Whether if you moved recently to North Carolina or planning to move within the state in the future, it is important to make sure to notify others of your address change. Boxes, packing, hiring local professional movers, and all that planning are time consuming and stressful as is. Also on the to-do list should be notifying the right organizations, authorities, companies, friends and family to inform them about your address change. Timing can mean the difference between a seamless transition, and missed payments, utility coverage, or worse. Here is a list of who to notify about your address change in North Carolina, with some useful links to make your move as smooth as possible.

North Carolina DMV Address Change

According to the North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDT) new or current residents have 60 days to change their address with the North Carolina Division of Motor Vehicles.

If moving from within North Carolina, you may make an address change for a driver’s license online under the form for “Duplicate Driver License” here at  THIS LINK. It will cost $13.

To change addresses on your vehicle registration under “Duplicate Registration Cards” here at THIS LINK. It will cost $20.

If moving from outside North Carolina, THIS LINK will walk you through how to get a new North Carolina Driver’s License and Registration.

North Carolina Department of Revenue

The NCDOR changes your address by phone. Have your social security number and new mailing address ready and call 1-877-252-3052.

If you are unable to call, you may write them with the information to:

Customer Service, P.O. Box 1168 Raleigh, North Carolina 27602-1168

Post Office Address Change

For mailing address changes the US Postal Service has a convenient website: USPS Change of Address. They will automatically forward USPS mail from previous mailing addresses to new addresses

IRS Address Change

Never miss out on that tax refund check. The IRS has an online form to change your address here.

Social Security Address Change

To avoid any gaps in social security benefits in a move, the SSA has an online change of address form HERE.

Utilities

Notify phone, cable, internet, gas and electric companies of your address change before your move, sooner the better.

Banks and Financial Agencies

Banks, credit unions, credit cards, IRA/401K, loan providers and investment accounts will need to be informed of your change of address.

School and Employers

College, elementary, even employers will need your new address to send tax forms, and other important documents.

A few more:

Magazines and Subscriptions

Charities

Doctors and Dentists

Organizations and Clubs

Last but not least, of course, let all your friends and family know about your recent move. We hope this list of some people to contact about your address change helps make your move as smooth and easy as possible.

No matter how well planned, moving always come with curve balls. There are endless items on your checklist – things to declutter, pack, label, sell, wrap. Not only that, but some how, despite how much time and planning, it feels like there is never enough time. What do you do, then, if you find yourself moving last minute? Moving last minute is a reality many of us have to unfortunately deal with. Here are some good tips to help make it a success.

Hire Movers. Hiring professional packers and movers is the number one tip for a last minute move. Hiring last minute packers and movers can do everything you need for your move efficiently, quickly and stress free. It is indeed an investment, but a serious one to consider. Hiring professionals to pack and move any part, or all of your last minute move, will make a big difference.

Hire Cleaners. If you are moving in a hurry, you most likely will not have time to clean. Hiring someone to clean everything out after your move will save a lot of time and energy.

Use Trash Bags. Trash bags are your last minute move work horse. Throw any soft items into large, heavy duty trash bags. Be sure to buy the highest quality, thick and sturdy trash bags. Also make sure to label them so things do not get lost or thrown out inadvertently.

Leave clothes on hangers. Lay them flat in your car, or pack them in large trash bags with the hangers sticking out. You can also leave clothes in dressers. It makes it a little more difficult to move, but it is one last thing to worry about when you are moving last minute.

Ask / Beg for help. Order pizza and packing supplies, and gather friends and families to help out. One of the biggest regrets people have when moving in general is not hiring help or asking for more help. So whether it is getting friends or hiring a moving company for a last minute move, you need all the hands you can get, and fast.

Forget Organization. Organization takes time and effort – both of which are not available when moving last minute. Nothing will be perfect, and that is really okay. Be kind to yourself and others. The goal is to move. You can always sort things out later.

Moving last minute is not easy, but it can be done successfully with these few things in mind. Best of luck to your last minute move. Please let us know if we can help!

Moving can be stressful. Moving with kids can add another level of stress. Not only that, but moving is hard on kids. Transitioning to a new home, routine, school, friends are just a few of the difficult changes children go through. Thankfully there are ways parents and loved ones can help prepare kids for an upcoming move.

