5Movers- The Moving BlogThe Smart Way to Move-Great Moving Tips and Free Moving Advice

If you’re moving date is close, remember to change your address in advance. This is especially important for your mail. Go to the U.S. Postal Service Movers Guide. This connects you the the post offices website where you can change your address on line and for free. Remember to do this before the movers are standng at your door!

Energy is ones of our biggest household expenses. We all look to cut costs and save money. Cutting our energy costs will be a big savings.

There are many ways to cut our energy costs. The easiest way is to heat and cool our houses properly. Using the thermostats for our cooling and heating systems will do this. Following the recommended settings will keep us comfortable and help cut down energy costs.

A properly insulated home also helps lower our energy bills for both cooling and heating our homes.

The main energy sources for electricity and for heating is from fossil fuels in different forms. Today, we are all aware of their effects on our lives. They pollute our air.

Fossil Fuels are no longer cheap and are not replaceable source. Prices for all types of fuel have seen a steady increase over the years. As the prices for energy increase, so do our monthly bills.

There are some ways that with little investment we can save money on our energy bills.

A simple one is solar panels. They create energy. In many parts of the world, all homes are required to have solar panels for heating water. Even in locations where there is less than an average amount of sunshine, this has proven to be a money saver.

It is very simple. A solar panel is connected to a water tank. The solar panel heats the water. In many countries the tank might also have a heating coil inserted so that there is another option to heat water when there is little or no sun. The solar panel continuously heats the water as long as there is sunshine. The tank is also insulated, so that it keeps the water hot for a long period of time.

As long as the solar panel and the water tank can be positioned properly to take advantage of the sun, you will be able to save quite a bit of money using solar energy to heat water.

There are many homes in parts of the country today that even use this system for heating the water in their swimming pools.

In fact the federal government has been offering tax incentives to home owners under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Tax Act of 2009 and through the “Energy Efficiency Tax Incentives that was enacted in 2005.

It’s a nice feeling to have the government help us to save money.

For some good information about Clean, Green Energy and energy saving tips that also save you money, go to the Department of Energy website.

Without food we can’t live. We can’t function properly. We need to eat, right?

The food we eat affects our daily lives. Almost everyday we can read or about another recall of basic foods or a well known food product.

The past few days have brought a huge recall of 380,000 Lbs. of meat and a massive recall of more than half a billion eggs due to Salmonella.

This is getting scary? Who wants food poisoning? No parent wants his child to eat anything that’s harmful. Every one of us tries to avoid foods that are not good for us.

We all eat out at restaurants. Most adults will eat at least one meal a day away from home.

We buy more prepared food or frozen meals than ever before. This includes packaged meats, canned meals you heat or frozen dinners. It even includes your favorite breakfast cereal.

It seems that everyday the basic foods we eat are in the news. Meat, eggs, milk, fruit and really anything we eat is the end result of America’s farmers’ hard work. This means that our food comes from nature.

We are lucky to live in a country that has the USDA. Our department of agriculture is the best in the world. We also have laws that govern every part of the food chain that are better than any other country.

In the moving industry, food is very important. Moving involves a lot of physical labor and our people need to eat well. Our people spend much of their time on the road.

Since the nature of the moving industry involves a lot of traveling, they don’t get that home cooked meal often enough. So they need to rely on restaurants and packaged and processed food.

In order for them to do their job and give you the service that you want and are expecting, their health is important. This starts with the food they eat.

This is just one example of how what we eat affects the way our daily lives.

When I was a kid, we didn’t have a swimming pool. We looked for ways to stay cool when it was hot.

My brothers and I would invite our friends over and run the sprinkler on the lawn. We loved running through the water. We would invite all of our friends and make a party of it. It was lots of fun.

Sometimes we would go to the public pool. However it was usually crowded.

When we were young, we would go to the beach. It was fairly close to our house. There were some weeks that we were at the beach almost every day.

What was cool, is that on one side was the ocean, but on the other side was a huge bay, but it had sand, just like the ocean side did.

We would hang out there all day.  We would take a couple of old army blankets or sheets and spread them out on the sand. Our mom would pack a big lunch. Sometimes she would even let us buy ice creams.

Then when we got older, we would take the bus to the beach with our friends. Of course, mom packed us food, but it was really great to hang out with our friends at the beach. Then when we were ready, we would catch the bus back home.

All of us would spend some time at sleep away camp. Every camp has a lake. In those days that’s where we would swim. It was also where we learned about canoeing and row boats. I really enjoyed the time we would spend there.

It’s important to stay cool when it’s hot. First it’s important that we don’t overheat and dehydrate. Also, when it’s hot we all tend to get stressed and tired. Cooling off in the water helps us keep our cool!

