New york skyline

For the most part, apartments come in three varieties in the ‘burbs: complexes, duplexes and quadruplexes. With a few variations in between, the double driveways and outdoor staircases tend to give apartments away, and rent prices are generally determined by a unit’s square footage, general condition and quality of the neighborhood surrounding it.

But if you’re living in or moving to New York City, the lexicon of dwelling types is practically infinite. If you’re considering a move to the Big Apple, we’ve got a simple glossary to help you navigate the maze of apartment options.

Rent-stabilized v. Non-stabilized

Rent stabilization laws protect tenants from the dramatic and often unpredictable swings in the NYC real estate market. Under such laws, when a tenant’s lease ends and he or she renews, the rent can only go up under the law’s current limitations. In a non-stabilized apartment, rent may skyrocket when it comes time to renew a lease, based on the owner or lease manager’s whim or arbitrary reasons.

Due to the financial security that comes with living in a rent-stabilized (or “rent controlled”) apartment, these units are in high demand and are becoming a limited commodity in the city. Many addresses have a mix of apartments that both are and aren’t rent controlled, all in the same building.

Looking for a rent-stabilized apartment? Get in line… (we kid). They’re tough to find, butthis post from our friends at Brick Underground lays out some best practices to get you started.

No Fee

When an apartment hunter uses a broker to find the perfect space, the broker typically charges a percentage (usually 8 to 15%) of the lease total once a lease is signed; this is referred to as a “broker’s fee.” A no fee apartment is one in which the broker will not charge the tenant an added finder’s fee for connecting him or her with the owner and brokering a lease agreement. Usually, this means the broker is being paid by the owner instead. If you’re on your own, searching for a place without a broker’s help, every apartment you look at is considered “no fee.”

Pre-war v. Post-war

In terms of architecture, there’s old New York and new New York. Much like it sounds, a pre-war apartment was built before World War II, with thick walls and sturdy construction, often featuring crown moldings, arched doorways and other old world elements. Post-war apartments, built after World War II, can range from modest mid-century living quarters to ultra-contemporary spaces. Usually, walls between apartments in post-war buildings are much thinner than their predecessors, thanks to inexpensive modern innovations like drywall. For these reasons, rents are higher in higher in pre-war buildings.

Doorman v. Attended Lobby

These terms are sometimes confused or misused, but strictly speaking, there are four types of buildings when it comes to help getting in the door: – Doorman – Attended lobby (or “concierge”) – Full service – No doorman

Simply put, a doorman is a uniformed individual who helps residents and invited guests into the building; an attended lobby features an attendant or concierge behind a desk inside who can welcome visitors and also help with receving deliveries and the like; a full-service building has both an attendant/concierge and a doorman (obviously, these are generally pricier); and some buildings have none of these services (i.e., “no doorman.”)

Elevator Building

An elevator building has an elevator (pretty obvious), but no doorman or concierge. Generally, these apartments feature voice or video intercoms through which residents can buzz up their guests.

One thing to note about moving into elevator buildings: many NYC elevators are quite small, and are not necessarily large enough to hold large furniture items (i.e. king-size mattresses) on moving day. And since the whole community of the building depends on use of the elevator to get around, many elevator buildings place restrictions on when elevators can be used for moving, such as no moving on weekends or only with limited reservations.

If you’re moving into an elevator building, be sure to confirm your moving plans with your super, and make sure your crew knows what’s up before they arrive to move you in, or you may run into unwanted delays.

Townhouse

A townhouse is basically the closest thing to a house a person can live in within New York City’s inner core. Usually offering amenities like a private backyard and eat-in kitchen, townhouses are often more ornate than most other pre-war buildings. While they were originally built as single-family homes, some are now split into multiple units.

Brownstone

A brownstone is a specific type of townhouse made of brown sandstone, a popular pre-20th century building material. Brownstone townhouses are commonly referred to as “row houses.”

Railroad

Often seen in brownstones, railroad apartment layouts mimic those of of old railway cars — long and narrow, sometimes with a hallway running down one side, providing access to each room. Some may have interior panel doors as well, leading from one room to another; these are commonly referred to as “shotgun apartments,” dating back to the Civil War era, when small residences could provide a clear shot from front to back. Most buildings containing them are five to six stories tall.

Railroad apartments were first built to provide a solution to urban overcrowding in the mid-20th century. Since the linear layout of a railroad apartment is less than ideal, they’re sometimes cheaper on the market. But if you’re searching for a place to share with roommates, proceed with caution. Railroads mean that you’ll be walking by or through each others’ personal space to get around the apartment, and the noise and intrusion will get old pretty quickly.

Walkup

Usually pre-war buildings, walkups have no elevators and are generally five stories or shorter. Most have a voice intercom for buzzing guests in. (Technically, townhouses are considered walkups, but are simply called townhouses.)

Condo

In a condo, each unit is owned privately, and unit owners share ownership of common spaces like hallways, lobbies and so on. Rental applications are typically submitted to the respective unit’s owner and reviewed by the condo board.

Co-op

In a co-op, the entire building is owned by a group of people on the property who have bought shares of the corporation formed by the building’s co-op association. In this setup, each “owner” is actually a proprietary lessee. While a proprietary lessee may sublet his or her living space, prospective tenants must go through an often rigorous approval process with the building’s board of directors, who may under law reject the tenant’s sublease request for any reason they choose.

If you’re applying to get an apartment in a co-op building, don your Sunday best, expect character and credit checks, and prepare to promise away your first born to get in. Condo and Co-op board reviews are no joke.

Studio

Just like any other city, New York’s studio apartments don’t differentiate between a classic living room, dining room, kitchen, and bedroom. Transitions are left up to residents to establish through furniture placement and creative solutions like curtains, temporary partitions and even simple, subtle cues like rugs.

