Budget Your First DIY (PPM) Move
Budget Your First DIY (PPM) Move
Be prepared to PREPAY (3)* MONTH OF LIVING EXPENSES + MOVING COST to cover your first PCS AT DESTINATION COST. Here is our timeline:
5.17.2020 Graduation HPSP Stipend STOPS ON YOUR GRADUATION DATE!
------------ Sponsor has no income ------------
6.13.2020 ODS Officer Training, registered to get paid.
------------ Sponsor has no income -------------
7.15.2020
Sponsor received first pay check (partial payment)
7.16.2020
Started PCS, prepaid moving expenses ($2800)
7.20.2020
Arrived at PCS destination, PAID RENT, set up new pay records at base a few days later
7.31.2020
Sponsor received back pay for BASE PAY and BAS since 6.13. 2020, NO BAH PAID
8.10. 2020
Submitted PPM reimbursement paperwork via mail, mail was lost, emailed in documents on 8.24.
8.31.2020
Sponsor received accurate BASE PAY and BAS for August, but NO BAH PAID
9.22. 2020
Received PPM Reimbursement
9.30.2020
Sponsor received accurate BASE PAY, BAS, and back pay for BAH. Everything is finally in place.
Since we are moving across the country, I took leave at work starting early July, and officially quit my job on July 31st. My last pay check was on August 15th. So we still had some sort of income every month until then.
$1300 = 26ft Budget Truck rental + tow dolly + full coverage commercial insurance + sales tax, this price is with a 20% discount for first time Budget Truck users. We drove the truck ourselves, and towed our personal vehicle.
Tips: The earlier you reserve the truck, the cheaper. Check with your car insurance company and see if they will cover rental truck. Our insurance company Amica would have covered a commercial truck until the weight exceeds gross weight 24000 lbs, but our truck has a gross weight of 26000 lbs.
$300 = moving company at origination, labor only + tips
$400 = moving company at destination, labor only + tips
Tips: be aware that moving company may not show up on a specific time, instead, they have an arriving window.
$110 = boxes, packing materials, and moving equipments, including boxes and equipments I already have
$430 = diesel for 1500 miles
$150 = lodge for two days for this four-day-three-night trip - - we spent one night at a relative's home
$110 = meals
$2800 = total
Click here to read more about our first PPM move experience.
The fixed cost with utilities of a 2bedroom/2bath apartment raised from $1300/mo at origination to almost $3000 a month (same as BAH) at destination. Both apartments are close to school, in the medium price range, and in a safe area. However, thanks to Commissary and Navy Exchange, our grocery and household item expenses is still pretty much the same as origination. I also found out that if you pick up a Commissary Rewards Card at the Commissary, register it at my.commissaries.com, you can add digital coupons to the rewards card, and use it on your next Commissary trip. The website also lets you create a shopping list. There are a few other grocery stores close by. I got their free rewards card as well, subscribed to their weekly coupon emails, and sometimes we might get a better deal on certain things than the Commissary.
Research shows our destination Daycare cost is 2.5-3 times higher for a two-year-old class. Meanwhile, military Childcare cost is much lower than civilians, but there is usually a waiting time. The standard fees change every year, you can simply Google it for the most updated fee schedules. As soon as we know where we will be stationed at, and the approximate arrival time, we got on the Childcare waiting list of the destination childcare center on base. https://public.militarychildcare.csd.disa.mil/mccu/ui/#/ As you can see on the website, each daycare center has a different waiting time. Ours has a 6 month wait, and unfortunately, due to Covid-19, they froze the waiting list.