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Red Shirt Volunteer

Moving

How should I organise my move?  

8 members have voted

  1. 1. How should I organise my move?

    • Sit around drinking and watch pro movers do it all: $1000
      4
    • Pack stuff myself and have movers load and drive only: $500
      2
    • Get my friends to help and owe them for life: Priceless, ugh
      2


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I'm about to move to the other side of the city I live in (Kyoto) and am wondering in which fashion I'll attack this mammoth undertaking. I'm considering the three options above.

 

Right now I'm leaning to the bottle in hand approach. I've done this once before and can tell you that sitting back, sipping on a few drinks and watching other people sweat has a certain satisfaction to it that doing your own work never could. The only problem is that it'll cost me quite a lot more. I call this the "bottle-in-hand-move."

 

Under option 2 I would get boxes a couple of weeks in advance, prep the stuff and the movers would haul it away on the day. This way I could avoid any heavy lifting but would still put in quite a few hours as the actual packing is bound to take a lot longer than the loading and driving.

 

Option 3 is nearly free, but I would be obliged to help friends anytime they needed it for at least a year. Since I would help them anyway, it doesn't seem like such a bad idea but the real problem would be organising everyone and getting it done in a reasonable amount of time without getting crusty.

 

EDIT: The poll messed up and the costs were deleted for the first 2 choices. # 1 will cost me $1000, #2 will cost $500.

Edited by Red Shirt Volunteer

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I'm about to move to the other side of the city I live in (Kyoto) and am wondering in which fashion I'll attack this mammoth undertaking.  I'm considering the three options above.

 

Right now I'm leaning to the bottle in hand approach.  I've done this once before and can tell you that sitting back, sipping on a few drinks and watching other people sweat has a certain satisfaction to it that doing your own work never could.  The only problem is that it'll cost me quite a lot more.  I call this the "bottle-in-hand-move."

 

Under option 2 I would get boxes a couple of weeks in advance, prep the stuff and the movers would haul it away on the day.  This way I could avoid any heavy lifting but would still put in quite a few hours as the actual packing is bound to take a lot longer than the loading and driving.

 

Option 3 is nearly free, but I would be obliged to help friends anytime they needed it for at least a year.  Since I would help them anyway, it doesn't seem like such a bad idea but the real problem would be organising everyone and getting it done in a reasonable amount of time without getting crusty.

 

EDIT:  The poll messed up and the costs were deleted for the first 2 choices.  # 1 will cost me $1000, #2 will cost $500.

None of the above. Amend the second one. Get a relative, prefably a brother you almost never see but really does care for you, to help you pack. Your friends may promise to hhelp, but might not follow through.

 

Then have the mover come. Take the $500 off your income taxes. ( Do you have income taxes in Kyoto?)

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Oh, good idea Mjham. We do have taxes here but I only have to pay about 5% of my salary (4.6 to be more exact) on income tax and about 3% to city tax. I feel so bad paying this little I never bother to think about deductions and just prefer to make the whole process go as smoothly as possible (this usually isn't a factor, but can become one when you're doing it in another language). Thanks for the tip - I'll keep the receipts in case I have a change of heart or gain some mystical insights into how to fill out my tax forms next year.

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if i were able i would DEFINATLEY go with the bottle in hand method. just seems like it would be a great way to move. i know ive gotta pack up my stuff at my house, and im loathing just that part of it.

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It depends on money and time, of course, but I think I'd go with option2. Moving is also a good chance to go through stuff and decide what's worth keeping. Plus, you'd know where everything was packed and whether it was packed correctly or not (if you want something done right...). Don't get me wrong, I love to be lazy, but I just think I'd feel better doing it myself and having the pros load it all up. :)

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The best times I've had with my friends is when we've helped each other move. You really get to know someone by seeing what they keep in their junk drawers and such.

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Ooh, I sorted out the move today. They're going to do it for just under US$300 including tax. The negotiator started out at a ridiculous fee of US$750, but I worked him down a bit. I'm not sure how to translate it into English exactly but I think I said something along the lines of "Yeah, like that's gonna happen" when he said the first price. I'm so happy I went to Japanese school.

 

I think I could've gotten it for less, but didn't want to push him too hard because I can't be bothered spending the time getting any more estimates and wasting time talking to salespeople. Tragically, I'll have to pack my own stuff, but it'll be fun going through it, as Ace mentioned.

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