Moving companies

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Cookiegirl
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Moving companies

Post by Cookiegirl »

Hi , we are relocating from New York to Sarasota, looking for moving companies, any recommendations?
Thanks
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tennisplyr
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Re: Moving companies

Post by tennisplyr »

We used Men On the Move for our move and loved them.
“Those who move forward with a happy spirit will find that things always work out.” -Retired 13 years 😀
smitcat
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Re: Moving companies

Post by smitcat »

Cookiegirl wrote: Sat May 08, 2021 8:58 am Hi , we are relocating from New York to Sarasota, looking for moving companies, any recommendations?
Thanks
Are you moving a 'small' load of mostly boxes or many rooms of a home? (how many rooms?) Some 'movers' only load and unload at either end while others supply various services in addition.
Are you looking for packers, boxing, transfering boxes to trucks, moving point to point, storage,for a period of time, or maybe all the above?
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El Greco
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Re: Moving companies

Post by El Greco »

tennisplyr wrote: Sat May 08, 2021 10:50 am We used Men On the Move for our move and loved them.
Tennisplayer. How long ago was this? Looked up Men on the Move on Yelp and the recent reviews were scary bad. I'm interested as I hope to make the same move (NY to Sarasota) in 6 months to a year.
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tennisplyr
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Re: Moving companies

Post by tennisplyr »

El Greco wrote: Mon May 10, 2021 11:07 pm
tennisplyr wrote: Sat May 08, 2021 10:50 am We used Men On the Move for our move and loved them.
Tennisplayer. How long ago was this? Looked up Men on the Move on Yelp and the recent reviews were scary bad. I'm interested as I hope to make the same move (NY to Sarasota) in 6 months to a year.
4 years ago
“Those who move forward with a happy spirit will find that things always work out.” -Retired 13 years 😀
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RickBoglehead
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Re: Moving companies

Post by RickBoglehead »

This site is helpful - https://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/consumer-prot ... -your-move

You should know that moving companies often aren't clear about how things work.

For example, you hire say United Van Lines. A person may come to your house, or via online, and do an estimate. This is a salesperson. They may, or may not, be employed by the moving company. Their job is to close the deal. They have the ability to tweak things quite a bit. For example, you may be able to negotiate free boxes. On our last move, which was in 2007, I negotiated free used boxes and tape, with the statement after it "if used boxes are unavailable, XXX will supply new boxes". When we put in our initial order for boxes, there were no used boxes, so we got a huge supply of new boxes, and tape. Boxes can be a huge cost. Note - Craigslist often has many "come get my free moving boxes and packing paper" listings.

Second, you should know that many of the trucks that display a moving company's logo are in fact privately owned by a trucker. That trucker may even supply his own crew to load the truck (or unload, see below). The moving company is merely providing the trucker with access to the business, and paying the trucker a fee for his work. On our last move, the trucker was sick, so his son came with the crew. Because his son was junior, a crew member took charge of the operation. Not a good dynamic.

Third, you should oversee the movers very carefully. You should note that it is very likely that only 1 - 3 of the crew will be experienced. Moving companies often hire low cost labor to do the loading or unloading, working with a crew. On our last move, this inexperienced labor undid the brackets holding two pieces of a gorgeous dining room furniture piece, then proceeded to lift the top section off. Unfortunately, they lifted it 2 inches, not the 3 inches of the brackets they had just undone but not removed or secured against the back of the piece. They gouged the piece's top very nicely. See below, $0.60 per pound. Luckily the furniture repair guy was good, and the scratches are under the top piece.

Fourth, you have the ability to contractually do whatever you want to. I added in these types of things:

- contents of home will be loaded directly onto the vehicle that will be used to deliver the goods at the destination, and may not be offloaded at any time prior to delivery.

This was done because we had a move where they loaded onto local truck, took to warehouse, unloaded, reloaded a few days later, then drove and delivered it. In the process, items fell over, had bird waste on them, boxes popped open due to tape baking in sun, etc.

- estimate will not exceed language.