New York is teeming with studio apartments, often with very little square footage. That said, because there are so many single young professionals living in NYC, it can be quite tough to find a studio at a reasonable rate, which may explain why so many sitcoms set in NYC feature 30-year-old roommates.

Microstudio

As New York’s population grows ever denser and the island stays the same size (because, you know… science), the city is seeking out intelligent ways to accommodate more residents. Although living spaces under 400 feet are currently illegal in the city, Mayor Bloomberg is looking into alternatives in the way of microstudios (or “micro units”), which are around 350 square feet and have transformable furniture (think “wall by day, fold-out bed by night”), making small space dwellers the wave of the future and giving new meaning to the term “efficiency apartment.”

Loft

Lofts are open-plan spaces that could also be used for purposes other than living quarters. Often industrial in appearance, these spaces are typically large, with high ceilings and large windows. Lofts are especially popular among artists and those seeking live/work spaces. Not for traditionalists, lofts are fairly abundant in downtown NYC and in Brooklyn.

All in all, the process of finding the perfect apartment in the city can be a challenging one, but New York is full of amazing gems and creative solutions. Whether you’re working with a broker, asking friends for help or just looking online with the assistance of sites like Craigslist and Nestio, knowing your terminology can save you time and keep you on track.

And of course, if you’re planning a move to the city and need help pulling together an inventory of your belongings, comparing price quotes and finding a reputable moving company, the team here at Moveline is happy to help — for free.

To get started, head to our homepage or simply contact a Move Captain for a little guidance, and let us know how we can help. That’s exactly why we’re here.

Moving to New York City or Brooklyn?? Let Moveline help. We’ll get you guaranteed quotes from the top NYC and Brooklyn movers, and assign you a Move Captain to manage your move.

piggy bank and money

“I once negotiated a relo package that included the cost of moving my client’s horses across country and paying for a stable at the new location,” reports Lee E. Miller, Negotiationplus.com, career coach and author of Get More Money on Your Next Job. If you’re about to negotiate your own relocation (or “relo”) package, odds are, you’re not worrying about about what to do with your horses, but you’ve got plenty of other issues on your mind.

So to help you navigate the conversation, here are some industry trends and helpful tips to consider as you ask for the resources you need to get settled, happy, and productive in a new city.

The most important thing to remember is that in the end, you and your employer share the same goal: to relocate you in a way that will make you (and your family) happy so that you will be free to focus completely on the job you’ve been asked to do. Everything about negotiating a relo deal, whether you’re “fresh-out” and moving on your own to a first job, or someone who is taking your spouse and two kids with you, is about making the move as stress-free as possible.

What’s the state of relocation in 2013?##

We asked Jill Heineck, a veteran of the relocation industry, what’s happened lately to relocation packages. “Simply put, they have shrunk,” she told us. “Real estate buy-outs and reimbursement of loss on home sale are hard to find right now unless you are a C-level candidate.”

A full relo, from origin to destination, averages just under $97,166 for a current employee and $72,672 for a new hire homeowner. Considering the price tag, it’s easy to understand why carefully managed negotiations are key; companies must be made to understand that the pieces of the package you are asking for are both reasonable and necessary.

More and more companies are asking their employees to make a move, and more and more employees want to make that move. “Millennials these days are not only open to relocating, they’re asking for it,” says Heineck.

A survey put together by the Society for Human Resources Management is a useful measure of the relo mood in the country: – 29% of companies surveyed give a lump sum for relocation – 19% reimburse shipping fees – 12% offer help with spouse relocation – 6% reimburse for loss from home sale – 3% offer mortgage assistance. Looking back, the survey authors report that “the prevalence of a number of housing and relocation benefits declined over the past five years.”

After attending a relo industry conference in February, Heineck noted some other up-to-the- minute trends: “From what I’m hearing, corporate policies are being modified to reflect changing family dynamics. There’s an uptick in dual-career couples, more split families where the employee starts out ‘commuting’ from the new location until the house is sold or the kids finish school… Corporations don’t want to publicize the ‘extras’ they may be allowing but they are willing to be flexible.”

The basics of negotiation

What you are going to ask for in your relocation package depends on your situation. Heineck again: “A recent college graduate in California taking a job in Boston is going to require a lot less than a family of four making the exact same move. The college student may require a household goods move (maybe the contents of a one bedroom apartment), cross-country car transport and temporary housing in the new location for 30 to 90 days. The family of four needs a lot more. They’re going to sell their home, go across country with two school-age kids, buy a new home, look for a job for the spouse and they may have an elderly parent moving with them.”

What are the most basic items open for negotiation? Lynda Zugec, managing director ofTheworkforceconsultants.com, lists:

According to Heineck, some of the “extras” may be:

As you approach negotiations, remember the “it-never-hurts-to-ask” principle. As Heineck says, “Go for it all, but know what your absolute bottom line is. And remember that your move is not just about a new job, it’s about ‘futuring’ and your personal career goals… Forging an open relationship with the hiring manager is key. Let him/her know your familial situation up front. They’re not mind readers.”

Miller thinks that mutual interest is what will make your negotiations succeed. That, and being reasonable with your requests. “If they want you, relocation issues shouldn’t be a stumbling block. The company wants to spend right and make everyone happy at the same time.”

Know that just because a relocation package isn’t offered, or isn’t what you need,
doesn’t mean the hiring manager can’t change their position.

Do your research

Karen Van Bergen, CEO of global public relations firm Porter Novelli, relocated to New York from Amsterdam last year and says that “you need to do your homework to avoid any unpleasant surprises. I had no idea how difficult it would be to arrange schooling for my son when I first moved. And the high cost of health care. But, it’s all been worth it.”