1. Speak honestly to kids during the process. It is better to be strait forward an honest with children about moving to help them understand and process the transition.
2. Allow kids to express their feelings, including fears and excitement, without judgement or comment. Often times we want to distract or dismiss children’s fears and anxieties. However, acknowledging these feelings by helping them verbalize them is important. This helps them feel seen, validated, and be able to better move on from those feelings. “Moving away can be sad. We had so much fun and good times in this home.”
3. Be aware of the effect a long distance move can have on friendships. Make plans to maintain relationships through visits, letters, video chats, even gaming. Knowing that their friendships will not end can comforting and help all parties through the transition. “Let’s make a plan to video call Aunt Jill as soon as we get to the house to show her around.”
4. Before the move, visit the new neighborhood together if possible. Getting acquainted with the new area can help ease the transition and give some things to look forward to.  “Here is the park we can walk to to see the ducks. This looks like such a nice spot to play.” 
5. Pack together. Pack a few of their things together to involve them in the process. “Let’s pack Teddy into this special bag so we will make sure to take him to the new house. We love Teddy.”
6. Start packing early. If possible, purge and pack things while kids are asleep. This will prevent them from noticing any forgotten toys in the donation pile.
7. Plan an occasion to say goodbye to your old home and the rooms or things important to them.

Ladd is a local moving company where family matters. It is our pleasure to help make your move as easy as can be, for you and your family.

As a local, family-owned moving company in Durham, NC, home of Duke University, we see a lot of college and graduate students. Depending on summer plans, and how far those plans might be, students may want to consider renting summer storage. Better yet, hiring local movers, like Ladd Moving, to quickly and safely move all one’s belongings in and out, can save a lot of time, stress and headaches. The convenience and benefits of local movers and summer storage are especially valuable at the end of the school year.

Student housing, dorms and apartments often require students to move out during summer. As a result, every summer thousands of students are faced with the daunting task to pack up, and drive a car stuffed with books, bikes, and household items to their parents’ home. Some may even have to toss out belongings simply because they have no way to transport them. All this only to do it all again at the end of summer.

Why summer storage?

Renting a storage space near campus makes it very easy to move in and out. This is even more valuable for those who would have to drive long distances with over packed cars. Some storage units can start as low as $12 a month, with some offering student discounts. Pairing this with a local professional mover makes it even more convenient and adds another local business to support.

What size storage unit for a dorm room?

Most college dorm rooms will fit in a 5’x5’ storage unit. These often have 8 – 10 feet ceilings for plentiful stacking. Anyone with some larger furniture may need the next size up.

What about climate control?

If you’re in North Carolina like we are, the summer can get hot and humid and you will want to rent a climate controlled unit. Furniture, clothing, and books can grow mold and mildew in humid conditions.

The end of the school year is full of finals, papers, starting summer jobs, and other end-of-year transitions. Moving does not have to be another problem. Take the stress and headache out of summer moving with summer storage and local movers. Feel free to give us a call!

Renting a U-Haul moving van, truck, or trailer can be a good option for certain moving jobs. At best, renting a moving truck can be a smooth process with low cost and minimal headaches. Not as great, renting a U-Haul could mean understaffed facilities, overbooked moving trucks, long wait times, dirty moving trucks, missed moving times, surge pricing, and hidden costs. What you planned to be a cheap and easy move could turn into stressful ordeal, not to mention a waste of your time, effort and money. Here we share with you 3 surprising things you may not know about renting a moving truck.

1. Hidden Fees

Rental companies like U-haul or Penske often advertise a flat fee cost of $19.99 – $39.95 per day. Unfortunately this is not completely true. Every time your rent a moving truck, it will also have these additional costs:

• Gas – much like renting a car, you have to fill your rental truck or they will charge you an extra premium per gallon. Typically, a truck can get 9-12 mpg. The cost of fuel can easily double your rental cost.
• Mileage charges – up to $0.99 a mile.
• Liability coverage – up to $28 a day.
• Fees and taxes – up to $5 a day.

If you are dropping off the rental truck at another location, if will cost you even more, depending on the distance.

2. Not All Reservations Are Guaranteed

Even if you make a reservation months in advance, your online reservation is not truly guaranteed. The local rental office receives the request and is supposed to confirm the truck size and reservation time with you directly. However, they may be able to guarantee the actual moving truck or trailer size until the day before your move.

3. Truck Limitations

Not all highways and roads allow you to drive a trailer or truck. Moving trucks and trailers may have different speed limits in different states. Failing to know local laws can cost you a ticket and force you and your belongings off the road.

