When to Schedule Movers - FOX™ Moving and Storage

When should you schedule movers? The answer may surprise you. The best time to hire a moving company is 4 to 6 months ahead of the actual move—plenty of time to find the best company and secure a spot before they’re booked for peak moving season. However, not every customer is blessed with advance warning. You may be among the less fortunate souls faced with any of the following situations:

Your lease renewal falls through at the last minute
A health emergency requires you to move closer to family members—without adequate space for you in their home
You planned on handling things yourself, but you’re having second thoughts after trying to maneuver a bulky rental truck, or hearing about “self-movers” who stumbled off the high end of the U-Haul ramp

Ready …

Even if your move (or moving arrangements) isn’t last-minute, scheduling professional movers sometimes gets lost amidst the chaos of packing. So the moment you know you’ll be moving, make a written to-do list (or click here for a ready-made checklist) and have “Hire moving company” prominently near the top. Meeting your movers early will also give you access to experienced advice on taking some of the hassle out of other to-dos.

(Note: even if you aren’t anticipating a move, consider including one or two good companies in your “emergency contacts” file. As noted above, you can never be sure you won’t be called to pack up on short notice.)

Set …

No matter how little or how much time you have to manage logistics, avoid getting frazzled. Focus on your checklist and divide the tasks among family members. Have a set order for doing things (e. g., clean out closets first, then set aside whatever you’ll need access to in transit, then pack book boxes) rather than scurrying randomly from one thing to another.

A few additional things to remember:

Be sure you’ve checked every corner and every high shelf. Heirloom jewelry can be left behind in long-forgotten attic niches.
This is a perfect opportunity to cull out things you don’t use and give them to charity. (Preferably a charity that will pick up donations at the home you’re moving from.) Don’t just take everything along without thinking.
If you have pets unaccustomed to travel, ask their veterinarian for tips on keeping them calm. (If an animal is really nervous, a prescription sedative may be in order.)

Try to schedule the actual journey on a weekday for better prices and lighter long-distance traffic. Thursday is an ideal day to arrive at your destination: then you can take a long Friday–Sunday weekend to recuperate.

Finally, check your moving contract for emergency-storage provisions, just in case surprise extreme weather leaves your property waiting in transit an extra week.

Go!

Schedule your final departure in the early morning. The earlier you get started, the more time the movers will have to do the job right: plus, working up a sweat is inevitable, so it makes sense to begin during cooler hours. (Especially if it’s summer and you’re in a southern city such as Atlanta.)

A day or two before, double-check your contract to confirm scheduled arrival time and date (people have misremembered crazier things than August 8 versus August 9, and you’ll feel pretty silly if you call to complain about movers being late, only to find you’re the one who’s early). When the day comes and the movers do too, keep your kids out from underfoot, restrain your pets (you don’t want to spend an extra hour looking frantically for a cat that wandered outdoors in the confusion), and—especially if you’re helping load anything—wear comfortable but sturdy clothes.

And remember, before too long the move—with all its scheduling and other frustrations—will be completed and you’ll be free to enjoy your new home.

Schedule Movers Today

When you choose Fox Moving and Storage Atlanta, you have far less to worry about when it comes to scheduling. We not only take pride in providing dependable, courteous service under ordinary circumstances: if you’re confronted with a true emergency and need to move from one Atlanta residence to another on an hour’s notice, we’ll even go the extra mile to accommodate you in that situation!

Whether you’re moving within or to Atlanta, we’re ready to serve your needs.