How to Calculate Your Moving Costs Ahead of Time
Posted on October 22nd, 2010 by Jennifer Marcial-Ocasio
You’ve been telling yourself month after month that you need to start balancing your checkbook, that you need to keep track of your finances and that you will start cutting back on unnecessary expenses. Yet, when your friends invite you for happy hour on Fridays or when you are craving that shrimp tempura sushi you never say no.
It is now time to start being a little more responsible and making plans for what lies ahead. Once you decide it is time to move on your own, you need to start making some adjustments.
Moving is not an impossible thing to do. It is difficult, yes, but not impossible. How you plan and get organized determines the success of your relocation. One of the most important aspects of your moving endeavor is making a moving budget. Regardless if it is your first time moving, if you are going through a military move or if you are relocating with your entire family, establishing a moving budget is what will determine how efficient you will be throughout the entire move.
Along with this goes choosing which moving services you will need and how you will be relocating; by plane, driving, or just wishing that moving your feet together and saying “there’s no place like home.” Here is a brief breakdown of how to determine how big or small your financial plan should be.
If you are flying, look for various airlines and various dates to fly. If you plan this ahead of time you will be able to see the best offers and be more open to a variety of options. Now, if you are driving, it is a bit more complicated. There is a lot more involved when calculating the cost of your trip. The first expense will be gas and car maintenance. Before you get moving, you need to make sure that your car is in optimum conditions to travel. Once you are done checking your car fluids, the brakes and every other part, it is time to check how much money you will spend on gas. You can easily do this by going to AAA page and use their tool. it’ll help you determine how far your travels will take you and how much gas you’ll be using. Besides gas, you need to calculate tolls that you will be paying along the way, the stops you make for food and if you are traveling long distances, the money you will be spending in accommodations. You can start doing this research ahead of time and get cheap prices for hotels using sites such as hotels.com and expedia.com.
Regardless of how long or how short your trip is, you should always make it entertaining. There is nothing worst than a trip that is all silent and boring. There needs to be some type of entertainment in order for the trip to go smoothly and quickly. Before you leave, it’s a good idea to make a playlist on your iPod, iPhone, mp3 or just burn a CD. As long as there is some music you can sing along and dance the trip off. Also, check those interesting places that are along the way. It is best if you are not traveling on a tight schedule because this way you can check where you want to stop along the way for some fun and side trips. Remember, even though you’re on the move, you’re also traveling and you are allowed to have some fun along the way, especially if you have children. There is no way they will be still and quiet through a long trip.
You also have to calculate and separate a budget for emergencies. Although this is the last thing anyone would like to go through, they happen whenever you least expect them. It could be anything from you not feeling in condition to drive and need to rest in a nearby hotel/motel, your kids got sick and you need to take them to the doctor, or what if your car just won’t start? All these can happen to anyone at any time. So you’re your piggy bank close for those emergencies. Last but not least, keep all the receipts; Uncle Sam will need proof of your move if you want to have some deductions. If you’re eligible for a tax deduction because of your move, costs such as accommodation and food can be considered part of your moving expenses. Find out more by checking out the articles: Can You Deduct Moving Expenses? and What Expenses Can You Deduct?.
Related Articles:
- Traveling Abroad – Remember the Currency Exchange
- Making A Budget When You Move Yourself
- Calculating Moving Costs
Tags: calculating, costs, moving
This entry was posted on Friday, October 22nd, 2010 at 10:15 am and is filed under Moving Experts. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
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