Trying to do it yourself a little at a time sounds great, but the issue there isn’t how far you’re moving, it’s how much.
Don’t think that just because you’re moving close by you don’t have to pack. You might not have to pack the same as for moving across the country, but you can’t leave everything loose or you will have sheer chaos.
Number your boxes and make a list with room and type of contents.
Put numbers on the sides as well as on top.
Don’t fill large boxes with nothing but books.
Trying to take closets full of clothes in bunches still on the hangers is practically unmanageable. You won’t believe how heavy they are or how badly they can tangle.
It’s all the little stuff that you have only one of—vegetable peeler, tweezers, bottle opener, curling iron—that you’re going to go nuts looking for as you’re getting settled. Try to be logical and rational about what you do with them.
If you’re the sort who needs to purge from time to time, use the opportunity.
Pack a suitcase with all the personal stuff you’re going to need right away, in the first day or two, just as if you were going out of town.