I'm done with my move from Austin, Texas, to Columbus, Ohio, and wanted to share a few lessons I learned from such a long-distance move.
If you order a POD, do not place it on the street. Find a way to have it dropped on your driveway. We got a police notice and had to pay an additional fee to reposition it.
Plan the pickup of your loaded POD and the delivery date to your destination well in advance. We’ve already been waiting 7 days for our POD to be delivered after moving in.
If you need car shipping, do not place your order through aggregators or marketplaces. They sell your contact information to hundreds of vendors who will start spamming you with calls and messages. I got hooked by one of the attractive quotes, and on the scheduled pickup date they called and said demand had increased and the cost would be almost 3x the agreed amount. This happened the night before our move. In the end, I paid almost 3x the initial quote, which turned out to be the real market price, but at least it was to a more reliable company partnered with PODS.
P.S. From the nature, weather, and overall beauty of the area, it's a seriously underrated place. I've only spent 7 days here so far, but I love everything I've seen and experienced.
I'm also starting to get some experience with local home service companies and contractors. I'll share more detailed feedback later, but so far I'm enjoying the journey.