If you’ve been following my social media or some of my latest blog posts, then you know that we recently moved. But you might not know all that went into how we quit our jobs and moved to Florida.
To be fair, my job quit me two years ago, and I became the primary caregiver for my mother. But this past October, we began transitioning her care to my brother, and unfortunately, she passed at the beginning of the year. It wasn’t how we really wanted to start our new adventure, but we decided to go for it.
We didn’t have jobs or a place to live when we started the trip, but we did have a plan in place. Below are some of the steps that we followed, as well as some tips to make your next move/adventure easier.
The Plan
Where to go and where to stay. We knew we wanted to be anywhere in central Florida, from the St. Petersburg/Tampa area all the way across the state to Melbourne and the Cocoa Beach area. Our plan included staying in our timeshare for four weeks in the Orlando area because it was the most central location. From there, we could drive to either coast in 1 to 2 hours for any interviews.
Start Applying for Jobs. Although we knew we weren’t going to be in Florida until January, we updated our resumes and started the job hunt right away. By the time we were headed to Florida, I already had two in-person interviews scheduled and one phone interview.
Move wherever the first job is found. Our plan included that both of us would apply for jobs like crazy, and whoever got a job first would dictate where in Florida we would move to.
Hire Movers and ask them to store our stuff for one month. This turned out to be the most problematic and one that we were prepared for after reading a lot of reviews about movers. Everything we read included horror stories about being charged more than quoted and having your furniture held hostage until you cough up more money in cash.
If you’re thinking of moving to Florida, then read this Relocate to Florida: The Ultimate Guide.
What Really Happened
The timeshare worked out beautifully for us. Although we were in one place for two weeks and another place for the second two weeks, we didn’t mind moving in between. Since we were in timeshares that included kitchens, we were able to make our own meals to save money. We also brought our printer and set that up so that we could print out resumes for interviews. It also helped with all the paperwork that I needed to handle for my mom’s estate.
Because I also needed to have an office with me (my computer, files, and blogging information) I bought a rolling file cart to hold my things. I actually bought two, one for my “office” and one to carry supplies to run a Vision Board workshop that was booked in Orlando the second week we were there. The carts are great because they can be carried, or you can use the handle to roll them. They fit into the back of the Subaru and traveled with us.
If you don’t have access to a timeshare, try Airbnb or other short-term rentals.
When we got to Orlando, we went to the closest UPS store in between our two timeshares and set up a mailbox with them. Not only were we able to start receiving mail, but we also had a local Orlando address to use. Once we put that on our resumes, we started getting more calls for interviews. This really was a key move and made a big difference in Chris’s job hunting as a chef.
I was the first to find a job in Orlando which meant we needed to find a place to live. We looked at a couple of places, keeping in mind where I was going to be working and the fact that I didn’t want to drive I-4 to get to work (the infrastructure in Orlando has not kept up with the growth, so the highway is under construction and a nightmare to use during commuter time.) Luckily, we found a place that doesn’t require me to drive I-4 or use my Sun Pass and pay tolls to and from work every day.
We also talked to friends who already lived in Orlando and many of the workers at the two timeshares we were staying in. This was not only about where to live but the best place to get our car fixed and other essential things you need to know when you move. Everyone was super friendly and very helpful.
The only nightmare was the moving company. We contracted with a moving company advertised as national and mainly had nice reviews. What we didn’t realize is that they hired local movers to do the work. Once they got everything packed and on the truck, we were told that we needed to pay an extra 2000.00 because of the extra load, which was more than estimated.
I was actually prepared for it to be more than the estimate because the woman doing the estimating made a ridiculous statement that one room should only be ten boxes of things to move. What? How big are the boxes supposed to be? I disagreed with the mover, and he “threatened” that I’d pay even more if I didn’t take his estimate, and he would instead go and weigh the truck again, and it would probably weigh even more than he was estimating.
I called his bluff and told him to go to weigh it because I knew we weren’t as overweight as he was telling me. (When I was packing my boxes, I weighed and labeled each one.) Once the truck was weighed, we found out it was only an extra $1000.00, which I was ready for.
