Happy Valentine’s Day from McGuire Moving & Storage!  Are you planning to move in with your sweetheart?  Maybe buying or renting your first place together? Soon to be married and planning your living space? The season of love is in the air, and we wanted to take this opportunity as your trusted St. Louis moving company to give you a few of our favorite tips for decorating the rental home or apartment that you share with your partner.

• Take a walk through of your home, take a note pad, write down everything that you’d like to change in each room – what color scheme should this room be? Is the furniture arranged in the best way? What ways can we utilize this space better?
• Go shopping! If you’re on a tight budget, second hand shops and barn sales are great places to find unique décor for your home. Go test out your style!
• Do some research, look up DIY projects online and in books – there are so many projects that you and your partner can do together to make your space a special one.

It doesn’t matter if it’s only your first or second home! You and your beloved have taken the leap to move in together, and you want to make your space feel like it’s something to celebrate, like it’s something that you can share together and get excited about. But how do you renovate an apartment or house to make it feel like it’s your own? As your most reliable St Louis moving company, we like to keep our eyes open for home design ideas, and we have found an article that not only keeps things easy, but cheap! Check out this huffington post article, explaining 11 different ways to liven up your rental home. Of course, you can use these tips in your owned home as well.

If you’re new to sharing a home with somebody else, finding a style that matches both of your tastes can be a very exciting and fun time. Don’t let the daunting task of compromise stop you! Keep it light, keep it simple, and keep it fun and don’t forget the flowers and chocolates!

Best of luck!

McGuire Moving & Storage, your trusted St Louis Moving Company

Happy Halloween from McGuire Moving & Storage! It is the time of year for ghost stories, bats in the night, jack o’lanterns, and all things spooky and scary. All good and fun for Halloween, but if you are nearing the time for a move, we are sure that scary is the last thing you want from the experience of choosing a St Louis moving company.

Moving does not have to be scary at all. Sure all change comes with a bit of anxiety, but anxiety can usually be lessened when you do your research. Doing your homework will help you get closer to a stress-free moving experience.  Any reputable St Louis moving company should have plenty of information on their website as well as connections to other sites that prove their trusted status in the moving industry. We suggest you look to answer the following questions in your search:

• Do they offer free and accurate on-site estimates?
• Are they an AMSA (American Moving and Storage Association) certified ProMover?
• Are they Better Business Bureau accredited?
• How long have they been in business?
• Will they manage your move from beginning to end?
• Are they recognized and involved in their community?
• Do they have good reviews?
• What other important affiliations do they have?
• And of course, do they offer the service you are looking for?

At McGuire Moving & Storage, we provide the answers to your questions, putting your mind at ease and helping you to feel confident in your choice in us. We wouldn’t have it any other way. We work hard to give you a happy ending to your moving story, not a scary one. Instead of tricks, you are left with the treat of having your goods delivered safely and in a timely manner.

Leave the St Louis moving company mysteries in the dark. Go with the company that has nothing to hide. Enjoy this spooky time of year for what it should be-fun! BOO!

Welcome back to your St Louis moving company moving tips blog! Last time McGuire Moving & Storage provided our local college freshmen with tips for moving into their dorm. This week we consider students moving back to college to live off-campus.

Students decide to move off-campus for any number of reasons. Popular reasons are to save money and take the next step toward living more independently as young adults. Whatever the reasons, parents will most likely have concerns and questions. We suggest this article on College Parents of America-Should My College Student Live Off-Campus?  The whole site is a fabulous resource covering a myriad of topics for parents of college students.

So here you are in August ready to move off-campus.  Off-campus housing brings unique moving needs and can be more complicated than moving into a dorm. There are so many different factors involved depending on the type of housing you choose.  Are you moving into an apartment or house? First floor or higher? Are you renting the space furnished or will you need to furnish it? Whether it is furnished or not, you will certainly be bringing more along with you than you could bring to a dorm.  Will you need to hire a St Louis Moving Company?

Most college moves are fairly easily handled without hiring movers. Usually a few friends and small truck will suffice. If you are moving yourself, be sure to check out our packing tips for information on packing supplies and packing methods.

