How much does it cost to move from California to New York?

We moved from Mountain View, California to Rochester, NY. Here is how we did it and how much it costs. TLDR; $8000.

Some Background

At the ripe old age of 24, my husband and I packed up our two cats and moved across the country to Rochester, NY (our hometown). Thankfully we had an employer footing the bill for our move. We kept track of every moving related transaction and have documented it here for your enjoyment.

Moving your possessions

To move our possessions we used U-boxes from U-Haul. We have actually used U-boxes for moving twice now and it was in general a pretty good experience. There are several different “pod” style moving companies, but we found U-Haul to be the cheapest.

We paid $65.79 for packing supplies (empty boxes).

We were packing up a one bedroom apartment so we used 2 U-boxes. U-Haul allows you to have one extra box reserved (so in our case, 3) free of charge. This way if you accidentally run out of room, you are not up a creek. But you do have to pay to get that extra box shipped if you end up using it.

To get our two boxes shipped to NY, we paid ~$3,300 (with a $383.61 deposit). The price for shipping U-boxes changes every day on their website. I learned this the hard way. I recommend giving yourself plenty of time to check the website pricing everyday for a week. Then you can continue to check each day after that until you see a price that is lower or around the lowest price you saw in the first week. They will not honor old prices if you did not book (even if you have a screenshot. Speaking from experience. Lol.)

Once we had all our boxes packed, we hired movers to carry the boxes and furniture from our apartment to the U-Boxes. We hired our movers through U-Haul’s Moving Help and were pleased with the results. I would highly recommend getting professionals to move your stuff. They are way better at fitting things into the boxes to maximize your space, and they are way faster than you and 15 of your friends. We hired two guys for two hours on both ends of the trip (loading and unloading the boxes into our new house). They did amazing both times.

Storing your possessions

We had to keep our U-Boxes in storage for a little over 2 months while we waited for our house to close. This is what we were charged to store them. You also have to buy your own locks for the U-Boxes while they are shipped and stored. We got Master Locks; something like this amazon link.

Moving your bodies

We flew Delta from San Jose (SJC) to Rochester (ROC). We also had to check some extra baggage and pay for 2 cats to fly with us in the plane under the seat in front of us. Don’t forget that Lyft ride to the airport!

Moving your vehicles

We shipped our car! The car shipping industry is pretty under developed but make sure you get a quote and reservation early to avoid being overcharged. This takes about 2 weeks for them to drive your car across the country. (They don’t actually put miles on your car, it is loaded onto a big truck). You can also put things in your trunk. We moved our bikes this way.

Preparing your new home

We had our house carpet cleaned and regular cleaned before moving in. You may have other expenses such as replacing an electrical box or buying new furniture. We also bought several smoke detectors not listed here.

DMV Fees

When you arrive in NY or your new state of residence, you will need new drivers licenses, license plates, and car registrations.

Forwarding your mail

You can sign up for mail forwarding with the US Postal Service online for $1 per name. You can sign up for free if you actually go in to a post office but who does that.

Taxes

You used to be able to deduct moving expenses from your federal taxes, but that is no longer the case as of 2019. However, if you or a member of your household is in the military you can still do this.

Total

In total, these amounts come to $7,972.49. We moved in the summer months, which may have helped cut down our costs.