If you are among the 700,000 military service members who get reassigned to entirely new locations every year then you are probably paying out as much as $1,725 each time in expenses, which are non-refundable. Add the cost of making a move to the difficulty of constantly having to uproot your life and relocation can start to take a heavy toll.
Although it is pretty much unavoidable to experience some level of stress while moving, the financial pain of PCSing can be eased with just a little advance planning. Whether you are moving in a few days or a few weeks, you should develop a budget for your move to make sure that you can avoid last minute costs and keep your finances on track.
It is a good idea to find out precisely what the military is willing to cover in terms of expenses and what costs will be your responsibility. For more information, visit your family center. You should budget for things such as temporary housing expenses and shipping charges as well as start-up fees for utilities. You might also want to make a list of items that you will need to purchase following your move and estimate how much they will cost.
Before you move, you also need to find out exactly how much insurance cover will be provided for your personal possessions by the government movers; if necessary, cover any difference with a temporary renters insurance policy.
Rick Wozniak