If your off-campus move involves more than you want to handle on your own, McGuire Moving & Storage is the St Louis Moving Company with affordable small move solutions. Contact us for information about handling your college move. There are a number of ways we can help.  Have a wonderful year in your new college town dwelling and Good Luck!

Here it is again! Every mid- August the tide of students leaving home and moving to college begins. We are at the beginning of this season and it will take us into the beginning of September depending on college start dates. McGuire Moving & Storage has many years of experience as a St Louis Moving Company. We know this annual migration well and are here to help.

We have noticed over the years that there is usually a lot of mystery surrounding moving into a dorm for college freshmen. Most freshmen students do not get to see their actual room ahead of time. Colleges may provide a short list of things to bring to the dorm but without exact room and included furniture measurements, it is hard to know what you need or how much you can actually bring. Check your college’s website thoroughly for any and all information you can get about your dorm and building. Most sites provide lists of what you can and cannot bring. We suggest you try to find out the following things:

• Does the desk provided have a built in lamp?
• How far off the ground is your dorm bed and can the height of the bed be adjusted to fit more underneath?
• If you have a wardrobe space, is there a full-length mirror on the door?
• What are the policies for hanging things on the walls?
• Dimensions of the room and furniture

Typically it is not necessary to hire a St Louis moving company to move freshmen to a college dorms as they really just can’t bring that much with them. A typical trap as you browse the fabulous displays in stores that are filled with all kinds of snazzy fun college living things, is to overbuy just to find out when you get there, that you don’t have room for everything that you bought.  Once you see your actual dorm room, you will understand more about your living situation. If you find you could really use something that you did not bring, you can easily order it on-line and have it delivered directly to your dorm.

It is a great idea to get in touch with your roommate(s) and see what they might be bringing. You may find that several things you were both planning to bring can be shared such as a small refrigerator or a TV. It will save space if you are not doubling up on the same items.

Make sure you bring a few of your creature comforts from home-photos, a favorite throw, a supply of your favorite snacks, etc. Your dorm room and building will be your home away from home, so bring a little bit of home with you to help you feel at home.

McGuire Moving & Storage wish all our college freshmen a successful and happy first year at college! We are the St Louis moving company you can turn to for everything moving!

You are all packed up and ready to leave your home. Your St Louis moving company will arrive to load everything up and move you to your new home. What should you leave behind?

What do you have to leave behind?  Typically anything that is a “fixture” stays behind when selling your home. A fixture is defined as anything that is affixed or fastened to your property. A fixture becomes part of the property and therefore part of the sale. Each state has its own guidelines for defining fixtures so check with your real estate agent for specifics involving your home in your state.

Some examples of fixtures:

• Mounted light fixtures and their shades
• Ceiling fans
• Mirrors that are fastened rather than hung on walls
• Curtain rods
• Shades/blinds
• Built-in bookshelves
• All cabinet and door hardware
• Built-in appliances such as dishwasher and oven/range
• Anything planted and rooted in the landscaping-shrubs, perennials, etc.

If you are really attached to a particular fixture in your home and do not want to leave it behind, remove it and replace it before a buyer ever sees it. For instance, if you hand-crafted a crystal chandelier and you do not want to part with it, take it down before you show your home and replace it with another light fixture.

Other items to leave behind:

• All keys to doors, windows, gates, mailbox etc.
• All remotes for garage doors, ceiling fans, security systems, etc.
• Appliance manuals, warranties and necessary receipts should be neatly left in one place
• Touch-up paint to match the current wall color
• Pertinent flooring material or roof tiles can be neatly left and stacked in the garage if new owner wants it

Some items may be expected to sell with the house but aren’t required to be. To avoid any complications on closing day or after, have anything expected to sell with the house to be included in the purchase agreement between you and the buyer. Examples could be curtains/drapes, appliances that are not built in like refrigerators, washers and dryers. Be clear ahead of time about what you are offering to leave behind so it can be included in your purchase agreement. Make sure your St Louis moving company is aware of what stays or goes according to the agreement.

Once your St Louis moving company loads the van with your belongings, your home and property should be empty of all debris, trash and personal belongings. Check back next week when McGuire Moving & Storage, your local St Louis Moving Company will discuss cleaning your house before sale and other final sale day details.