If you are trying to reduce costs, then you should move to Hawaii during the off-season. Typically late spring and fall is when flights and other accommodations are most affordable. The weather is also milder, which makes unpacking more pleasant.
The amount you need to save depends on the cost of living in your new home country, your visa requirements, and the cost of health care and insurance.
Start by removing any obstacles in the moving path, such as side tables, lamps, or other furniture. If your couch has legs, unscrew them. Measure the couch and the stairway to ensure you have enough room; if it seems unlikely, examine the shape and size of the couch and decide whether it might fit better up the stairway and through doorways on its side, held diagonally, or moved in an upright position.
Consider putting the sofa on a dolly to go up the stairs. It should be able to fit upright on a standard dolly with wheels. You’ll still need to lift the dolly—with the couch on it—up the stairs, but it will reduce the physical strain. The person holding the dolly should pull the couch up, while the helper should be on the other side, keeping the couch secure and steady.
If you don’t have a dolly, the person in front should lift the couch slightly higher than the person in the back to create more stability. The person in the back should also be the stronger mover, as most of the weight will be distributed there.
The cost to hire movers for a full-service move is at least $2,300. This typically includes packing and unpacking, loading and unloading, transportation, furniture assembly, and furniture disassembly.
Costs will vary based on the number of items you have, with additional surcharges for heavy and valuable items. If you’re interested in this service, get multiple quotes from different moving services to find the best deal.
Deciding whether it's worth it to hire movers depends on your budget, patience, and physical capabilities. It's difficult to gauge the amount of work that moving calls for, and it's easy to be off by about tenfold.
If you're able to call in some favors and round up friends to help, you might get through it just fine, but if you only have a few hands helping, things can quickly get overwhelming. Either way, bringing in the pros will save considerable time and stress, so if it's within your budget, it's a great investment.
The Vardaman, MS homeowners’ guide to moving services
From average costs to expert advice, get all the answers you need to get your job done.
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