Paid my "stupid tax" on DITY Moves

[brad_wp]

If you're renting a truck you're probably going to lose money, especially with Uhaul. I don't think I'd ever do a full DITY. A partial is a big enough PITA. You can make money if you're only renting a trailer, I've done that once or twice.

My biggest gripe is the way they plan and what they pay for mileage. With gas prices so high it doesn't even come close. The mileage calculation is b.s., when I moved from Whidbey Island to Pensacola in FEB '10 the only way for me to make the trip even close to their mileage was to take mountain roads that were closed for the season, and/or unsafe or impossible to drive a truck and 3000# trailer. Without the trailer my truck probably could have made it (if the roads were open), but definitely not my wife in the car. When I asked PSD about alternate mileage due to closed/impassable roads they just said "Sorry, can't do anything about it."

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[MasterBates]

Or the 31 cents per mile for POV allowance..

When gas was north of $4 per gallon.. Not even close, nevermind it's supposed to cover fuel, and vehicle wear, not just gas.

 

[MIDNJAC]

I wouldn't say that Miramar Property was especially good either coming in or going out. That said, when I left -101 in late '11, there were a couple real solid admin types @ -101 that squared away some things that had been F'd for a long time since Merids. This would include thousands of dollars of back pay for the difference between single and married BAH (the latter of which I didn't realize I wasn't getting until they brought it up with me). If something seems fishy, I'd give them a holler and see what they know. I moved via contract movers for the same trip, so I have no idea if this is lowballing or not, plus that was almost 3 years ago so it probably wouldn't be relevant today anyway.

 

[OscarMyers]

Only thing U-Haul is good for is an in-town move. We ended up doing a full DITY (not like the gubment is going to pay to move us to a new house, not in conjunction with PCS orders, just because) even though our plan was to hire movers to move the heavy stuff (my back is still complaining about that decision). Looked at MWR, U-Haul and others for a trailer rental. U-Haul won. PODS worked out OK, but was more expensive then I expected. There are other companies out there that do the same thing PODS does for cheaper. PODS customer service was good though.

Not that this applies to you, but Navy legal informed me that the Navy will pay for a non-pcs in town move if your property owner is going through a foreclosure. Just something good to know.

 

[phrogpilot73]

Not that this applies to you, but Navy legal informed me that the Navy will pay for a non-pcs in town move if your property owner is going through a foreclosure. Just something good to know.

That makes sense, and you're right it doesn't apply to me. We owned the property we were leaving and bought the property we were going to. Cue the theme song to The Jeffersons... Movin' on up!

 

[C420sailor]

In my opinion, DITY moves aren't worth it. You really don't make much coin at all, and it's a shit ton of work. I switched to government moves after doing two DITY moves...and barely breaking even. I would never go back. Those guys come in and professionally pack your shit up and carry it out to the truck. If they damage anything they'll pay for repairs or replacement. Minimal prep on your part---they actually prefer if you leave your things as-is, unboxed. Super convenient, super fast.

Put anything you really value or will need on arrival in your vehicle/small trailer.

 

[phrogpilot73]

Put anything you really value or will need on arrival in your vehicle/small trailer.

And do a partial DITY. That's worth it, full DITY? I'm with you - never again.

 

[brad_wp]

Biggest thing you have to watch for on the gov't funded move is the movers lying on the condition sheet saying your stuff is already scratched, dented, or otherwise damaged if it's not. Take pictures.

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[scoolbubba]

Never had the issues with a full DITY...a buddy just moved a full allowance to Pcola and cleared 8000 before expenses. I'm living like a nomad right now with 1 plate, 1 fork, 2 towels, and my clothing in suitcases with everything else in boxes in my garage, but I've had good luck so far with DITYs and not breaking my own shit. I wish I could say the same for the assholes who moved me from Vance to Corpus. I did make about 2100 bucks on that move, but that's because they broke $2100 worth of stuff.

 

[e6bflyer]

Have someone pack, store, and move my shit, plus you get full replacement value insurance now? No brainer.
I ALWAYS do the partial DITY. They are paying me to move a car full of luggage, which I am doing anyway. I have one of those topper things, I just load it up and with that plus the kids' stuff that is going in the car anyway, I have cleared around $500 each move.

 

[helolumpy]

I do partial DITY moves every PCS since I'm towing my boat. I lose money on the tow since my milage with the boat on is horrible. But since the Navy won't move it, it provides me some relief to getting it to my next assignment.

Biggest pain in the ass is dealing with the civilians in PPO who provide you ZERO support, give no advice and are useless when all is said and some since I have to file my claim by mail to Norfolk.

 

[BigBadBoJenkins]

I got a poor counseling session from the PPO office at Fort Snelling, Minneapolis before I PCS'ed to API. I had movers come and get my stuff, and didn't realize that I couldn't get said stuff delivered until I started primary. I ended up sleeping on an air mattress in a bare apartment for 4-5 months. Stupid me.

 

[Spekkio]

Biggest pain in the ass is dealing with the civilians in PPO who provide you ZERO support, give no advice and are useless when all is said and some since I have to file my claim by mail to Norfolk.

Amen. The best is when they try to tell you that you are not entitled to get paid to move something that you actually are (like towing a boat) even after you show them the ink on the page, as if they get bonuses for cheating servicemembers out of benefits.

I had a PPO civvy tell me that they didn't have a copier in the office for me to use and was sending me to another building. Her coworker walked up, heard the conversation, and led me to the copy machine.