With hidden fees and risk, renting a U-haul or other moving truck is not for everyone. If renting a U-haul doesn’t sound like a good fit for your move, give us a ring at (919) 596-2469 at any time. We have decades of professional, reliable moving under our belts, serving the State of North Carolina and local moving in Durham, Raleigh, Chapel Hill, and the surrounding communities. We would be happy to chat and help you with whatever you need!

Moving a piano is a big task. Pianos themselves are a big deal. If you own a piano, it probably holds significant value.. Pianos are important, valuable instruments that should be moved with utmost car. Understandably, you want to move your piano well and safely. To do so takes a lot of manpower and planning. The best advice we can offer is to hire professional movers with extensive experience moving pianos. Still want to attempt to movie a piano? Here is what you need to know to move an upright piano.

Pianos are heavy and bulky to move. Pianos have a cast iron harp inside, which makes up most of the weight. Upright pianos can weigh 300 lbs, whereas grand pianos upwards of 800 lbs.  Imagine having to move a piano up and down stairs, around corners, down narrow hallways, or through windows! If moved improperly, pianos can cause serious injury, and be seriously damaged as well. No wonder moving pianos is serious work. Since grand pianos are so heavy, we strongly recommend hiring professionals.

Moving an Upright Piano

1. Supplies

• Moving blankets. In a bind, thick towels will do.
• Tape for attaching blankets.
• Heavy duty dolly that can support the weight and dimensions of your piano. All four legs of the piano should sit flat on the dolly.
• Straps to secure piano to dolly and truck.

2. Manpower

You will need at least 4 strong, healthy, people. They should be reminded about how to safely move heavy items, and wear appropriate footwear with good traction. With an upright piano, each person could be lifting more than 80 lbs.

3. Measuring the Way

• Measure the piano’s dimensions and weight.
• Measure every space the piano has to move through- doorways, staircases and hallways. Make sure the piano fits. Don’t forget to factor in the additional width of blankets. If the piano does not fit, you will need to call in professional piano movers.
• Remove furniture, rugs, doors, and other items that might get in the way.
• If there are hard corners that could scratch the piano, attach towels or rubber bumpers.

4. Prepare the Upright Piano for Moving

Cover the piano with moving blankets, using tape to secure the padding. Remember that tape can damage the piano, so only use tape over the blankets. Take special care with the keyboard and pedals. The keyboard should be closed and secure.

5. Moving Upright Piano

When moving the piano to your truck, make sure there is at least one person on each side at all times. Do not lift the piano by the legs. This can break the legs. Carefully lift the piano by its body, and place the piano on the dolly. Be extra cautious when lifting the piano onto and off the truck. The piano should be the first thing you put into the moving truck so that it is furthest back, towards the cab. Remove the piano from the dolly. The piano should not be transported on a dolly. Use straps to secure the piano to the truck.

6.Tune Your Piano

Once the piano is in its new home, immediately schedule a tuner to tune the piano.

Hope this helps you on your way to moving your upright piano! As always, you can call us any time to talk about piano moving! (919) 596-2469

Finding your next home may take you months, maybe even years. After all that work comes the next task – moving. No matter how often you’ve done it, moving is a big deal. Organizing, prepping, and packing takes time and money. One thing everyone needs are moving boxes. When it comes to moving boxes, not everything is one size fits all. How many you need, and what sizes, really depends on your space.

How Many Moving Boxes?

The best thing to do? Ask your moving company to come and give their expert opinion. A phone call might be all you need, but if you don’t have time, you could also try an online calculator.

For example, a 2 bedroom home could need 30 medium boxes, 22 large boxes, 10 extra-large boxes, 6 picture boxes and 4 wardrobe boxes. This can easily be the bulk of your packing costs. For this reason, we strongly suggest decluttering.

What Size Moving Boxes?

Plan on putting heavy things into boxes for easy lifting. This also makes it less likely for the items to fall through the boxes. Medium boxes are great for books, kitchen items, dishes, and other fragile items. Larger, bulkier items can go in larger boxes without making them too heavy to carry. Save large boxes for items like clothes, pillows, blankets and cushions.

What About Specialty Moving Boxes?

• Wardrobe Boxes. Many enjoy the convenience of wardrobe boxes. You can pack your closet, hanger and all. This makes it easy to place your closet items strait into their new home. However, these are heavy and take up a lot of space, and therefore can bre costly.
• Bike Boxes. You can get these from your local bike shop. Bikes have to be disassembled before packing.
• Picture/Mirror Boxes. These boxes can be purchased, perfectly sized for each of your pictures or mirrors. These are made to protect your cherished frames, photos and artwork, but you should still use bubble wrap.
• Compartment Boxes. Glassware, bottles, and ornaments pack easily into dish or compartment boxes. Be careful not to over pack these boxes.
• Mattress Boxes. Are you storing your mattress, or worried about having it punctured during the move? Mattress boxes are more protective than bags, but also pricier.