Now as parents we try to do the same for our kids. However, today many of us have pools at home. That’s where our kids hang out. It’s great since it is easy to keep an eye on the kids.

But personally, I still enjoy a nice day at the beach or a nice lake. So if I’m looking for something nice to do with my kids, that’s not going to be expensive, we head out to the beach or one of the nice lakes close to our home.

We are heading into the last weeks of summer vacation. This is a time of year when most parents of school age kids are starting to go crazy. As a parent myself, I sometimes find myself wishing that school would already start.

The truth is that as parents we want our kids to enjoy their vacation. We want them to go back to school rested and ready for the challenges of new school year.

However, most of us are working parents. This does not always leave us with very much time to spend with our kids doing fun things.

Many of our children were in camp during the summer or enjoyed special activities. As we know, this is not always cheap.

Now we would like spend some time with them and we do not want to spend too much money.

How can we find fun things to do and not break the bank?

I’m sure we all know how to look on the internet. The internet is always full of lots of great ideas.

You might enjoy going to some of the really nice state parks in your area. Every state has a website and there is a listing of the state parks. Some parks also offer camping grounds. That might be a lot of fun.

There are also public beaches and lakes all over the country and we know how many great things there are to do there with your kids!

If you have kids that are into sports, we are right in the middle of an exciting baseball season. Tickets for most of the major league teams are not cheap, but there is an alternative. Minor league baseball has taken off all over the country. The tickets for these games are much less expensive. There is also the added benefit that the stadiums are smaller and you can see the action from closer up.

The main thing is to finish up the summer with a bang. Do some fun things with your kids, but don’t bankrupt yourself doing it.

Before a move you should ask yourself should I move it, sell it or give it away?

It can be many things. It could be furniture, lamps, carpets, electronics or any of your possessions including clothing.

If you are moving locally or you are moving a long distance away this might effect your decision about it. What’s the best way to decide?

The first thing to do is make an inventory of everything you have.  Buy yourself  a notebook and some colored pencils. Go through each of your rooms and make a list. Remember the garage, the patio furniture and all that stuff in the attic.

Once you have an inventory sit down with a cup of coffee and go over it.

Here is where those colored pencils come in handy. Make up a color code for yourself. One color is for YES, I’m taking it. This will help you organize your thoughts about what is important to move.

Think about is replacment. How much would it cost me to replace it? Will it be useful to me after I move? If it costs more to replace then to move, take it with you.

Are you downsizing or moving to someplace larger will it fit in? Is it the right size or do I need something larger or do I need something smaller?

Fourth, if you are moving to somewhere with a different climate, will I need all of those winter or summer things? Should I take some the seasonal things, just in case? Is the furniture just right for the way of life in a different area with a different climate?

Fifth, are some of those things I’m thinking about not taking useful to me for the move? For example, you might find that you can save some money using those old curtains that you hate as a packing or wrapping material.

If you are never going to use it, then sell it or give it away! Why spend the money to move it?

If it is something you want or need then keep it. You will want it after your move.

The bottom line is this. To plan a successful and stress free move, make your decisions about your belongings in advance. When moving day comes, you want to have everything organized and prepared for your movers.

Most importantly, you want to move it when it’s to your benefit.

If you are planning a local move or a long distance move, you want to get free moving quotes. Free moving quotes are important so that you can have a good idea of how much it will cost you to move.

The first step to getting free moving quotes is to compile a list of the belongings you are planning to move.This is called creating an inventory.Your moving inventory should include all of the items you will be moving.

Also,think about any special moving services you might need, such as special packing services, storage or auto transport.

These are important things you want to discuss with any moving company.They will affect the price of your move.

Once you have created your inventory, it will be time to look for a mover.  

What do you want to know about movers.

First each moving company must be licensed, bonded and insured movers that meet all state and federal requirements.

Secondly, you will want to be sure that they are an experienced and reliable professional moving company.

There are a few ways to get free moving quotes and find out about moving companies.

The first way to find out about movers is from friends or relatives that recently moved.They can tell you about their moving experience and the moving company they used.

The next way is to start calling moving companies in your area.You can sit down with the phone book or go on line, look for movers and start to call moving companies in your area.

This is very time consuming and is quite a bit of work.Nowadays,when we all lead busy lives, we don’t have the time for this.

The best way to get free moving quotes is by going on line.Here at 5 MOVERS we have an extensive network of local moving companies and long distance moving companies located all across America.

We will connect you with moving companies in your area that are all licensed, bonded and insured professional movers.

Each of the moving companies in the 5 Movers network will provide you with a free moving quote.

Some movers will be able to provide you with an in home moving estimate and some will provide you with an on line moving estimate.

What is the difference between the two.

Is one better that the other.

This a great question.The answer really depends on you.

