footwork. Liquor stores and some grocery stores may have boxes to give away; if you start collecting a few weeks in advance, you can drastically reduce the number of boxes you need to buy. Also, check Craigslist and Freecycle.org for people who have recently moved to your community and have boxes and other supplies to give away (or to sell for less). Related news and commentary on MSN Money
By the way, it's customary to tip professional movers about $25 each, according to Realty Times. Feeding them isn't required, but pizza and sodas are usually appreciated (and all but required if you've dragooned friends into helping you). A potential silver lining: if your move is job-related and your new work site is at least 50 miles from your previous one, your expenses could be deductible. See "On the move? Watch for deductions." Insurance. If you're moving yourself, you may need to purchase insurance from the truck rental company, since your regular coverage (home and vehicle) might not apply. (Call your insurers and ask.) Professional movers are legally liable for your stuff, but their level of liability can vary. The cheapest, no-additional-fee option typically only pays you pennies per pound if your possessions are lost or damaged, so you may well want to pay for extra coverage. Moving special items. Certain big or expensive items--like pianos or cars--may require special handling, which means extra charges. Shipping a vehicle can easily add hundreds of dollars to your move, for example. Extraordinarily valuable items, like art collections or antiques, might not be covered under your mover's regular insurance--you may need to buy extra coverage or even hire special handlers. One MSN staffer paid $450 to move a grand piano from Seattle to Portland using specially-trained movers to pack and protect the instrument during transit. Getting hijacked by your mover. As I wrote in "Don't get scammed by your mover," complaints about moving companies have more than tripled in the decade since the federal government stopped regulating interstate moves. The most common tactic: Your movers take your stuff hostage and demand you pay them hundreds or even thousands of dollars more than the agreed-upon price. You can reduce your chances of getting hijacked by getting referrals from friends who have moved recently or asking large local employers which companies they use for executive relocations. Check with the Better Business Bureau and MovingScam.com about a company's complaint history. "In transit" costs. Longer-distance moves usually incur significant travel costs, such as gas, lodging and meals. If you're moving yourself, you may be stunned by how quickly your rental truck goes through gas. One poster on the Your Money message board estimated high and still wound up paying $300 more than expected. Ask the rental company for a gas-mileage estimate, then build in a fudge factor of at least 25%. Also remember that delays can happen on either end of a move, requiring you to cough up more than you expected on lodging, supplies or a storage facility to hold your stuff while you wait. These expenses don't necessarily end when you're ensconced in your new place. You may, for instance, find yourself eating out more for days or even weeks after the move as you deal with the strain of unpacking. Cancellation and late fees. If I was ever unsure about the advisability of automatic debits and online bill payment, those doubts were erased the last time we moved and the U.S. Postal Service forwarded our mail -- for weeks -- to a complete stranger in Newport Beach, Calif. (It took so long to straighten out because the venerable USPS argued that what was happening couldn't possibly be happening … ah, bureaucracy.) If I'd been waiting for bills to arrive to trigger the payments, I would have racked up a host of late fees. If you can't bring yourself to automate the process, at least be sure to make a list of all your bills and their due dates. That way you can make payments on time even if your statements go awry. Also, check to make sure you give sufficient notice to utilities, phone providers, cable companies and other vendors so you don't incur cancellation fees. Getting set up again The nickeling-and-diming has just begun. Empty fridges, empty rooms, empty phone jacks and empty light sockets must all be filled. Deposits and connection fees. Utility, phone and television companies typically charge $50 to $100 each to establish service, depending on the provider and area; deposits also may be required. You may be able to get some of these waived if you have good credit or if the particular provider, like a cable company, is providing free installation deals. Be sure to ask. Re-keying the locks. This is a security essential. Who knows how many keys the previous occupant gave out? If you're renting, the landlord may have already taken care of this. Otherwise, you'll need to hire a locksmith to change the pins in your lock cylinders. It's cheaper than replacing the locks, but expect to spend $10 to $25 per lock. Filling the space. You may need to buy appliances, window treatments, lamps, rugs or more furniture to make your new space liveable. Then there are all the little piddling purchases that add up. The last time we moved, I was amazed at how many trips I made to Bed, Bath & Beyond for various hooks, racks, shelves and organizers . Stocking up. You didn't want to pay to move a dozen half-empty bottles of condiments, but now you have to replace them all -- and also buy cleaning supplies and light bulbs. (Why do departing tenants always take the light bulbs?) YM poster Mich said a usual grocery bill of $50 a week spiked to $300 after a recent move. Licenses and registration. If you're changing states, you'll typically need to register your cars in the new state within 10 to 30 days of moving. That usually means paying for new plates ($10 and up) plus vehicle registration fees that often are tied to the weight or price of the car. In Florida, for example, you'll pay an initial registration fee of $100 plus $28 to $46 for passenger cars; New York dings you $20 to $100 for registration plus a "use tax" that varies by county and weight, from $10 to $60. You'll need a new driver's license as well, which typically costs $25 to $75 plus a few hours at the local motor vehicles department. If you have any professional licenses, you'll need to get those switched. That can cost a few hundred dollars, depending on your profession. The costs of living You can find relocation calculators on the Web to help you estimate how much more (or less) your lifestyle will cost you in your new city or state. But some of the specifics on how expenses can differ may surprise you. Energy costs. The same electricity flows through light bulbs in Hawaii and Idaho, but Hawaiians pay three times as much for their power. Gas prices don't vary quite as much, but filling up a tank costs about 20% more in California than in many states in the South.
Insurance. What you pay for auto and homeowners insurance is profoundly affected by where you live. Move from North Dakota to New Jersey, for example, and your auto premium could double.
Even moving from one community to the next can have a profound impact on your costs. Your Money poster Nervous1 reported his family's auto premiums rose 10% after they moved three blocks -- from the north end of one California county to the south end of another. Homeowners' premiums can be almost as volatile. They vary widely by state and can be affected within states, or even within neighborhoods, by perceived risks for floods or fires.
Taxes. Income, sales and property taxes have a big impact on an area's cost of living. You can get an idea of how much the total burden can differ by reading "Which states give retirees the best deal?" Estate plan. You might call this a cost of dying rather than a cost of living, but state laws on estates and probate differ enough that you'll probably want to have your will and trusts at least reviewed and probably revised. "You should review your estate plan after any major life event," said Cathy Ward, a wealth consultant with Bryn Mawr Trust Co., "but definitely after a move." Liz Pulliam Weston's column appears every Monday and Thursday, exclusively on MSN Money. She also answers reader questions in the Your Money message board. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
MSN Money's editorial goal is to provide a forum for personal finance and investment ideas. Our articles, columns, message board posts and other features should not be construed as investment advice, nor does their appearance imply an endorsement by Microsoft of any specific security or trading strategy. An investor's best course of action must be based on individual circumstances.