Planning for a successful move to your new apartment involves many things, one of which is arranging for help. Most people hate moving their own belongings let alone helping other people move. However, if you've helped someone else with their move recently, they owe you. If you haven't, you'll owe them! Once you find your next San Jose apartment or house for rent in on a rental site such as www.renthello.com, you can begin to plan your move.
Tips:
- Don't leave asking people until the last minute. It's much easier for people to give excuses if you ask them less than one week prior to the move. Give people at least 2 -3 weeks notice so they can keep that day open for you.
- Call in favours! Did you help someone build a fence, finish a basement or some other major task recently? Ask these people first since they are likely expecting your call.
- Offer to help someone with another project in the future if they help you with your move.
- Try to get at least one person with a pick up truck. Even though you may have a moving truck, pick ups are great for those last few items that just won't quite fit in the moving truck, saving you an extra trip (plus gas costs and mileage).
To keep everyone happy on move day, keep the following in mind:
- Have coffee and donuts ready for when everyone arrives in the morning.
- Be prepared to serve lunch to everyone. Pizza and wings are always a good choice. It is however, a good idea to ask people what they like if you don't mind giving people a choice.
- Have bottled water available at all times. Moving is hard work and people get thirsty.
- Have cold beer on hand for the when the job is done. It's an easy way to say, "thank you!"
The biggest concern most people have on moving day is damage. Since most often its friends and family helping out, when items get damaged, the situation can be a bit awkward. Go into your move knowing accidents can happen and be prepared to let it go. Unless you're paying professional movers, it's not fair to hold people responsible. With a little planning however, you can decrease your risk of damage significantly.
Here are some tips:
- Be super organized. Use good quality moving boxes that stack properly. Plastic bins are also great for moving items. Also, don't make your boxes too heavy.
- Have a game plan in place before your helpers arrive.
- Have all your big items wrapped or covered with protective material.
- Use space in the truck wisely. Make sure there is sufficient padding between items where necessary.
- Don't rush the people doing the heavy lifting. A few extra minutes will help decrease accidents.
- Have people inside ready to take over for people taking stuff off the moving truck. This allows for your movers to carry heavy items for a shorter period of time which keeps people from becoming tired too quickly.
Remember, no one likes to move. It's going to be a stressful day and things may go wrong. But if you do everything you can to keep your help happy, it'll be over before you know it.