Where to Get Free Moving Boxes?

People move every day, so chances are there are free moving boxes around town. Finding free boxes can save you hundreds of dollars. Check out craigslist, facebook marketplace, and your local freecycle groups. Other places to find free moving boxes include: bookstores, liquor stores, coffee shops, and grocery stores. U-Haul also has a box exchange message board based on location.

As always, whether you’re buying your moving boxes new, or searching for used ones, feel free to reach out to us at Ladd Moving!

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3 Practical Tips To Decluttering Before a Move

Moving can be stressful and expensive as it is, but there are some opportunities to be had that can save you money and maybe a bit of your sanity too – opportunities to clear out the old!

Whether you’re packing yourself or hiring a moving company to pack, an upcoming move is a great reason to declutter and get rid of things you no longer use. Having less things to move will also save you money and time in boxes, bubblewrap, tape, storage and muscle. You can even have a garage sale, gift or donate your things to charity.

Start early, as early as a year in advance, so you don’t feel like you are scrambling last minute. Here are 3 practical tips to get you started!

1. Be honest with yourself and enlist friends.

You’ve lived with these items for a while, maybe even decades, so letting go can be hard. But are you really going to use that broken ceramic pig-shaped kettle ever? Do you need 5 pairs of sequined bell bottoms? Having a good talking with yourself and enlisting friends who can speak truth are good ways to help make decisions. It might even be fun and freeing. Being honest with yourself also means knowing how much you can realistically handle and scheduling things so that it’s doable for everyone involved.

KEY: Keep it real. Keep it fun.

 Go room by room.

Going room by room, put three bags or boxes, labeled “Toss” “Donate” “Maybe.” You may even want to add another one labeled “Sell,” but if you don’t think you will actually do so, just put those items into “Donate.” When it comes time to “maybe,” move that too elsewhere. Chances are, by the time you get through your home, your “maybe” boxes will feel more like “toss” or “donate” boxes.

KEY: As soon as a box is full, get it out of the house and gone.

3. Set a short time goal.

Block out time, put on some music, set a timer, get at it. Even if you are a little slower than you used to be, having a set amount of time means that there’s an end point and will help you get things done. Having a set time will also help you make decisions faster and easier. Alternatively you can go through a room over a week or weekend, commit to putting X number of items into the boxes every day, or any variation!

KEY: Do not linger on an item(s). If you find yourself doing so, put it in “Maybe” and walk away.

So there you have it, 3 ways to get you started on decluttering before your next move. Keep it real. Keep it fun. Keep the boxes moving and keep yourself moving onwards! Hope these are helpful. Stay tuned for more moving tips in the future.

Dear Ladd Moving,

My name is Mrs. Drake, and I am writing to express my gratitude for how easy the Ladd Moving Team made my family’s recent move. We were expecting the ease of a moving service, but your team was helpful, hardworking and they had a great attitude!

I initially hired Ladd Moving because my family owns a piano, and we had seen many excellent reviews mentioning moving large instruments. While the piano definitely (literally) weighed on our decision, we also wanted to hire a reliable, trustworthy moving service, and we preferred a local, family-owned business. My husband found Ladd Moving after some intuitive googling, and I am so glad he did! I spoke briefly to someone on the phone, and setting up the appointment was a breeze.

The team arrived on time, and ready to go! Everyone was very nice and accommodating – my small children were running around them while they were trying to help me pack, but everyone was all smiles!  As a family of five, we had quite a bit of furniture and boxes to pack and move. I was worried that our larger items (a large sectional, a piano, and a California king mattress/boxspring) would be difficult to transport, but the moving team made it look simple, and all of our items arrived at our new home in perfect condition. The team was also helpful enough to place our items into the correct rooms at our new house, so that we didn’t have to do much besides rearrange, assemble a few things, and unpack – the easiest move ever!

Thank you to the Ladd Moving Team for making our family’s recent move the smoothest ever, even with three small children! Your patience and hard work did not go unnoticed – We will not hesitate to recommend you to our friends, or to hire you again in the future.

Thank you for having such an awesome team!

The Drake Family