PCS-Move.com

The PCS moving roadmap

Orders to unpacked, one step at a time.

The entire PCS, sequenced. Ten stages from the day your orders drop to the day you're settled — including the one fork where you decide who moves your household.

Walk me through my moveFree · grounded in this roadmap · personalized to your move

Before the move

Orders just dropped. Get oriented and get your money straight.

  1. Stage 1Week 0

    Stage 1 — You Got Orders. What to Do in the First 72 Hours.

    Your PCS orders just dropped. Here's exactly what to do in the first 72 hours — read your orders, request a sponsor, lock in your timeline, and avoid the four most expensive early mistakes.

    Read this stage
  2. Stage 2Week 1-2

    Stage 2 — Research the New Base. Without Drowning in Tabs.

    How to systematically research a duty station you've never been to. BAH, schools, commute zones, family resources, and the questions to actually ask your sponsor — without trusting any single rating site.

    Read this stage
  3. Stage 3Week 2-3

    Stage 3 — Money + Budget. The PCS Cash-Flow Gap Nobody Warns You About.

    The money you spend on a PCS before the government pays you back — and how to cover it. DLA, per diem, MALT, TLE, advance pay, the relief societies, VA-loan readiness, and the buy-vs-rent-out call on your current home.

    Read this stage

The exit

Cleanly close out your current location.

  1. Stage 4Week 3–6

    Sell or break your lease

    Listing and selling the house, or sending an SCRA lease-termination notice the right way — it's a federal right.

    Coming soon

Find your new home

Line up a realtor and lock in where you'll live.

  1. Stage 5Week 4–8

    Pick a realtor at the new base

    How to vet a military-experienced agent who understands VA loans and PCS timelines — and the questions to ask.

    Coming soon
  2. Stage 6Week 6–10

    House hunt remotely

    Running a search from across the country: virtual tours, a trusted boots-on-the-ground proxy, and avoiding remote-buying traps.

    Coming soon
  3. Stage 7Week 8–12

    Make the offer + close

    Offer strategy on a VA loan, the appraisal, closing costs, and keeping the timeline tied to your Report Date.

    Coming soon

The move itself

Choose how you move, then execute it.

  1. Stage 8Week 10–12

    Schedule the move

    The one fork in the road — let the military move you, or move yourself for an incentive payment.

    Coming soon

  2. The fork in the road

    Stage 8 is the one place the roadmap splits. Pick how your household goods move — then both paths rejoin at Stage 9.

    Military moves you

    HHG / DPS

    The government books a contracted carrier. Less work, less control, no incentive payment.

    You move yourself

    DITY / PPM

    You arrange the move and get paid an incentive (taxable). More work, more control, potential profit.

    Not sure which? Ask the assistant to walk you through it.

  3. Stage 9Week 12–13

    Pack + move out

    Pack-out day, what movers will and won't take, high-value item inventory, and what travels with you.

    Coming soon
  4. Stage 10Week 13+

    Move in + settle

    Delivery and damage claims, utilities and vehicle registration, school enrollment, and building a community.

    Coming soon