i did exactly this last time i moved with about 10 friends. we moved an entire 2 bedroom apartment to the other side of town in 2 hours tops. we had everything packed and ready to go before hand. that is really the killer. i've helped friends before whom have nothing packed and it instantly makes you hate them.

We moved on a sweltering day. I made sure everyone took a few 'Freezie' breaks to cool off after hauling boxes down 4 flights of stairs.

When my partner and I combined 2 apartments into 1 a few months ago, we had HIS TEAM and HER TEAM and called the day a 'Moving Party'. We made sure everything was ready to go when the rented truck arrived (also having moved a lot of the annoying-to-move stuff like tv's and plants, etc the day before).

We also wored to treat our teams like gold - they got coffee/tea/pastries in the morning and were impressed by how smoothly everything went. We moved everthing in less than 4 hours and cracked beers to celebrate the 'Moving Party' at noon, and we fed the teams a bbq lunch and beer all afternoon on the patio while we started the initial unpacking. Everyone had a great time and since the teams were so big it wasn't much effort for anyone.

Then after the dust had settled I sent all of the TEAM members thank you cards. I'm still getting comments about how fun the move was and how much the helpers felt appreciated.

It wasn't the least expensive self-move, but living in a rental property means that there will likely be another move in the next few years and it's important to invest in those who are willing to lend a hand, because let's face it - no one likes the physical act of moving.

I've helped move friends before - it's not fun...
...and when I helped my ex move into my place years ago, it was the source of arguments more than anything else.

Next time someone asks me for help to move...
...I'm giving them the business card to a local moving service.

I remember in college, I helped a friend move from her dorm room to an area apartment. I got a few of my friends to help. When I got there, it looked like nothing was packed and I was PISSED!!!So while we were moving boxes up and down the stairs in the hot sun, she was sitting in the air condition packing. I thought I would never talk to her again. We are still friends, but till this day, I will never help her move again, EVER! To people who use friends to help them move, please treat them kindly and do not take them for granted.

Several years ago I helped a friend move from her 4th floor walk-up to her van on the sidewalk (she was moving to another state, so that was the maximum distance). She had enlisted somewhere between 9 to 12 friends to help so we made a long line from the front door of her apartment to the truck. No one had to carry anything more than one flight or 15 feet, depending on where they were in the chain. And if anyone needed to take a bathroom break, the chain could continue until he or she returned. It was the easiest move I've ever been part of, including ones with professional movers.

We in the grad school/ low budget crowd like to call this whole thing "moving karma". It's like building up a savings account, only you're earning points towards a time at which you'll need to move.

I can't add to the list, since I'm notoriously one of those who ends up still needing to pack a couple boxes when the friends come over. Thankfully things run smoothly anyway, somehow. ... and I usually have cookies and juice or beer and chips or whatnot to express my gratitude for the assistance. Sometimes (as a moving helper), I think the gratitude-food/beverages during the move are more important than whether or not the friend is fully prepared when you arrive. I don't object to helping pack a few last-minute boxes, if necessary. That's part of moving, too.

I measured furniture, appliances and the inside of the truck, when a friend of mine moved. I told her sons which pieces to put in first, etc.,etc. After a while I felt taken advantage of because she was just chilling, letting me run the show, but I'm not the one who was moving. I wanted to help, not be responsible for everything. She's still my friend, but next time she moves, I'm gonna be out of town!

Oh - I was that person who was a total stress attack, flight the next day, poorly organized, hardly packed when my friends showed up. To their credit, they helped me pack, move, and I was out in 4 hours!!! (Clealy I did not have much) Moving, to me, is the litmus test for good friends. I count those 3 friends as my closest - and will do - and have done - almost anything for them!

I had friend-couple turn up to help me move once, and look SUPER surprised that not only was everything all packed, but it was also labelled and colour coded and all the furniture was already taken apart. Turns out the only person they'd ever helped move was their sister, who had literally packed nothing by the morning of the move, and had no transport of her own (I had hired a truck). I was glad to be a pleasant surprise for them!

Ive moved annually and pretty much do it on my own. Its looooooooonnnnnnngggggg but its theraputic.

When we bought our house we had both been living in share houses and had minimal personal belongings that we actually wanted to keep, so we bought a lot of new furniture/household things together. We were also planning to renovate shortly after moving in, so there wasn't much stuff we really needed, and as a lot had been delivered by furniture companies etc the actual move-in only took 4 hours, incl organising cupboards and making beds! But our wonderful troopers then stayed another 4 hours and helped us sort out the front garden, which the previous owners had allowed to turn into a dustbowl/rubbish tip.

We had breakfast for them when they arrived in the morning, lots of sandwiches in an esky for lunch, lots of fresh fruit and cold drinks, my darling mum came over with fresh cake for afternoon tea, and in the evening we did a BBQ for them. We then sent them all home with some of my husband's homemade chilli jam and a massive thank you.

I've helped and had friends help. But if budget allows, I highly recommend movers. No one likes moving. And there's no greater pleasure than supervising a move knowing that you could have been lifting all those boxes yourself!

One of the lessons I've learned was your friends will want to help you move, but may not have the time to devote a whole day to you. So I suggest asking as many people as you know to help you move, and schedule those that can only help for part of the day(s) to come at critical points; i.e: moving large pieces of furniture onto or off of the truck. When I last moved, 15 people came to help over an 18 hour period, which meant usually 3-4 people were helping at any one time in the process.

HAVE EVERYTHING PACKED! and don't clean the dustballs that were under the bed while your buddies are moving the bed for you. Go back and clean later if possible. Bagels, beer, pizza, water are a must, and thank-you cards after are nice.

I helped a couple friends move recently and it was an aggravating process. They were moving out of a 3rd floor walk-up (broken elevator) on one of the hottest days of summer. They didn't provide anything to drink or eat, and I felt one of them was very unappreciative. Someone above commented saying they wrote Thank You notes...man, that would have been a lovely gesture, and something I will certainly be doing if I ever need help moving.

Don't open any beer until everything is moved in.

@amazonww: You're my hero of the day for that comment. So succinct, and so true.