<p>Hey everyone!</p>
<p>I am moving my kids to college for the first time this September. Many of my friends have advised hiring a moving company that specializes in college moves to lessen the burden on ourselves. We were thinking of just renting a UHAUL and moving everything that way. Does anybody have any experiences/advise on which route we should take? Thanks!</p>
<p>Moving kids to college for the first time is a very hot topic during the summer. I was wondering what other parents recommend in terms of moving- the actual move. I am beginning my research and wondering what other parents recommend. Should we hire a moving service? Should we rent a UHaul? Suggestions on previously used services?</p>
<p>How far is your kiddo moving? Will kiddo be living in a dorm? Remember, less is more, REALLY. Dorms generally are smaller & fill up faster than you realize. There are a ton of threads on the subject. We just packed our own carry ons & carried one suitcase apiece for S. S bought a carry on & one suitcase (or perhaps two). When we got there, we bought him a few things from office supply stores, Target, Costco, and that was about it. Have never heard of anyone using a moving service–that seems like overkill unless kiddo is moving into unfurnished place with no bed or anything else.</p>
<p>Bed Bath & Beyond allows you to purchase items in your area and have them waiting in your college town. They don’t actually ship the items, I believe you scan them and then they are held for you at the pick up location. I’m sure there is information on their website. This helps cut down on what you are hauling. Amazon also offers Amazon Prime free to students with their .edu email account. They can get free two day shipping on just about anything they could possibly need. Check with your students school about shipping things early. Usually about one week is fine.</p>
<p>There are any number of ways to get things there for free without hauling them yourself.</p>
<p>note:</p>
<p>Here’s a link to BB&B Moving Solutions: <a href=“http://www.bedbathandbeyond.com/btsmovingsolutions.asp?[/url]”>http://www.bedbathandbeyond.com/btsmovingsolutions.asp?</a></p>
<p>and Amazon Prime for students: <a href=“http://www.amazon.com/gp/student/signup/info[/url]”>http://www.amazon.com/gp/student/signup/info</a></p>
<p>i used a U-hal the first year, then for my second we rented a car. We propably will rent a car again.</p>
<p>We filled most of a minivan last year and it was way too much. Less is more. There is never enough storage space and most dorms are not built like palaces. S2 was excited that his 13x15 dorm room (which he shared with a roommate) was larger than his bedroom at home. For some kids, a 13x15 double would be an unpleasant shock.</p>
<p>I was in a 17x10 room nn; so i had a lot of stuff (looking back too much)</p>
<p>We have mid-sized SUV. If it won’t fit in the car, it certainly won’t fit in the 16x12 dorm my son’s going to share!</p>
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<p>Please tell me this was a tongue in cheek question! Your kiddo is moving to a college dorm room…not moving a household full of things from one house to another. You should be able to do this yourselves.</p>
<p>Re: a UHaul…remember…the dorm room is probably smaller than the UHaul…well at least YOUR kid’s half of it.</p>
<p>We moved the kid we drove using a minivan with three people in it. Everything fit just fine. Each subsequent move was with a smaller vehicle because the KID realized he didn’t need most of what he took with him the first time.</p>
<p>We moved a second kid cross country. Her things took up three suitcases…and we bought some bulky stuff at BBB and Target. She too had more than she needed.</p>
<p>My son’s advice for first time college students: Put everything you THINK you need in one room of your house (maybe the living room). Then take HALF of that with you. You will still have many items you never use or don’t need. Less is more. Dorm rooms and storage in them are limited space items.</p>
<p>I can’t believe people actually hire moving services to move college students into dorms. You should be able to do this yourselves…and you will be seeing MANY other families doing the same on move in day.</p>
<p>We had a small minivan. We told our son if it didn’t fit in the minivan…it couldn’t come. By the time he was a senior, we were able to move him in my Volvo sedan…no problem.</p>
<p>The OP hasn’t been back and seems to be an older member with few posts. I thought I’d check them out…</p>
<p>Seven posts since 2008</p>
<p>4/21/2008
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<p>4/23/2008
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<p>6/13/2011
</p>
<p>6/15/2011
</p>
<p>etc…</p>
<p>Me thinks the OP knows more about moving kids to college then they are letting on… ;)</p>
<p>How far are you moving? </p>
<p>My son went from Ca to PA…too far for us to drive. We went to Bed, Bath and Beyond in CA, pre-ordered all his “stuff” and picked it up in PA…that worked great. He took 2 suitcases, I took 2 and he packed more of his stuff in one of mine. We also sent some boxes UPS ground (ship early) to the hotel we were staying in PA and then took it to the dorms. </p>
<p>I have never heard of anyone using a moving company…never even thought of it but depending on the cost, it could be a good idea. Just remember…less is better, as they say, have them pack up and then leave 1/2 at home. Good luck</p>
<p>HHukow -Went back to read some of your other posts to see where your student is going to school and the other posts seem to imply you’ve sent a student to school before…am I misreading them? Sorry if I am.</p>
<p>blueiguana - our posts came about the same time…</p>
<p>And the OP mentions moving services in a number of threads. Gotta ask…is this REALLY something regular college students parents use? I have never seen a student who used one, have never known a student who used one…and the thought of using one never crossed my mind AT ALL.</p>
<p>Good catch, blueiguana.</p>
<p>Upon entering our 8th year of out of state college moves my thought is more than you can fit in the minivan is too much. Somehow all of that stuff mates in the dorm and is a bigger pile coming back. Our rule of thumb is now that we throw /donate an equal amount of stuff before it all returns, seeking a storage place in your home.</p>
<p>It seems to me that part of that moving onto college is the family experience of that first move. Maybe it’s just me, but I enjoyed moving my kids into their dorms. It was part of that separation between parents and children for the next big step. I would suggest keep it small and as others said, you can pick up a lot of stuff near campus, which also was fun. Later on, we just rented storage off campus and left stuff. The kids also learned about good will, salvation army stores and found quite a bit of interesting stuff for their dorms/apartments/frats. </p>
<p>I do have to mention Willamette for moving in. When we pulled up to my daughters dorm a swarm of upperclassmen emptied the van in a matter of seconds and hauled all her stuff up 3 flights of stairs. pretty sweet.</p>
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<p>OP…who moved your other kids to college (and back)?</p>
<p>about the u-hal thing. We used one because my mom’s car was waaaay too small to haul around anything. :<</p>
<p>I’d honestly rather rent a SUV or minivan if the family car was a compact and truly too small vs renting a uhaul. Parking at move-in, both on grounds and at hotels, is difficult. Trying to do that with a uhaul would be miserable!</p>