Creating a Budget for Your Move
By Alice Knotting, Finance Consultant, Truck rental.com Staff
Moving without a budget can be both dangerous and devastating. You will soon see that simply paying for whatever happens to come along will end up draining you both financially as well as emotionally. In some cases, you will soon be without anything left to finance your move, even before the move is complete. To help you avoid these consequences, we have created a list of tips that will help you to build your own moving budget.
Reasons for a Budget
You should never start a move before you have a written budget in hand. This budget serves a few different purposes. First, it will make sure that you have enough money on hand to cover all of the costs that will be involved. Writing everything down will also enable you to look at different areas where you may be able to save some of that money.
Templates for Budgets
There are quite a few different moving budget templates that can be found online. You can also create your own in any software programs such as Excel or even Microsoft Word. Many experts are happy to distribute their personal template, so you should not hesitate to ask. If you prefer not to use a computer, you can always use gridline paper to create a budget, but you should always double check your addition before you set anything in stone.
What Costs to Include
The costs that you include on your budget sheet will generally depend on which method of moving that you have chosen. If you are moving with a full service company, for example, you should be sure to include the categories:
· Moving Company Fees
· Insurance Coverage
· Fees for Other Services (such as stairs, special handling, large objects)
· Packing Fees or Packing Supplies
· Daily Costs (such as food, hotels, and gasoline)
· Damage Costs (5% of your total moving fees)
If you are considering moving yourself or if you will be using a self service moving company, you should consider including the following costs:
· Fees for Truck Rental or Self Service Company
· Mileage and gasoline costs for truck rentals
· Insurance Coverage
· Extra Services (such as a packing service or equipment)
· Emergency Cash to have on hand
· Daily Costs (such as food, hotels, and gasoline for the car)
Beyond the Move Itself
Remember that you are moving because you will be leaving one residence to live in another. You should always include costs in your budget that are related to deposits and fees that you need to pay for damages and cleaning to your old home as well as moving to a new one. This cost can fluxuate greatly depending on where you are moving as well as when, but you should always include these costs in your budget.
Adding it all Up
When you have included everything into this spreadsheet, it is time to add it all up. Create a line on the bottom that will represent the sum of the individual costs. In order to get a total cost, however, make sure that you add a 5% contingency fee. When you do this, you will be able to get a very accurate idea of how much your move is going to cost you overall.