“My experience has been that 90 percent of the game is to get as much information as possible regarding the decision maker, the decision limits, the alternatives the company has, local employment laws, and details at the destination,” says Martin Collins, managing director of Geneva-Eduction.com, a training/coaching/consulting company. “Find out who the decision maker is — HR or line manager? Department or business unit? What are the company’s relo policies? What drives the decisions? Budget? Policy? Company principles? People will be surprised how easy it is to get answers to most of these questions simply by asking around.”

Getting this information is key to knowing what the organization considers a reasonable offer in a relocation package. Knowing this helps you gauge the size of your ask, and frame your approach to the negotiation.

Research the cost of living (or “COL” to the pros) in your new location by checking theCost of Living Index, money.cnn.com, Sperling’s Best Places and/or Expatistan. Suz Garber, chief networking officer of International SOS, recommends: “At a minimum, check out the index prices for groceries, gasoline, utilities and rent. Failure to fully understand what you are getting into might actually cost you more than the raise you received to take this new job — assuming that you received one. Some cities and states also charge differing rates of income tax, which could work for or against you.”

Want to see how competitive the package you’re being offered is? Review the vendor/exhibitor list for the annual conference of the Worldwide ERC: The Workforce Mobility Association and contact any that may help you answer that question.

So that your negotiating can be as focused as possible, Miller wants you to find out just what the company’s relo policy is — what have they done for others in your same situation? “But don’t feel limited by ‘can you?’” Miller urges. “Make certain your circumstances are compelling.”

He warns that “Although it’s important to research COL, keep in mind that the numbers don’t accurately reflect the sticker shock you may get when you actually begin to look for an apartment or a house in the new location. Housing is huge.”

What about your ‘trailing spouse’?

This is, for better or worse, the term used in the relo world for the co-head of household: your spouse or partner, the person who is probably going to be most impacted by the move. Heineck reports that employers “want your spouse in on the first phone call or the first meeting.” She reports that several have developed a checklist of issues for you and your spouse to carefully consider.

Help finding “trailing spouses” a new position is often key to the move. If they can’t find work, they will be unhappy and if they’re unhappy, the relocation will fail. Job counseling assistance may not be formalized but it can come in the form of references from the guy in HR, contacts of the CEO, or introductions from your future teammates. “Small firms are most likely to be impacted by the employment status of a spouse or partner,” says Heineck. “Most small firms offer informal networking assistance; mid and large sized firms are more apt to offer outplacement career services.”

Negotiating and gender

On this topic, Miller, who co-authored A Woman’s Guide to Successful Negotiating with his daughter, Jessica, cites a recent working paper commissioned by the Bureau of Economic Research. In the study of 2500 job seekers, the authors, both professors, concluded that “when there is no explicit statement that wages are negotiable, men are more likely to negotiate than women. When it is said that they are negotiable, the difference disappears and even tends to reverse itself.” It is important for women (actually, everyone) to understand that relocation isnegotiable and that they should go for it.

Getting to a win-win

Keep in mind that your employer would like you to feel wanted and valued but that he/she is running a business and has to keep an eye on the bottom line. If all your requests are not granted, even if you are going to lose money at the real estate level of the deal, consider what you’re gaining. The boost to your career may be worth the tradeoff.

In negotiations, always be flexible. If you’re told that something is not covered by the relo policy and no exceptions can be made, bring up the idea of a “signing bonus” instead. Be ready with workable alternatives, and be able to justify your requests with convincing evidence of need. Collins advises, “Find out what’s easy for the employer to give but worth a lot to you. A company car or home office may come from a separate budget… Or try to get items that may be less visible but valuable, such as flights back to the home location or furniture storage. Even non-monetary awards: added vacation days, adjusted working hours, permission to work remotely while traveling back to your home state.”

Finally, Miller says to remember while you’re negotiating, that “if they can’t do X, that may be okay if they can do Y instead. An example: If the company says it can’t buy your hard-to-sell home. You say ‘fine’, as long as you’ll extend my temporary living allowance until the home sells because I can’t afford to carry two homes at once.”

Need to know how much your move will cost? Moveline can help. Visit our homepage to get started.

blue starry night

So, you’ve moved into a new place — or you’re about to — and your stuff from the old apartment just isn’t sitting well in its new environment. Never fear; Moveline rounded up our favorite design websites for inspiration on how to decorate your new apartment or house. Spend a little time on any of these generously-curated hubs and you’ll be channeling your inner Nate Berkus in no time.

Apartment Therapy (of course)

The almighty forefather of all home decor blogs, Apartment Therapy’s been doing its thing since… well, basically, the dawn of the internet. While it’s perhaps a way-too-obvious choice for this list, the fact that it’s been around for so long means one thing: endless archives full of inspiration. Search by room, by city, by style, by column (house tours vs. before-&-afters vs. green living vs. decorating on a budget)… this treasure trove of ideas and how-tos is a great place to start scheming and dreaming about everything from paint swatches to wine bottle chandeliers.

Furniture Fashion

If you’ve got your space mostly figured out but just need that one perfect armchair to complete the living room, or you’re thinking of replacing your boring light fixtures with something wild and amazing, Furniture Fashion is a veritable mother lode of retail resources. While most of the site’s stories these days focus on singular pieces (a la Design Milk, FresHomeand the like), it used to do a daily top 10 list on any given theme… 10 green couches, 10 eco-friendly floor lamps, and so on. You’re bound to find what you’re looking for, as well as a tip on where to get it.

