Making things fit, above from left, Eric McCarthy, 19, helped Logan Brown, 22, and Matt McCarthy of Manhattan stuff furniture in a van while trying to get Matt and Logan moved to their next apartment Saturday. Lawrence was full of movers on Saturday as students, parents and friends moved tons of stuff. Many renters’ leases are up at the end of July.

Katherine Lindboe, 22, Lawrence, carries a mirror decorated with shells as her boyfriend, Mike Horvath, 22, Lawrence, gets ready to drive after moving all Saturday morning.

Paige Meredith, 15, of Overland Park, takes a rest from helping her brother move Saturday. Lawrence was a hub of students moving out or in to apartments and homes for the upcoming school year.

It was plenty hot at 9:30 a.m. Saturday as Thomas John, 24, a Kansas University grad student was moving like many other KU students.

Everybody’s working for the weekend.

Neighborhoods in Lawrence have gotten a makeover the past few days as old residents move out and new residents move in. Cleaners, movers and soon-to-be ex-residents lifted, loaded, stacked and steamed their way through the afternoon Saturday.

Monty Cunningham of Wichita made the weekend trip to Lawrence to help his daughter, a Kansas University senior, move in. Armed with a packed sport utility vehicle and a loaded trailer, Cunningham said he was prepared to do what he could to make the transition easy.

Cunningham’s willingness to work during the turnover weekend was shared by many on Saturday. The transition in Lawrence from old renters to new residents is one that requires a lot of people working together.

Laurie Groninger, office manager for Kansas Carpet Care, 3514 Clinton Parkway, stood outside a house in the 1700 block of Kentucky Street with employees while grabbing a quick bite to eat.

“This 15 minutes is probably the longest break we’re going to get,” Groninger said.

Cleaning carpet, which Groninger said a number of property owners require upon moving out, has kept her and her cohorts busy the past four days. Groninger said the company’s schedule has gotten very busy, with the local business completing about 50 jobs locally every day. Though the 10-12 hour shifts can be draining, she said the appointments had been a little more spread out this year with residents trying harder to be out on or ahead of schedule.

Phillip Berger and Henry Green transferred boxed belongings from residence to rental truck near 13th and Tennessee streets. The two Starving Artists Moving employees said their week had been filled with helping people move and not much else.

“It’s by far the busiest,” said Berger, who worked late into the night Friday and started the routine again on Saturday. “We’ve been working nonstop, day and night.”

Berger said most of the moving company’s employees had started going into overtime on Thursday, a sign of how active the moving period can get. Berger said some days and some moves had been better than others.

“You get some gruesome moves and some hot weather,” Berger said. “But it’s got its perks, too.”

His fellow employee, Green, had no complaints with the amount of work left to be done.

“It’s been real busy but it’s a good workout,” Green said, smiling. “It’s better than lifting weights.”

Residents moving out didn’t take everything with them. Some of those departing held yard sales, but many unwanted and unneeded items found their way into nearby Dumpsters or into piles near the curb.

Cunningham, the helpful dad, walked his dogs and watched as people drove up and down the street looking to grab free furniture other residents had left out.

“There are some nice things that people leave,” he said. “If people can find a way to transport things, it can be worth it.”

Not everything left behind gets picked up. A stroll down Louisiana Street near the KU campus revealed a variety of items set aside for the trash collector. Old refrigerators, dresser pieces, worn-out chairs and other unwanted belongings lined the east side of the street.

“It’s amazing what people throw away,” said John Hamill, an employee with Hamill Rentals, 1735 Learnard Ave. “It’s fun to go through the trash. You can usually find a little loot.”

Hamill said the rental company would turn over about 30 properties from Friday to today. The annual turnover process is something Hamill said could get rather strenuous.

“It’s pretty hectic,” he said. “Move out’s the 31st and move in’s the first. Then hopefully it’s all over.”

The summer housing turnover in Lawrence has become a time-honored tradition, and one that takes the effort of many people to complete smoothly. Hamill said he looked forward to the end of the process and to the opportunity to catch his breath after the busy weekend.

“I’ll be ready to go home, have a beer and go to bed,” he said.