An in house moving quote is based on a visit to your home by a professional moving expert or consultant.They will do a walk through of your home with you and list all of your belongings.

Then they will sit down with their computer,enter all of the information you supplied and give you a free printed moving quote for your move.

Some customers prefer this.They need to see a face and not just hear a voice.

However, remember that the person that visited your home is a sales person.This will not be the person you will see on your moving day.

Also, with today’s economy, many moving companies no longer offer in house estimates, since it does add to the cost of moving.

All moving companies offer on line moving quotes.

How is this done?When you leave your moving detail here at 5 MOVERS, you are also welcome to use our on line system to also enter your inventory.

Then 5 MOVERS connects you with the moving companies in your area.They will contact you at your convenience by telephone and go over all the details of you move with you.

We have found that many customers prefer not having sales people in their homes.We all have had bad experiences at one time or another getting that salesman out of our home.

This is especially true when it comes to a stressful experienced like moving.We don’t want to feel pressured into making quick and bad decisions.

Another advantage of an on line moving quote is that while you are speaking with your moving consultant, all the information about your move goes directly into the computer. This saves valuable time.

An on line moving quote is created using the same computer program as an in house quote.However,because the moving consultant at an in house needs to write down all of the information first and then put in into their computer, the time involved is much longer and you won’t get the written moving quote right away.

The on line moving consultant can e-mail right away a detailed moving quote, while you are still on the phone.

This way, you can ask questions and get answers about your moving quotes immediately.

Be sure that any moving quotes you receive are detailed and include all the information and details you discussed with the moving consultants.

A vague moving quote that is not detailed will always be a sign of a less than reputable moving company.

So which is better. In house moving quotes or on line moving quotes.That depends on you.

Either way, you will need free moving quotes to properly plan your move.

Since the beginning of known history, mankind has been on the move! The earliest known humans were nomads going from place to place in search of food and shelter. It was a mindless sort of move because we never took anything with us, just moved! A little later, we became a bit smarter and we would take with us something we thought was important, but, we would only move what we could carry in our hands and still later we realized that we can move something by carrying it on our backs! I can’t say we were very smart at the time, but we were learning new things everyday and remembering them. Little by little, mankind was learning about possessions and what kinds of possessions were important to us. So when we moved from one place to another, we had to decide what we were going to take with us. Sounds sort of familiar, doesn’t it

As we progressed, we began to learn about fire and other things that made life better, but it was only when we learned about taming animals to serve us -like dogs, camels and horses and someone unknown invented the wheel and the wagon that we really moved forward and were able to move long distance and not just move local or close by.

At some point mankind discovered the benefits of living in a community and we started to develop villages, towns and cities and mankind discovered a whole new way of living with new rules. We didn’t need to keep moving and wandering. There were new rules in this new way of life. We didn’t live outdoors anymore. We lived in tents or huts. Sometimes things would change and we would be forced to relocate, so we would move to a new location and start all over again, but we would move with us all of the things we needed and wanted. Think about how stressful that would be.

Yes, we learned about possessions and belongings. They were no longer things we wanted or needed just for the moment, but things we wanted with us always.

When an entire community would move, everyone would share in the work of packing and disassembling of large items lets say like the tents and we would load everything onto our animals and wagons.  When we got to our new location we would reassemble everything and store everything where we wanted it to be. Humans would be looking for how to move with as little pressure or stress as possible.

Later on, we found new ways that let us all move farther and go to new places and see new things and sometimes bring the back to where we came from. So not only did we need to move things, but we also needed to store them, sometimes we even needed long term or short term storage.

If something was being moved far away like on a ship, we needed to figure out how to professionally pack these things and how to store them properly so they wouldn’t be damaged!

Doesn’t this all sound just like us? Maybe we don’t have to move nowadays because for the same reasons, but they aren’t really so different. We move locally because we want to stay in the same area and we found a really nice house or apartment. We want our kids to stay in the same schools or we just like it here! Maybe were moving a long distance because we got a new job or we like the weather. Maybe we are retiring or were going away to college or maybe we just need a change of scenery to start all over.

The reason we move is not necessarily important, but in today’s world, we all have many belongings we want and need to move with us, so we rely on moving professionals to help us plan our moves from the beginning to the end. We all want good, professional and reliable moving services. We want to be sure we are getting the most for our money\(That’s sure different from our ancestors; they didn’t have to worry about money back then. Most of all we want to know that our

possessions and belongings will make it safely from our old location to our new one. We want to be sure that everything will be handled with care by reliable and professional movers that have our interests at heart and will make our move stress free.