Houzz

A bottomless vacuum for interior design photos, Houzz takes an interesting approach to gathering its content: it lets designers, home builders, homeowners and professional contractors create their own pages and lookbooks, resulting in an archive of more than 1 million images. The best part: if you’re looking to re-do your bathroom or gut that kitchen for a whole new look, chances are you can find just the right contractor to do it — one who shares your overall vision and has the pictures to prove it.

Dwell

While you probably know Dwell as a print magazine, it’s done a much better job than a lot of its contemporaries on the home design and decor shelf at the bookstore when it comes to taking things digital. With a clean layout featuring the full length of a majority of the stories it prints on paper, Dwell takes a crisp editorial approach to its features, telling the story behind the photos and letting readers get to know the designers, homeowners and renters behind each home and project it covers. We can’t help but love its consistent focus on sustainability and environmental consciousness, too, as much as its serious dedication to great design and craftsmanship.

Brit + Co

Adore that $1800 wall mirror you saw at Anthrolologie but only have $20 to spend? No problem, says Brit Morin, founder of Brit + Co, a bright and crafty online community that gives step-by-step instructions on how to stretch a dollar and make your space look great in the process. There’s nothing too twee about the site, either… this girl’s got serious style. So if you want to make your home look like that of someone making three times your budget without actually spending all that dough, let Gen Y’s answer to Martha Stewart be your guide.

And an Honorable Mention…

Reading My Tea Leaves is a lush, carefully-crafted blog chronicling the lives of a couple living in a 240-square foot micro-apartment in Brooklyn. Bonus points to these two for finding the beauty in the art of small space living. If nothing else, you’re destined to find a moment of Zen looking at their visually arresting photographs and marveling at the peace they seem to feel even when they’re tripping over each other in their tiny little matchbook of a home.

Check out Moveline’s tips for decorating your new apartment or house, or with other post-move advice.

pizza and beer

Let’s be real: as much as we might love our friends, and no matter how many cheesy 80s and 90s pop songs there might be about the beauty of platonic camaraderie (cue the Rembrandts… clap, clap, clap, clap), when it comes to helping a friend move, is it even remotely possible to get excited about throwing on some sweats and helping them pack plates into boxes?

Well, not really… at least for most people. While most moving companies offer packing services, budgets and timing can sometimes get in the way of using them, and some of us prefer to pack our own belongings, no matter what. Still, when the clock is ticking down and we’re mere days away from loading our stuff into a U-Haul or entrusting it to the care of a moving company, sometimes the pro bono elbow grease of a few good friends is in order. So, if you find yourself in the position of asking your personal pit crew for assistance, remember this three-point process to keep the experience as pain-free — and your friendships as intact — as possible.

1. Get organized beforehand.

Figuring out a game plan is key. Having three or four friends who are willing to help is great, but without some idea of what you need them to do and how, chances are, you’re going to wind up with bathroom items in kitchen boxes and much-needed remote controls buried at the bottom of crates marked for storage.

Assign each person a room or list of items for which they’ll be responsible; a little direction (pleasantly put, of course) can save a lot of inconvenience in the long run. Even with the best of intentions, your friends aren’t professional movers; they’re your friends. Tell them what you need, give them enough boxes, markers and guidance to get it done right, and help them help you. (Oh, and in case you’re thinking you can rest on your laurels while your pals do all the work, think again. Put in an equal amount of effort; if you’re only supervising, it’ll come back to bite you later.)

As for keeping your friends comfortable, make sure to have little things available to help them out: hair ties, cold water, hot coffee, extra t-shirts in case things get sweaty and gross… the more accommodating you are, the longer they’ll stay and help. Fact.

2. Order the pizza now; save the beer for later.

The least you can do to thank the folks who are willing to get dusty and dirty on your behalf is feed them. But while boozing it up may make the process of packing more fun, it may also make it way less effective. Get a solid hour or two of good hard work logged and plenty of boxes packed before you uncork the wine or grab the six-pack from the fridge. Celebrate everyone’s awesomeness, by all means, and toast to your new adventures up ahead, but make sure you’re not creating a bigger mess than when you started by doing so. Once the crew goes home and it’s just you and your life all packed up and ready to roll, you’ll thank yourself for being responsible and planning ahead.

3. Practice reciprocity.

When was the last time you received a handwritten thank you note? No, seriously. While most of us would bend over backwards for our friends without question if they needed something, it’s all too easy to forget to show a little gratitude when we’re on the receiving end. And when it comes time to return the favor, be ready to reciprocate. They pack your apartment, you pack theirs. It’s practically a law of nature, and it’s definitely spelled out in every friendship contract ever written (or unwritten)… usually somewhere in the first sentence of paragraph one.

Happy packing! Before you call up your friends for a box-filled evening of pizza delivery and old-yearbook-related mortification, call Moveline to help streamline the moving process for you at no charge. Get help with inventory and quote-gathering from the very experts who are listed by Forbes, Fast Company and TechCrunch as revolutionizing the act of moving.

It’s entirely possible to enjoy the peace of mind that your move will take place under the care of professionals who will give you a fair price and treat your belongings with care. Don’t go it alone. Let us help — it’s why we’re here.

iphone

Remember the days of tying everything down to the back of a truck and heading off to destinations unknown with nothing but a compass, a canteen and an oil lamp to help you blaze your trail? No? Oh, right. Of course you don’t. Because it’s the 21st century.

Moving has never been a particularly fun process, but as with anything, refinements over time have made it not quite so terrible. And nowadays, no matter what obstacle you’re facing, if you need a solution for something… well, it’s nearly certain that there’s an app for it. Oh, the times they are a changin’, and we couldn’t be happier about that. Here, a bevy of apps to make your move a little easier.