Once we found our apartment, we called the movers. This time it was a different set of movers who brought our furniture to us. And there was a different con game going on. The new game is one where your furniture is “held hostage” until you agree to pay an additional amount in cash.
It was something that I read about in a lot of the reviews, but not for the company that we contracted. Still, I wasn’t surprised. We ended up paying half of what he demanded to be done with it and get our furniture. In order to get rid of the stress of dealing with the movers, we reminded ourselves that we were in Florida, where we wanted to be.
Next time we move, we may use the “pod” option. This is where a storage pod is delivered, and you pack it yourself or hire someone to pack it for you. Then the pod is taken to storage until you’re ready for it to be delivered. On the other end, you again have to move everything into your new home yourself or hire someone to do it. You may have to pay for your own packing materials, but no one is extorting you for more money.
What was your last move like? Did you experience a similar situation with the movers?
Really interesting read Jennifer – I didn’t know about removalists also being extortionists – something they haven’t cottoned onto here in Australia (probably only a matter of time though!) Glad you’re all settled and things are going well for you – it was a big move and a big life upheaval and you seem to have handled it all really well.
I have to say I love the Aussie term for movers – removalists! Let’s hope this idea doesn’t catch on there. We’ve been wanting to move to Florida for several years, so each time anything got stressful we would just remind each other that at least we were in Florida.
I’m so happy you’re living your dream – I’m in the middle of figuring out my dream (job is sucking big time! and I’m “on a break” atm) And I didn’t know removalists was an Aussie term – I learn something new every day!
Thanks for linking up with us at MLSTL and I’ve shared on my SM 🙂
I’m sorry about your job and hope that you’ll find something that you enjoy. That was my goal here in Orlando. I wanted to have a job that I would enjoy and that wouldn’t cause too much stress or too many late hours like my last job. And I never heard the term removalist until you used it, so I’m assuming it’s an Aussie term? It’s not something that we use in the US.
Darn I left a reply that disappeared! Grr – just wanted to say I didn’t know removalists was an Aussie term (like fortnight apparently) so I learned something new today 🙂
Thanks for linking up with us at MLSTL and I’ve shared on my SM 🙂
We used the Pods when we moved from Alabama and to Florida. It was perhaps the best moving solution we have ever found. In most moves (and I’ve experienced plenty) more than half of my items are banged up and damaged in transit. Whereas the Pods everything was (almost eerily) exactly as it had been placed into the Pod upon delivery.
We did hire movers off of Thumbtack to load and unload the Pod, and both of those, as well, were easy (affordable) experiences when it came to just them loading and unloading rather than packing and transporting.
The next time we’ll probably do that, Jess. It’s not only cheaper but less stressful. And I just realized this morning that I’m missing a planter table. And for some reason, none of our brooms or mops made it to Florida. Guess those got tossed out somewhere.
I made it to Florida without ANY of my pots, pans, or casserole dishes. 🙁
My husband would have freaked without his cooking essential.
Nice article. Thank you for sharing. My husband and I are getting ready to downsize and then we are going to rent in our area for a while until we are ready to move. My husband wants to be by the ocean and we are possibly thinking North Carolina, but two of our four children have moved to Florida (one in Bradenton) so we may consider other areas. You have provided some helpful tips. Thanks.
Congratulations on the downsizing. My husband and I are currently renting until we’re really sure where we want to settle. And that includes whether we’re staying in Orlando or finding someplace else to go.
Hi Jennifer! Wow! Sorry to hear about your moving company issues but it sounds as though everything else is going according to your plan. You didn’t really mention your new job so hopefully that is everything you hoped it would be too. As far as my moving experience (it’s been a while though) we knew where we wanted to move to hired a local to that location company that also owned a storage company. They moved us into a storage unit and then when we found our home about 45 days later, they moved us from the storage to the home. This was obviously made easier because it was all in the same state (California) and we knew where we wanted to live. That multi-state move can obviously make it much harder! Good thing you’d done research in advance. ~Kathy
That was our experience when we moved within the state. The moving company was great. It became a problem when we decided to move to a different state.
