One of the biggest expenses when relocating employees – in the case of individual employee transfers or relocating entire corporate offices – is surprise relocation costs. Emergency expenses no one predicted can blow your relocation budget out of the water, lead to frustrated HR staff and transferred employees, and hurt your company’s bottom line.

A relocation calculator can help accurately estimate relocation costs, so you can negotiate fair corporate relocation packages and then stick to the allotted budget for each relocation.

A comprehensive relocation salary calculation should factor in:

• Packing and moving costs
• Costs associated with the purchase and sale of real estate
• Utility costs
• Trips to the new location
• One-time costs associated with organization fees, new school registration, etc.
• Temporary housing (if necessary)
• Temporary storage of belongings (if necessary)
• Moving insurance costs
• Tax gross up of benefits.

A Relocation Calculator Keeps Relocation Packages Within Budget

Once you’ve used a relocation salary calculation to set benchmark costs for each move, careful, real-time tracking of moving expenses can help each move stay within budget. If surprise costs pop up (less likely with everything calculated in advance), you can look at other areas of the budget to compensate for the loss.

Other relocation calculators can help determine the difference in the cost-of-living in the new region to help your HR staff determine if a pay raise or relocation incentive is in order.

These financial considerations will help your HR staff set fair corporate relocation packages, resulting in better employee retention and productivity.

Relocation Calculator

Why a Relocation Expenses Calculator Isn’t All You Need

If the only thing you’re using to relocate your employees is an expense calculator and a lump sum of money, you are absolutely spending more than you have to, both in the long run and the short run.

It’s not your fault if you’re not sure how else to handle employee relocation. It’s not the kind of thing most of us had to deal with while moving up in our organizations, nor is it taught in college.

This is the primary reason to outsource your employee relocation to qualified experts. But what can experts provide that the average human resources department cannot?

A Coherent Relocation Policy

This is the ground floor where most employers fall short when it comes to employee relocation. Sadly enough, it’s also where most relocation “experts” fall short as well.

More often than not, employee relocation is handled piecemeal, treating every aspect of the relocation process as a separate service that must somehow be jammed in with all other services and actions.

A coherent relocation process, sometimes slightly more expensive in the short term, is actually an investment when you consider the long-term implications of your employee loyalty and productivity (including all the other personnel your relocating employee will affect).

And when you factor in the kind of lost initial productivity and lengthened time of “settling in” to the new position that typically goes along with employees who must handle the entire move on their own, a managed move is generally cheaper in the short run as well.

How Can You Get a Coherent, Integrated Policy?

There are two steps to coming up with a coherent, integrated relocation policy that will improve employee loyalty and retention and act as an investment in your business’ future.

The first is that you must understand what your core relocation issues are and how these relate to your company’s strategic goals.

Every business has long-term strategic goals. Unfortunately, not every manager, department head or even c-level executive can clearly articulate these goals. But articulate them you must, if you want a relocation process that keeps things running smoothly.

The second thing any policy requires is an individual or company that can take these concerns and meet them effectively in ways that most relocation officers simply do not. Every aspect of a managed move must work together in the same direction in a way that increases employee loyalty and company ROI.

The only way to get this is by utilizing an individual or company that has connections in multiple industries – especially freight, HR and real estate – and who can effectively coordinate them into a seamless policy and process.

This is something most companies simply can’t get from the average human resources manager – or even a great one. Instead, this kind of policy can only be put together by an individual (or team of individuals) with plenty of experience and connections, who can patiently and efficiently work with you to achieve your long-term goals.

When it comes to domestic and international relocations CapRelo has you covered. Our team of relocation experts is prepared to assist organizations of all shapes and sizes. From corporate transfers to government moves, we have the capabilities necessary to facilitate a smooth transition. Learn more about our global mobility services today!