Apps for Figuring Out a New Floorplan

One of the toughest parts of a move — once the actual move is complete, anyway — can be the act of figuring out what goes where in a new place where the floorplan is completely different from the last one. Try as we might, the age-old practice of eyeballing our soon-to-be new home and taking a couple of pictures with a smartphone during a walk-through doesn’t really cut it when it comes to fitting that monstrous antique Chesterfield sofa into ye olde efficiency walkup.

So, enter the apps! Among the best are SmartDraw, Floorplanner, and SketchUp; each gives you the opportunity to virtually create your new space to scale and see what pieces of furniture actually work in it without having to turn them upside down and sideways. Yet another example of the ways in which an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.

Apps for Checking Out a New Neighborhood

Never underestimate the power of Google. While it’s a no-brainer to look up particular neighborhoods and addresses to get a sense of what they’re like, once you’ve narrowed your search down to a few key places or perhaps even signed a lease or mortgage on a particular home, there’s a simple trick you can use to visit the new place (and everything around it) whenever you’d like to help you get familiar with the neighborhood. Wondering if it’s genuinely possible to walk to work, the gym or the nearest coffee place?

Wonder no more. Go into Google Maps, search an address, select the yellow human icon at the top of the zoom feature and drag it into the image window. You can literally (virtually, anyway) walk up and down every sidewalk in the neighborhood by using the arrows, stopping to check out sweet local corner stores (score!) and sketchy, scary alleyways (yikes). This is particularly useful prior to a long-distance move, when there’s typically not much time for exploring the vibe of each neighborhood under consideration. Just be sure to double-check the date stamp at the bottom of the image to make sure it’s relatively recent.

And for an expert view on how walkable the local community is, you can always check out its walkability level with the official Walk Score app, a favorite tool of public health officials. It offers transit reports, too, to let you know if local traffic is soul-crushing, blissfully nonexistent or something perhaps livably in-between.

The Ultimate App for Moving, Plain and Simple

It’s possible we’re a little biased here at Moveline, but we really are doing something that’s never been done before: leveling the playing field between consumers and moving companies. By demystifying the move inventory process and obtaining quotes from several reputable moving companies on behalf of each of our customers, we simplify the once-frustrating process of obtaining competing bids that generally ended up looked nothing like one another and only created confusion. And we offer a few other applause-worthy headache busters too.

By assigning a “Move Captain” to each of our customers, we give them a personal point of contact to oversee every aspect of their move, from a video chat session to determine how many boxes are needed to a payment process that’s easy as pie (and not full the kinds of surprises that sometimes occur when working with a moving company one-on-one). And just like every other app on this list, it costs a glorious zero dollars.
Who said the best things in life aren’t free?

If you’re ready to get started with Moveline, visit our homepage here.

Check out more tips for planning or preparing for your move from Moveline, a radically easier way to move.

Sign for Katz's Deli & Bar.Leaving the city for greener pastures — at least literally, if not otherwise? Between the move and the many errands you have to run before moving out, you probably don’t have a ton of time to give the city a proper goodbye. Lucky for you, Moveline compiled a handy dandy list of exactly the sorts of bites one might take out of the Big Apple in the last 24 before bidding it farewell.

C’mon. Bust out that old I heart NY t-shirt and let’s give the town a whirl one last time.

  1. Get on a ferry and pay homage to Lady Liberty, tourist-style. Bonus points for an Instagram in which you’re pretending to pinch her head between your thumb and forefinger.
  2. Have some super-sick sushi, because let’s face it: outside of Japan, it doesn’t get any better than this.
  3. Walk through Times Square sans irritation and judgment — just admiring the tackiest, most crass yet spectacular few city blocks in our fair nation… Vegas notwithstanding.
  4. Have a beer at Pete’s Tavern. It’s been open since 1864, through Prohibition and beyond; if there were ever a place to soak up some New York history over a brew, it’s there.
  5. Since you won’t always have Broadway, take in one last show.
  6. Knock back martinis at the Empire, the Hudson or Flatiron Lounge. Leave an absurd tip.
  7. Enjoy live music in a legendary venue — The Bitter End or Hammerstein Ballroom. Soak up some eleventh-hour sound therapy; it’s good for the soul, after all.
  8. Take one final stroll through Central Park; drop a rose at Strawberry Fields and drown your sorrows in a mile-high pile of cheesecake at Cafe Lalo.
  9. It’ll probably be 4am by the time you finish all that. Good thing “Katz’s never Kloses!” What to have for the Last Supper? The brisket, of course.
  10. OK, it’s go time. Stand outside and throw your hat in the air like Mary Tyler Moore. You wanted to do it when you first arrived but didn’t have the guts. Now, you’ve got nothing to lose. Do it! It’ll be our little secret.

Check out more moving day tips and checklists to help your move from Moveline, a radically easier way to move.

Austin city skyline.Take a vibrant live music scene, mix it with a flourishing tech industry, and the unusual mix of city living at southern speed and you’ve got Austin. The city’s become a virtual magnet for young people and families who want to relocate. Austin turns up on a huge number of “best 10” lists: most recently earning honors for being one of the healthiest, greenest, most creative and best cities for singles around. With such appeal, it’s no wonder that Forbes just named it the #1 fastest growing city in the U.S.

Thinking of making the move to the self-proclaimed “Live music capital of the world?” Well, Austin’s an amazing city to call home, but the real estate market’s never been tougher for renters, so to help you with the search for a short-term stay while you find your perfect home, Moveline talked to a few people who have made the long distance move to Austin themselves and to a few experts in the short-term rental business.