Wow–I’m so glad you posted the ins and outs of your latest “starting over,” in a new state/city. I had no idea about the current state of moving companies. Not exactly ethical practices. I’m used to getting the moving guys lunch and a good tip, but having my furniture held hostage–no!
We had nice tips for them, too. The original bunch in Connecticut got those nice tips. The mover down here did not, although we did give a tip to the guy who worked for him because he did most of the heavy work.
When I moved from CT to TN, I used packers and movers. I researched, chose a company and the employer was paying for the move. Everything was scheduled. The packers packed everything and some furniture had to be taken apart for moving. I was told they take it apart and put it back together. I’m alone, so I knew I couldn’t do it all myself. That company also used local people and they weren’t going to put the bed together or the hutch (like I could lift it myself?). I pushed it and they did do it. They were going to bring stuff in and dump it. Remember, packers mark what room the stuff is from too…so I made them take the boxes to the correct rooms. I wasn’t thrilled, but they did add cost at least. I think I’d rather use a pod and hire my own locals next time…so the paying person is on site watching them instead of just the moving company’s customer with the moving company paying them.
They just wanted to dump and run as well because it was after eight at night but I took my time to direct where each box would go. I’m sure they didn’t like me but after what they put us through I was making sure I got my money’s worth.
The pod thing sounds very clever and perhaps a better option. We got a few quotes when we were making our move back to the North East of England – one was extortionate. We checked reviews and we were happy with the company we chose we had no issues. Moving is so stressful especially such a big one like you guys have done.
Sadly, I did check the reviews and the company I hired had good ones. Unfortunately, they contracted out to a smaller company which caused the problems.
Very interesting read. Our last moving experience was a 6-mile move last year when we downsized. Since hubby has a pick-up truck, we moved it all ourselves. Yes, I packed and unpacked and reused boxes, crossing out labels and relabeling. We moved all the furniture ourselves, except for 4-5 big pieces where we got a strong(er) friend to help hubby. We did it over about a 3 month period of time….moving rooms/things we didn’t often use first. When the master bed moved, it was the official move date! One cool thing, I lost about 10 pounds that 3 month period of time with all the lifting and carrying. LOL. If I ever need to hire a moving company, I’ll recall your horror stories.
When we moved from one town to the next, we hired local movers and didn’t have a single problem. They were great. The problem was with the interstate moving because most companies contract smaller local moving companies to do the heavy lifting. But next time, I think we’re going to do what Jess commented. Rent the PODS, which can also be stored, and then hire local people for the packing and unpacking.
Hi, Jennifer – I also found your post to be very interesting. Our last move was a big one (Beijing to Vancouver Island). The only thing that didn’t go smoothly was the local movers who we had hired to move boxes within BC. The good thing is that the movers just didn’t show up and their receptionist kept calling us with excuses. As they kept stalling, I kept reading more and more reviews (nothing else to do when sitting in a storage locker). On the receptionist’s third call, we pulled the plug, canceled the move, rented U-haul, and we moved the boxes ourselves. From what we read, and the dialogues we had with this company, we likely dodged a huge bullet! #MLSTL
Wow. I guess it was really lucky they didn’t show up on time. Sadly, I read the reviews of this company and they didn’t include complaints about extortionists, but I guess it all comes down to what little company they contract with.
Hi Jennifer, it is so interesting to read your story, all the ups and downs and the cons! I hope you are getting settled now and enjoying the move. It must have been very stressful with your mother passing away at the time too, I really feel for you. I have pinned for #mlstl
Thanks, Deb. It was a little difficult with all the running back and forth. But I do have to say once everything was packed in the truck for the move and we hit the road in our car, a lot of stress melted away. That stress of dealing with the movers on the other end was just a one-day event of stress that didn’t carry over.
So glad you’ve found a job and a home. These two activities can be full-time jobs – and you managed both at once! Hope Orlando is good for you!
