Yay me! ...and some moving questions

Cthogua

Well I landed my first development position with a new game studio in Raleigh NC. They hired me as a "3D Artist" but I imagine specialization will occur once the pipleline gets settled, and production gets fully underway. I'm really excited, not just because I finally got a game art job, but also to have the chance to work on a project from the very beginning seems like it will be cool.

...Anyway, now I have to pick up and move to Raleigh as soon as I can bascially. I've been considering getting movers, since the company is offering relocation reimbursement, and I'm just not that excited about driving a UHaul the 600 miles up to NC. Anyone have any experience with moving companies? Is it worth it? not worth it?

Mark Dygert

Congrats!

I've had good and bad experiences with moving companies. Mayflower was a great move but it cost a bit more than some other. I also had them do most of the packing which they did a great job but in hind sight they don't come unpack so it took months to find everything. They labeled boxes correctly but not everything in the box was labeled, so you would by pass boxes thinking oh that just books, but it was books and headphones, and music. Or one company just labeled the boxes with what room they came out of...

I would say its worth it to have them move your stuff, but save yourself a headache and some cash and pack your own boxes, label them well and have them staged and ready to go when they show up. Since most places charge by the hour, the faster you get them in and out the less you pay. Also just because these people are "pros" doesn't mean they care about your junk, so I recommend being there and packing anything you think is really important to you. Also don't pack every last little thing. the less you move, the less you have to unpack. Try to avoid getting sentimental about things unless they are really important.

Remember to pack enough stuff to hold you over till you get there, get unpacked and can start to find things again. The first time I moved we beat the truck by 3 days.

Most of the time I had 3 bills and 3 crews.
- 1 bill for packing into boxes and onto the truck.
- 1 bill for the guys that drove the truck.
- 1 bill for the crew to unpack.
The first and the last bill where the only ones I was able to influence the price by doing some of the work myself. If they get paid by the hour they tend to take their time and be a little more careful, but if they are paid in one lump sum they move fast since they want the job over.

TNSLB

We also had a good experience with Mayflower (moving from MN to IL). We did our own packing however. They picked up and delivered exactly when they said they would and were very efficient and nice. We moved our computers and a few 'super ultra breakable' things as well as the propane tanks for the BBQ and the camping stove (movers won't move propane). I'd recommend getting a couple quotes from various companies.

Congrats and good luck with the move!