Here’s what the locals had to say:

Valerie Bauhofer, a long-time Austinite, describes her city as a university town “filled with visiting faculty, students, legislators (it’s the state capital), music fans, race fans and sports enthusiasts.”

When asked what neighborhoods are the best for people moving to Austin, Kirsten Stoddard, a blogger, web designer and publicist who lives there, listed:

Her warning for newcomers: “I lived in LA for 6 years and the traffic here rivals the traffic in LA.”

Beyond the bad traffic, Austin’s booming popularity also means that real estate (especially for rentals) has gotten pricier in the last decade, and its available supply of sublets and furnished apartments for rent on a short-term basis is much thinner than most other cities.
To make matters worse, Austin-based realtors won’t be much worse when it comes to finding short-term furnished housing; 6 months is the minimum lease length that most will handle and very, very seldom will any of the units be furnished.

So, my intrepid apartment hunter, if you’re looking for a short stay, you are pretty much on your own. Here’s where to start:

The faithful sublet standbys: Airbnb and Craigslist

Airbnb.com lists a bungalow in “the hip zipcode 78704” (the SoCo District) that the owner describes as “itsy-bitz” (500 square feet) nestled behind the owner’s hair salon. There’s room enough for a 42 inch flat-screen tv and you, for $1775 per month.

On Craigslist.com we found a listing for a share in a three-bedroom house in Hyde Park. The present tenant is moving to Dallas for a new job so he wants to sublet his room in a “cozy duplex” for $650 per month.

And if you have to find a place before the move, we always recommend Wegolook.com. They have 7400 local “lookers” who will check out any real estate listing you find and report back to you for a $59 fee.

Still, sublets are rare in Austin. Three sources we found are intended primarily for academics but are available to others as well. These are excellent options if you are bringing your family with you and need a few bedrooms and maybe a crib. Sabbaticalhomes.com, founded in 2000 by the wife of a professor who realized just how difficult it was to find homes for travelling academics, lists “a quaint, tidy home in Hyde Park with a large fenced-in backyard with 2 bedrooms, a ten minute ride from the University of Texas”, available for the summer of 2013 for $2000 per month. Academichomes.com lists a 4000 sqare foot two story contemporary in Highland Park that borders the Bright Leaf Preserve for $4200; the length of the lease is “somewhat flexible.”

Another reliable source is Utexas.edu’s Housing Guide which lists shares and sublets. Recent listings included a suite in a single family home for $600 per month and a two-bedroom garage apartment 1.5 miles from campus for $2000 per month. Since University of Texas is centrally-located and minutes away from downtown, there are plenty of professionals and non-students who live nearby. Locals tell us that as long as you avoid the West Campus neighborhood, you’ll be fairly safe from noisy parties and college shenanigans.

Corporate housing and furnished apartments

As in most cities, these are probably going to be the priciest choice of all. CHBO (the initials stand for Corporate Housing By Owners) has been matching property owners with short-term renters since 2005. The company has 21 properties in Austin; one which is especially appealing is a Hancock Guest Cottage, a rustic looking stone two-bedroom house in Hyde Park, near the University and downtown. For $3500 per month the cottage includes a sunroom that overlooks a garden with native Texas plants, a pond and a barbecue area.

Metrosetter.com posts a duplex two-bedroom apartment with 2 baths in Northwest Austin for $1950-$2250 per month; Bridgestreet.com has a listing for a one-bedroom at 404 Rio Grande, four miles from the center of the city that offers grocery delivery and valet dry cleaning for $119 per day and Execustay.com, one of the other giants of the corporate accommodations industry, lists a one-bedroom at the AMLI South Shore on Lady Bird Lake with 9 foot ceilings, balconies and patios, two pools and a roof top deck for $144 per night.

Looking for a roommate?

Four nation-wide websites will match you up with a roommate in Austin:

Olx.com, roomster.com, Roommates.com, and roomiematch.com (“our actual human Scam Busters use their actual eyeballs and organic brains to review all roommate submissions. Many get tossed in the trash”)

…all are ready to help with your search.

…or just a place to stay while you house hunt

Since sublets are scarce, vacation rentals are probably your best option for Austin. Not too expensive, and there are lots of choices in this category.

One of the largest of the vacation rental companies, Homeaway.com is headquartered in Austin and has hundreds of offerings in the area. One that’s a mile from Zilker Park is a 3-bedroom, 1000 square foot house built in the 1930’s, furnished in “urban design style” with a patio and grill in back and a $3299 per month price tag.

Another Austin-based vacation rental option that has gotten good marks on Yelp is Hancockcottages.com. Their short-term possibilities include Hancock Guest Nest and Hancock Modern. The first is “pure studio Zen” with a full kitchen and laundry for $1700 per month in the Hyde Park neighborhood; the second is in central Austin, described as “urban living with a breath of fresh air” with 4 bedrooms and 2 baths that were all “designer refreshed” three years ago for $4500 per month.

And finally, Roomorama.com can put you in a one bedroom apartment in a 12-unit Spanish colonial style condo in the Judges Hill neighborhood, a few blocks from downtown and the University of Texas. A Fireplace and terrace is included for $2250 per month. Flipkey.com offers a Hyde Park bungalow built in 1915 and renovated in 2010 with two bedrooms and within walking distance of city and UT bus stops. The rent: $99-$120 per night.

Moving to Austin? Let Moveline help. We’ll get you guaranteed quotes from the top Austin movers, and assign you a Move Captain to manage your move.

Picture of a garage that is very cluttered.There’s a pretty good chance that, as part of your move into a new home, you’ll need to rent a self-storage unit from a local facility. Maybe your new home isn’t completely finished, or maybe you simply don’t have the time to move everything in one weekend and need to keep it elsewhere for a time—either way, self-storage can be a very practical solution to your moving problems.

