Americans move around a ton. It’s just what we do! In fact, each year, about 11 percent of the population will move from one home to another. On average, Americans live in around 10 homes in their lifetimes. So, if you’re moving, you’re far from alone! If you’re moving, though, you’re likely looking into renting a trailer to carry all of your things. How should you choose the right one for your move? Today we’ll help you answer that question with this quick breakdown!
How to Choose the Right Trailer for Your Move
Should You Rent or Buy?
The first question you need to ask when you’re thinking about moving is whether you want to rent or buy a trailer. You’ll need something to carry all of your things in, but buying a trailer outright might be expensive. On the one hand, owning a trailer is a great way to keep this expense from repeating in the future. After all, odds are good you’ll need to move something again soon before you move. And then, when you move again, as you likely will, you’ll want to have a trailer on hand. If you bought one the last time you moved, you’re covered!
On the other hand, though, buying a trailer might be an expense you can’t swing during the move. Maybe you don’t haul things often enough to merit simply buying one, and you’d rather save money by just renting. After all, buying can cost between $4,000 and $20,000 depending on what kind of trailer you’re looking at! There are also registration fees, taxes and inspections you’ll have to pay for on top of that. Owning can be expensive!
Picking the Right Trailer
There are a number of trailers you can choose from when you go to move. Four of the main ones you’ll see are flatbeds, cargo trailers, freight trailers and equipment trailers. We’ll briefly go over each so you can decide which one is right for your move!
Flatbed
Flatbed trailers are ideal for transporting a vehicle. If you’re moving a long distance and need to move a vehicle with you, a flatbed car-hauling trailer is the right call for your move. These are tilted to allow your vehicle to drive up onto them. Once on, you’ll secure your vehicle with straps so that it doesn’t go anywhere. Some of these trailers will have your vehicle’s back wheels stay on the pavement and roll behind the trailer, while others will have the vehicle sit completely on the trailer.
Cargo
Cargo trailers are common and come in a number of shapes and sizes. Typically people moving large amounts of furniture will go with enclosed cargo trailers. Enclosed trailers are the kind you would normally see rented through companies like U-Haul. They can be hitched to the back of a truck or SUV and have roll-up doors and enclosures. The enclosed design of these trailers helps to keep your belongings safe from blowing away, being rained on or being stolen. You can even use a padlock to lock up the trailer door so it can be left somewhere without you worrying about your belongings being stolen.
Typically these are the type of trailer that people will get when they go to move. However, they’re not always the exact trailer you need!
Equipment Trailer
Equipment trailers are flatbed-style trailers that are ideal for cross-town moves. These are side-rail trailers that are open and allow you to load your belongings quickly and easily. If you’ve got a smaller amount of belongings and only plan to move a short way, these can be good budget alternatives to cargo trailers. You will, however, have to tie down your belongings. Additionally, these trailers are less than ideal in rainy conditions, and shouldn’t be left anywhere overnight, as your belongings aren’t protected from the elements.
Freight Trailer
If you possess a large number of belongings, then a freight trailer might be ideal. Those without commercial trucking licenses will need to hire truckers to move these types of trailers for them, as they are quite large. However, for people who have very large or numerous belongings and plan to move a good distance, these types of trailers are ideal.
Another variety of freight trailer is the moving truck, which is commonly rented from companies like U-Haul. These are a bit of a happy medium between cargo trailers and semi-truck sized freight trailers. If you’re moving a long way but don’t have a huge number of possessions, these types of moving trucks are ideal.