Apartment Hunting & Lost Baggage

So, when you have to find an apartment from 2,800 miles away, I found some helpful ways to make sure you're not getting screwed.

• If the community has a website, check out the pictures on the website, but also ask if they will provide actual pictures of the units.  Sure, the pictures of the apartments on the website might look nice, but that might just be a demo unit.  I did this, and now I live in the demo unit.  These units are going to be cleaner, with newer carpet and appliances.  
• Another helpful hint is to check out Google Street View.  You can see the neighborhood and also check out the cars in the place to make sure you're not moving to the absolute ghetto.  What this won't get you, however, is a look at your neighbors...  and this is why I now live in "Little Mexico".  It's cool though, if you don't mind Mexican pop music and stares from all the residents.
• There are actually websites that review apartments.  People can post about the noise complaints, the helpfulness of the front office, etc, etc.  I found the reviews for this community and they talked about how loud it was and how unhelpful the office staff was.  I shared those concerns with the apartment manager, and she got me a unit facing away from the freeway, and assuaged any concerns I had of the office staff being unhelpful.  
• Because this community is owned by a larger parent company, I was not able to negotiate the rent - however, out on the West Coast it seems that they don't require first, last and security, which is definitely a money saver.  I only had to pay first months rent, and a $500 deposit.  That right there saved me $1500 up front, which I'm grateful for.

So now let's talk about luggage.  You know how they tell you to never, ever, ever put valuables in your checked bag?  Well, I didn't.  But on the second leg of my trip, they made me check my carry on because there was no overhead space.  I did not even consider the fact that in my carry on I had put ALL of my valuables.  I didn't want to entrust the movers with jewelry and handbags, and I certainly didn't want to let the TSA pick through it, so I packed it all in my carry on.  Fast forward three hours, I get both of my checked bags, but my carry on that was checked at the gate has not yet arrived.  The American Airlines staff at LAX was ridiculously helpful, however, three days later, I still do not have my bags.

I've called twice a day since I arrived on Monday, and they are still unable to locate my bag.  They're also skirting my questions about whether or not they will cover the replacement cost of the contents.  They just keep saying that in 5 days if it is not located, they will submit it to the claims department and they will take care of it.

In said bag I have a very expensive Kate Spade purse, a Tiffany's necklace, a vintage Hermes necklace, my favorite Nicole Miller shoes, several dresses from J. Crew that I just bought, all of my make up, my contact lenses, several Spyder jackets and my UNDERWEAR.  I always expect for the airline to lose my checked baggage, so I always bring a few changes of clothes in my carry on in case I'm without those bags for a few days.  For them to lose my carry on bag just boggles my mind.  My main concern at this point is, what TSA employee is wearing my underwear and walking around in my heels.   I had to go to Sephora yesterday and replace all of my make up which cost about $100... which is absolutely insane because most of the stuff they lost was brand new.  They better cover the cost of everything in that bag if it doesn't turn up... and if it does turn up, everything better be in there.

Please American Airlines, just find my bag today so that I can stop stressing out about at least one thing!

Top Fives

Things I Will Miss About Philadelphia

1. Isgro's Pastries

2. The World Fuckin' Champion Phillies

3. Wawa

4. 6% Sales Tax

5. KYW 1060

Things I Will Not Miss About Philadelphia

1. City Wage Tax

2. Crackheads

3. Traffic

4. Winter

5. The Smell

Day Twelve

So, I wish I had thought about this 11 days ago, when this all began.  I found out on Tuesday, May 19th, that I would need to relocate from Philadelphia to Camarillo, CA...  by June 1st.

On limited funds, and without knowing a soul out there, this has become quite the challenge.  I wanted to share some helpful links and companies I've been using to facilitate a somewhat easy move.  In this economy, when an opportunity like this arises, you really can't say no.  Who knows when the next opportunity for advancement is going to come up?  Who knows if you're going to get laid off if you say no?  Ever since I went to Santa Cruz in 2007, I've dreamed of moving to California.  Honestly, I never thought for a moment that this would happen... and I really never imagined how much a move across the country would cost.

By noon on May 19th, I was already researching moving companies, rental trucks, rental cars, pet relocation companies, apartment buildings, etc.  

First of all, U-Haul is an absolute rip off.  Their box trucks get about 12 miles to the gallon.  So, 2800 miles, 12 miles to the gallon...  That's about 233 gallons.  Average cost of diesel?  Let's say $2.75.  That's about $642 in fuel cost alone.  Not to mention the time that it will take you to get from point A to point B, the food, the hotels, the traffic.  In addition to this, U-Haul charges you per mile.  U-Haul will charge you $1500 and allow you to have 10 days and use up to 3200 miles.  So if you get lost, you're going to be paying about a $1 a mile after that.  This does not even include taxes, fees or insurance.   So, without insurance or any of the other frills, you're looking at over $2000 to rent a U-Haul truck... and if you have to do all the moving on your own!  No thanks...