There’s also a pretty good chance that, when you arrive at the storage facility, the manager will ask you if you have insurance. “Insurance?” you’ll probably respond. “Yes, I have homeowner’s insurance” or maybe “Yes, I have renter’s insurance.”

And then there’s a pretty good chance that the facility manager will say: “Yes, but do you have storage insurance?“

To which you might think: what is storage insurance? The idea behind storage insurance is quite simple: your valuables are sitting in a storage locker in the middle of a storage facility and, if some natural disaster like a flood or an earthquake or a tornado strikes, the facility is not legally responsible for the well-being of your things. When the facility manager explains this to you, there’s a pretty good chance that you’ll smile, shake her hand, and ask her where you can fill out the paperwork.

But do you need self-storage insurance?

The short answer: NO. The slightly longer answer: very probably not.

What your facility manager didn’t explain, and what they probably don’t want you to know, is that in almost every circumstance your preexisting homeowners, renters, or business insurance will cover every possible case in which you might need storage insurance in the first place. So the truth is that you already have coverage (in cases where your items are extremely valuable, you should always make sure that they’re listed on your insurance policy to begin with). That’s right: so long as those items are listed on your policy, it usually doesn’t matter if you move them out of your house and into a unit—they’re generally still covered, at least for a limited time period, by your existing homeowner’s or renter’s insurance.

But if that’s true, why is the facility manager still trying to sell it to you? And why–if you Google the second part of this article’s title– will most other articles out there tell you that you do need storage insurance?

Because it’s an upsell: the facility makes more money if they sell you a policy. Of course, if you don’t have homeowner’s insurance in the first place, storage insurance might be a good buy, so it’s good that facility managers are making the pitch to you. But if they fail to mention that your existing policy probably covers everything already, they’re being manipulative. Just like when a rental car company suggests you purchase collision insurance, the facility is playing on your fears to make an extra buck.

Now, to be fair, many facility managers might not be aware that they are being manipulative. Orders might come down from the owner or from corporate that require them to suggest self-storage insurance, and the facility manager might be totally unaware of the insurance situation in the first place—their job, after all, is to run the facility, not to deal with insurance companies. But sometimes the manipulation can, sadly, become quite extreme. Some facilities will require that your items be insured—a good idea, as after all the facility is not reprehensible in the case of a natural disaster, and verifying everyone’s insurance in the first place allows them to avoid any tricky legal situations down the road. In those cases, you should request proof from your insurance agency that the items going into the unit are covered.

There have been a few reported cases of facilities that require proof of insurance, but won’t tell the renter until the day they move in, and then demand proof immediately. This forces the customer to purchase a policy from the facility, as most people aren’t able to easily back out of such a situation. If this happens to you, ask the facility manager if your policy could be refunded once you return with proof of coverage. If they say no, notify the owner immediately. To prevent such a headache, go in with proof of insurance in the first place.

Finally, in case you’re still considering purchasing storage insurance, know that we at SelfStorageDeals.com have heard all kinds of horror stories about how storage insurance is a scam, how many facilities selling it aren’t licensed to do so, and how storage insurance companies are notoriously stingy and will deny claims for even the most common occurrences, like damage from floods or insects. So before shaking that facility manager’s hand and scribbling your John Hancock on the paperwork, we highly recommend that you: 1. Verify with your insurance agency that your items are on your policy and that the policy still applies when they’re moved offsite, and 2. Bring proof of your policy with you when you move into the storage unit.

Brian Shreckengast is a writer at SelfStorageDeals.com, a leading price-focused search engine for finding cheap storage units. Read more about storing and moving on the SSD blog.

Check out more tips for planning your move and move organizing advice from Moveline, a radically easier way to move.

City skyline of San Fransisco.So you’re off to San Francisco, but like many who move to the Bay Area from another city, you’re stuck trying to find a sublet or temporary housing on short notice and having a tough time. Should you sign a lease from afar, or find a place to stay while you house hunt? Where do you start?

To help you with the search for a short-term–one month to three month–stay, we talked to a few people who have made the long distance move to San Francisco themselves and to a few experts in the short-term rental business.

Here’s what the locals had to say:

The state of the sublet market in San Francisco

In the past few years, the short-term rental market in San Francisco has been booming with more and more people arriving to work in Silicon Valley or its urban version, the city’s SoMa neighborhood. Malana Moberg, a marketing and management consultant and San Francisco native who we spoke with, sublets her apartment whenever she goes off to travel to Africa, Europe or South America. According to her, “someone is always looking for temporary housing here.”

The most popular San Francisco neighborhoods for subletters include: – Nob HIll – Russian Hill – North Beach – Pacific Heights – SoMa – Cow Hollow – Marina

Each of these areas are near the financial district or just a short bus ride away. Anyone moving with a family and on a budget should consider going a bit further west, to Richmond or Sunset. The commute is a little longer but the price tag won’t be as steep.

When you’re searching for a place while out of town

Start with word-of-mouth and social media, says Moberg. Tell everyone you know what you’re looking for and someone may come up with the name of a friend or colleague who has a place available. Especially in Silicon Valley, finding a sublet is easiest if you know people.

But if you don’t, she suggests starting your search with the old standbys, Craigslist or Airbnb. A friend of hers reported good luck with Airbnb but cautions that some of the site’s listings can be confusing if you’re searching for housing vs. a vacation stay. As she cautions, “it’s sometimes difficult to sort the shares from the private sublets.”

The popularity of Craigslist has spawned a number of agencies that may take listings from the free website and charge for the referral. Watch out for that.

