You are on
a high. FINALLY you have found a suitable flat, by some miracle, been accepted
by the landlord and can plan your move, or “Umzug”. You have just spent a considerable amount of
money on the deposit, perhaps the agent’s costs and perhaps also a new
“Einbauküche”. The last thing you want to do is spend even more money paying a
removal company to take care of your move. No worries. Germany is full of
individuals/small “companies” that are willing to moonlight, “schwarzarbeiten”
to help you out. I did this once and two men turned up at 6pm with their van to
pack up and unload my 3 room flat. They totally underestimated the amount of
work and in order to get the job finished at a decent hour, I ended up helping
them. All in all though, it worked out well and of course, at half the price of
an official moving company, I couldn’t really complain at having to lift a few
odd boxes.
If the
thought of spending any more money at all on your damn move horrifies you, as
it does many Germans, who consider that money is mainly for security and not
for spending, you can always opt for what is, in my opinion, the most common
method of moving house in Germany. Rent a cheap van yourself (which should cost
a maximum of 50 euros including petrol) and call on all your strong friends to
come over and help you out.
Yes, even if you live on the 5th floor of an “Altbau” (older building of flats) without a lift. Yes, even if you do drive a BMW X5. Yes, even if you are both working and can clearly afford to enlist the help of professionals. You would frankly rather save the money for your next big car, your annual ski trip to the alps or your summer holiday to the Gardasee. Or, of course, stash the money away in a savings account, because you are worried about your pension. A very popular slogan in Germany, started by the electronics chain Saturn in 2002, says it all: Geiz ist geil! (Being stingy is cool!) Remember this slogan.
Yes, even if you live on the 5th floor of an “Altbau” (older building of flats) without a lift. Yes, even if you do drive a BMW X5. Yes, even if you are both working and can clearly afford to enlist the help of professionals. You would frankly rather save the money for your next big car, your annual ski trip to the alps or your summer holiday to the Gardasee. Or, of course, stash the money away in a savings account, because you are worried about your pension. A very popular slogan in Germany, started by the electronics chain Saturn in 2002, says it all: Geiz ist geil! (Being stingy is cool!) Remember this slogan.
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