Hi Jennifer what an adventure! Great that you have found a job and new home and I wish you both happiness in Orlando. It isn’t easy making such a big move but I’m looking forward to reading more about how you are settling in. Thank you for sharing your experience and tips with us at #MLSTL and have a great week. xx
I found this post very interesting, Jennifer. We’ve lived in the same home for more than 20 years now, and before that I was living in an apartment with just the minimal items needed for living. I imagine if we move again, it will be a much bigger deal. I have heard moving company horror stories. Definitely something to be aware of and prepared for. Congratulations on your new job. I hope it is everything you were hoping for. Will your husband now continue looking in the area you’ve settled in?
We are giving serious thought to moving to Florida within the next 2-3 years. We aren’t quite sure whether we want the Destin area or the Orlando area. We plan to visit both areas several times before making that decision.
The other idea is to keep our place here and buy an investment property that could also serve as a snowbird getaway.
We shall see 🙂
I’m pinning to my #mlstl board for future reference
We spent the last few years vacationing around Florida to try to find the area that we wanted to move to. I must confess that our plan was to be in a coastal town, but we also moved in an unconventional manner, so finding a job and moving to where the job was located became the plan. It’s not our final destination, but at this point, we’re open to just going with the flow and enjoying being in Florida.
It’s so interesting to follow your journey. We moved from NY to PA two years ago. We’d considered So. Carolina b/c we have some family there (and my wife B hates Florida), but ultimately decided we wanted to stay in the northeast, with snowbirding trips to the southland instead. Anyway, we had no problems with our movers. But it is taking us longer than we expected to renovate, decorate, set up our new house. And it’s not easy making all new friends, altho’ we feel we’ve made a good start. Anyways . . . good luck on your adventure!
Thanks for stopping by, Tom. I’ve been reading about your stay in So. Carolina. I would consider the snowbirding the best of both worlds, but for now, it’s not in the cards. Luckily, I already had one friend down here and some family on the coast but meeting new people who are closer to our age is not as easy where we’re currently located.
Wow. First – Welcome to Florida!!
The movers sound AWFUL. I’ve never moved across states with movers only in town. So I’ve got just a little experience. We did almost need storage with the last move and we were scared about the extortion con but it worked out okay for us.
Thanks, Amy! Amazing to realize that I was just in Orlando for the EBA conference in September and now I live here! When we made a smaller in-state move a couple of years ago, we didn’t have any problems with the movers but I think that was because they were a local team.
What a fun adventure! It must have been so exciting to start over and getting to decide where in this big wide world you wanted to go. Anxious to hear how your new jobs are going.
It is exciting and we’ve realized that we don’t necessarily have to stay in one place for the next thirty or forty years. 🙂
That sounds like a stressful moving situation. I can’t imagine trying to move across the country like that.
The only stressful part was dealing with the movers at the end. Everything else we looked at as an adventure and sometimes we’d look around and marvel at the fact that we did it. It was a great learning experience. When we do it again, we know what we’re going to do differently…and yes, we’ll do it again. 🙂
Congratulations on the move, the job and handling the movers like a gangster (total compliment). They would’ve been my biggest stressor in this whole situation. I pray that everything is going well for you in your new surroundings.
Thanks, Trudy. It’s going well. My biggest issue right now is that we can’t find any good Chinese food. Not at all like the food in New York or New England. Kind of bland and very disappointing. Although the Bar-B-Que and Cuban food are pretty good.
Happy Holidays Jennifer! We are moving from Bar Harbor, Maine to Daytona Beach in March. We had received many quotes from being so low to ridiculously high. We were thinking of just renting a truck and moving our stuff ourselves but the hassle of packing, stress of driving, etc. set us out yet again to finding a moving company. We were quoted a great price and of course paid a $ 1,500 deposit and were super excited. A few days later our new buddy Ryan called us to tell us that we are so lucky to have found a moving company that’s not going to charge us between $ 10-12K for our move but that being we did have additional items in a storage unit, it was going to be $ 2,000 more. I was firm when I told him that the reason we went with them was because of the price he quoted us. He advised me he would honor the price and if there are additional charges they will be added later. I’ve been guaranteed a price of $ 4.50 per cubic foot with an estimated 4,907 pounds. There is no way we go over that. Your blog post has given me the knowledge and empowerment to have them weigh the truck!!! Thank you!