Before the Internet, anyone looking for short-term housing would start with the classifieds in the local newspaper. Thankfully, today we have the San Francisco Chronicle’s on-line classifieds, which features a pretty sophisticated search tool.

It’s always tricky trying to find a short-term living space if you are hundreds or thousands of miles away from the city you are moving to. Wegolook.com solves that problem. They have 7400 local “lookers” who will check out any listing you find and report back to you for a $59 fee.

Corporate housing and furnished apartments

These apartments are particularly attractive for short-term stays since they are fully furnished and are often set-up specifically for people who are re-locating. Three large corporate rental companies with properties all over the U.S (including San Francisco) are Oakwood.com, Execustay.com and Bridgestreet.com. Bridgestreet’s luxury apartments in the city range from $179 to $229 per day; outside the city in San Jose and Sunnyvale, they’re $159-$199.

A number of locally-based companies offer fully-furnished apartments as well. Jeanne Zimmerman of McGuire Real Estate, one of these local companies, explains that the demand for short-term rentals in San Francisco soared about 7 years ago. “That’s when we built up our own department that specializes in these kinds of rentals.” One of the offerings on her website, McGuire.com, is a 1400 square foot two- bedroom in Russian Hill for $3800 per month.

Two other locally-based sources for short-term furnished apartments are rentsfnow.com and amsires.com. Rentsfnow.com lists a one-bedroom apartment on Nob Hill with a wrap around view of the city for $4200 per month; Amsires listings include a “chic and cozy” studio that’s just a short walk from the water in the Marina District with a garden in the back for $4375.

Finding a sublet in the San Francisco Bay Area

The most obvious choice would be sublet.com with options all over the U.S. including a one-bedroom in Pacific Heights for $1950.

Two interesting alternatives include Sabbaticalhomes.com and Sabbatix.com, two companies that specialize in helping academics sublet their own homes or find short-term housing near a university.

Of the two, sabbaticalhomes.com has the most options in San Francisco. The company was founded in 2000 by Nadege Conger, the wife of a professor, who is still running the operation with the help of a multi-national team. San Francisco is a popular destination for the website for sublets, house-sitting opportunities and apartment shares. One recent listing is a $3800 per month two-bedroom, 1200 square foot flat on the second floor of a 1910 Edwardian style home located between the Mission and Castro neighborhoods.

Another local source is bayrentals.com, which offers daily updates for anyone looking for a short-term stay. There’s a $50 fee for a 30 day service contract; a recent listing –a 1 bedroom in Pacific Heights for just under $3000 per month.

Perhaps you need to find a roommate?

Four nation-wide websites will match you up with a roommate in San Francisco: – Olx.com, – roomster.com, – Roommates.com, – and roomiematch.com (“our actual human Scam Busters use their actual eyeballs and organic brains to review all roommate submissions. Many get tossed in the trash”)

…all are ready to help with your search.

…or just a place to stay while you house hunt

Vacation rentals are very much the same as sublets. Most are available by the night, the week, the month or longer. The websites VRBO.com and Cyberrentals.com are all owned by Homeaway.com, the giant in the field. Cyberrentals.com has an aptly named, flowers-everywhere-you-look one bedroom Garden Cottage minutes from downtown San Francisco for $4200 per month. Roomorama.com can help you arrange a stay in a studio on the third floor of a building in Nob Hill where Dashiel Hammett lived ($165 per night) or a one-bedroom loft in SoMa with a fireplace and shared roof deck for $4080 per month; and the San Francisco-based Buenavistarentals.com offers 70 vacation rental properties in the city including a one-bedroom with a wall of windows and a garden view on Ashbury Avenue for $3650 per month.

Moving to San Francisco? Let Moveline help. We’ll get you guaranteed quotes from the top San Francisco movers, and assign you a Move Captain to manage your move.

When prepping for a local or long distance move, it’s human nature to get caught up packing away all your personal belongings so there’s nothing left behind to scoop up at the end of an exhausting process. But what if you get to your new home and realize you need scissors, only to remember they’re tucked away deep in one (which one?) of the many boxes in the back of the truck?

We’ve been there, we’ve cursed ourselves for not being better prepared, and we’ve since compiled a list to keep you from suffering the same frustration. Here, we present a handy little checklist of the top ten things to have handy during the first 24 hours in your new home… just in case.

  1. A last-minute packing kit including a spare box or bag(s), scissors, tape and magic marker (because yes, you’ll likely have forgotten to pack something)
  2. Paper towels and toilet paper
  3. Toiletries for first day or two: soap, toothpaste, toothbrush, shampoo, deodorant, razor
  4. A set of utensils for each person (because Murphy’s law will enact itself if you have takeout delivered to the new casa before you’ve unpacked your kitchen stuff)
  5. Pet food, bowls, leash and crate/bed
  6. Prescriptions, allergy meds, aspirin, contact lens solution
  7. Phone or iPod speakers (our completely unscientific research, i.e., personal opinion, finds the unpacking process to be approximately 97% more enjoyable when set to music)
  8. Phone and laptop chargers
  9. Snacks, snacks, snacks
  10. Any other items that can make your first night more comfortable: a shower curtain & hooks if the new home doesn’t have an enclosed shower, a water filter if the new fridge doesn’t have one… whatever helps you settle into your new place with as little hassle as possible.

Even though we live in a world where practically everything’s available 24 hours a day, inconveniences are bound to present themselves when moving your life from one home to the next. A little bit of prep work can go a long way toward keeping your cool in the midst of a move, and taking a few minutes to set aside the essentials can mean the difference between sleeplessness and sanity.

Want more tips? Check out our recent blog posts on how to make the moving process more eco-friendly, how to decide what to keep vs. what to toss, and how to make a temporary sublet feel like home.