• If that’s what you are looking for, you have come to the right place. At 5MOVERS.COM, you will find only the best and most reliable moving companies in America! Every moving company has been prescreened to meet 5MOVERS high standards. Every one of our affiliated movers has the professional knowhow to make your local move or long distance move a positive experience for you. All of the moving companies are licensed, bonded and insured, meeting all state and federal regulations. Each moving company has highly trained and experienced moving professionals to guide you through every step of your move and make you move a positive experience.

A good community that you would consider moving to needs to offer good schools, employment close by, lots of activities for you and your children, low crime rates and affordable housing. The way things are today, moving to a community that will help you stretch every dollar is a big advantage. Moving to a community that is showing population and economic growth tells us something about its future. It will be the kind of place to put down your roots. These are communities that would be great for singles, families and for senior citizens.

How do we know when a community is an affordable location to move to?  That’s simple.  An affordable community will have low prices for high quality homes. It will offer employment opportunities as well as high income for you. It will have low taxes, but offer the many services you would want and expect. Also, prices for basic needs will be low, but high quality. There will be activities geared to all ages close by and at reasonable prices.

A recent article discussed 25 of the best communities-towns and mall cities- in the country, with affordable homes and economic growth. Each of the towns and cities offer exactly what you would be looking for. These are exactly the locations you would probably be interested in moving to!

Here is a list of the 25 communities, average housing prices and average yearly family incomes.

 Location                 Avg. Housing Prices      Avg. Income     

 Deerfield Beach, FL          $67,000              $56,519

 Lafayette, IN                     $82,210              $60,643

 San Antonio, TX               $78,627              $55,958

 Deltona, FL                        $80,473              $56,907

 Spring, TX                         $112,062             $75,412

 Glendale, AZ                   $105,000             $68,099

 Avondale, AZ                  $110,100             $70,672

 Bolingbrook, IL                $155,000             $96,792

 Fishers, IN                        $174,296             $108,086

 Des Moines, IA               $100,000             $60,900

 Cedar Rapids, IA            $120,500             $71,466

 Spring Valley, NV           $135,000             $77,244

 Warner Robins, GA      $110,000             $62,592

 Wichita, KS                     $115,138             $64,889

 Dale City, VA                  $163,000             $90,719

 Lincoln, NE                    $125,000             $67,613

 Overland Park, KS         $200,000             $107,240

 Joliet, IL                           $152,000             $77,214

 Huntsville, AL                 $140,000             $68,755

 Murfreesboro, TN         $141,000             $68,620

 O’Fallon, MO                  $172,250             $82,868

 Rogers, AR                       $124,483             $59,658

 Fargo, ND                        $144,802             $69,142

 Springdale, AR                $115,951             $55,210

Washington, NJ              $204,450             $94,398

As you see, these are diverse communities. Some are small cities or are suburbs to major cities. Each has much to offer and are great places for you to think about moving to!

Today’s Senior Citizens are a much different breed and it’s probably because they are much more active than generations past. This generation, which includes the Baby Boomers, is highly educated. A large part of this generation includes many professionals and business people as well as educators. This is the self made generation. Many of this generation were self employed and made their own way in the world. These are not people content with just sitting home and passing the time. There needs and requirements are varied and unique. In fact, many of these people probably don’t even see themselves as Senior Citizens! They enjoy travel and are very active. They are looking for intellectual stimulation. However, they also require having the services needed for an aging population, even if they don’t want to admit this to themselves.

Since this is an active generation, they are moving to or interested in living in areas that offer what they want and what they need. Very often these are the people that settled suburbia after World War 2. They moved from the cities to the suburbs to chase the American Dream and were home owners for many years. Now as their children have grown and they find themselves with big houses in the suburbs they are no longer interested in, they are both moving back to the cities or moving to communities that offer them smaller homes and something different, more geared to their present needs. Very often they are looking for a better climate after living in the cold weather many years.

What are some of the considerations that the seniors of today should think about when they are planning to move?

 First and foremost, like everyone else in today’s economy, seniors when they move are looking to save money and stretch it our as long as possible. Many seniors took a big hit over the last couple of years. Since they no longer are working, they are trying very hard to make ends meet on a fixed income. They want to stretch their money as long and far as possible. Since this generation is highly educated, they are very savvy about this.

Secondly, they are looking for nice places to live, sometimes near family and sometimes in a place they always dreamed about retiring to such as Florida or the Sun Belt. They might like the idea of living in a community built around a golf course or in town with people just like them with similar interests.

One state that has become popular is North Carolina. Many “northerners” have retired there over the past few years. 

Third, they want places where there are things to do either in the community or close by. They don’t want to live in isolated areas.

Forth, they are very keen on maintaining their independence, so good public transport will be important to them. They will want to be close to major shopping areas. Many seniors will have cars, so they will make use of them and be able to travel in the area.

Remember that this is a generation of very active people and will be looking for lots of activities both physical and intellectual.