Budget trucks was a little bit more reasonable, $1200, unlimited miles... However, when speaking to a representative I asked how many miles to the gallon the trucks get, the gentleman responded, "Uhh.. six?".  SIX? Seriously?  Click.

The reason I had been considering driving across the country in a truck was because I have two cats, who I am absolutely terrified of flying with.  I figured the best way to start all of this, would be to find a way to get them across the country separately from me.  This would relieve the stress on me of having to travel with them, and also give me the time to get everything set up at the new apartment before they arrived.  So in comes We Move Pets.

We Move Pets is a USDA approved company who relocates pets all across the country by ground.  As I write this, my pets are still en route, so I will update and give my full approval once they have arrived safely in Camarillo in a few days.  Basically this company will pick your pet up in this winnebago type vehicle specially designed with cages to house up to four dogs and four cats.  The drivers are constantly on call, and you can contact them at any time to find out how your animal is doing.  The owners of the company are from Texas, and have to be the sweetest people I've ever spoken to.   Just please understand, this service is not inexpensive.  

My original quote was $1200.  On a limited budget, this was completely out of my budget.  I spent hours debating whether I would have to give the cats away.  I talked to them about my concerns, and they dropped the price down to $885.  I cannot even begin to tell you how much I appreciate this, provided my cats get there safe on Tuesday.

So my lovely mom put the pet relocation fee on her credit card (for which I must pay her back immediately, eek!).  With that out of the way, it was back to moving my belongings.

There are thousands of moving companies and companies that broker moves through these companies.  I got quotes from probably 30 places, all of which were upwards of $2500.  The good thing about this, however, is that it includes the assembly and disassembly of large furniture, and you don't have to lift a finger.  The bad thing?  It can take 7-21 business days for delivers to the West Coast.  Additionally, they base your estimate on an inventory list that you provide to them.  This is incredibly difficult to come up with before you pack.   I submitted my inventory list to Everest Moving Systems, and the quote I received as $1185.  This included fuel surcharge, assembly/disassembly, etc.  This company is actually a broker that coordinates the moves through outside contractors.  Everest Moving Systems, is a member of the Better Business Bureau and has no complaints, however, that is not to say that the companies that they utilize will not.  The estimate they give you is binding, provided you do not have any extra inventory on the day of the move.  

Remember how I said it's hard to estimate the inventory before you pack?  Well, my move ended up costing $2055.  I didn't find this out until after all of my stuff was loaded into the truck.  They charged me for tape, mattress covers, boxes and 100 cubic feet of additional inventory, at a rate higher than what was originally quoted.  Everest Moving Systems was great about contacting the company (The Moving Group of Pembroke Park, FL) and getting the information on why the quote was so much higher.  I'll admit, I did have some more things than I originally said, but I never imagined that would run me another $1000.  They were only able to knock $100 off of that price, but truthfully, that's all they could do.  Had I known I would be paying $72 for a mattress cover, I would've just wrapped that shit up in plastic wrap and called it a today.  Bam, $4 mattress cover.

The Movers Group told me that the best thing to do to avoid a situation like this is to have a Visual Estimator come out prior to the move.  They will make an estimate based on your stuff, and that estimate is 100% binding and cannot be increased on the day of the move.  The only additional charges they can add would be for boxes (if something is improperly wrapped) or for tape.  They tell you they provide free blankets to wrap up your furniture, but what they don't mention is that they charge $6 for a roll of tape to secure said blankets.  Ten rolls of tape later, I'm out $60.

So here we are, pets and furniture moved across the country and it comes to $2840.  I was able to coordinate all of this within the course of about 7 days.  The cats were picked up Tuesday and are to arrive next Tuesday.  The furniture was picked up Thursday and will hopefully arrive next week, but they have up to 21 business days.  

The cost of moving my stuff was not so much the AMOUNT of stuff, I actually threw out basically everything I own, it's the distance that they are taking it.  Honestly, I think your best bet would be to sell all the furniture you own on Craigs List and hit up Ikea when you get out there.  If I had about 2 extra weeks to execute this move, I would've done that instead, and saved myself a few dollars.

So now it's time to say goodbye to Philadelphia.  It's my last day in the city and I plan on going to Isgro's for some cannolis, Wawa for some touch screen sandwich ordering and last but not least, For Pete's Sake for one last burger with brie and caramelized onions.  

I fly out at 7:40AM tomorrow morning, and I'm hoping all of my belongings and kittens arrive in one piece at some point this week. 

 I will miss you Philadelphia.