They provide an estimate of say 10,000 pounds, with a bunch of line items. They fill truck and weigh it. Load is 13,000 pounds. They cannot charge for more than 10,000 pounds. Or, load is 8,000 pounds. Invoice is reduced to that weight.

- delivery no later than xx/xx/xx. For every day after xx/xx/xx, invoice will be reduced by $xxx.xx per day.

Need to have a penalty for missed delivery. Otherwise, you can be sitting for days waiting while you pay for a hotel room.


You should carefully review the insurance options during a move. The default is 60 cents per pound as I recall. So, a priceless item that weighs 2 pounds gets you $1.20. A very heavy old chair may get you $60. And your homeowner's insurance does not cover moving damage, although it MAY cover loss during a move (missing item, truck catches fire). Make sure to check with your moving company.

Also note that once you have an estimate, you can do the math and figure out a per pound rate. In other words, take the entire estimate, and determine exactly what each variable line is, and add them up, then divide by the total weight. Let's say it works out to 20 cents a pound. Then, you look at that old chair in the basement, and figure it's 50 pounds. Is it worth $10 to move it? Should you move that scrap lumber? Or those 2 cinder blocks?

Note that movers won't move flammables (propane, gas cans) or liquids. You'll need to move, or dispose of those items (your county may take them free to prevent pollution).

If you look into moving yourself, or loading pods yourself, make sure you know how to pack things. Most people do not. Heavy boxes on bottom, light on top. Every box filled to brim, with packing paper if needed. Everything secured. Every rope you tie the load with needs to be carefully padded on every piece of furniture, or the rope will saw the piece of furniture. Don't just stack boxes on top of furniture, the movement will ruin the finish.

We moved ourselves decades ago many times. I'm quite good at it. On our first paid move, in addition to the tipped over stuff, open boxes, and bird waste, they delivered the dining table, a family heirloom, in about 17 pieces, because the bookcase fell over in the wind and hit the table. Luckily, my employer was a Dow 30 company and paid for everything to be replaced, AND because we moved to city where they had no facilities, we got to keep everything. Bookcases with big hole in back our still in use, in our basement, 40 years later. Table was rebuilt by a craftsman, over 6 months, at their cost. We sold it a few months back for several hundred dollars.
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WapelloHawk
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Re: Moving companies

Post by WapelloHawk »

We have used movers to move 1000+ miles 6 times over the years.

I can’t remember the actual moving companies at all. I do specifically remember crews that stole from us and also crews that were first class.

I would say it all comes down to the crew and the driver.
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Cookiegirl
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Re: Moving companies

Post by Cookiegirl »

Wow! This is all great info! I can’t thank you all enough for such helpful information!
Thanks so much! I’ll print up all the info and interview the movers,
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RickBoglehead
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Re: Moving companies

Post by RickBoglehead »

Last time we moved, they had a calendar that showed "low, medium, and high" rate periods. Obviously the high periods were month end, during the summer. Low periods were mid-month, mid-week. If you can time your move, then you may also save money.
Avid user of forums on variety of interests-financial, home brewing, F-150, EV, home repair, etc. Enjoy learning & passing on knowledge. It's PRINCIPAL, not PRINCIPLE. I ADVISE you to seek ADVICE.
Ollie123
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Re: Moving companies

Post by Ollie123 »

No specific movers but some general advice from someone who has done this more than he wanted.
- Hopefully goes without saying but get multiple estimates. I've found the spread in estimates to be comically large (50%). That said, make sure it is apples to apples and includes a not to exceed like stated above. Cheaper is not always better.
- Again hopefully goes without saying, but make sure they are legit. For interstate moves, if you can't find them on https://ai.fmcsa.dot.gov/hhg/search.asp they probably aren't legit. Local moves are less regulated.
- The big companies (Mayflower, Allied, American, etc.) have pros and cons. You are much more likely to get full-on professional movers. You have near-zero chance of them just up and disappearing. You also have all the downsides of working with any large company, including main customer service numbers staffed with near-useless worker drones. Perhaps specific to moving is that your stuff is probably not going directly from Point A to Point B, its going in the back of a truck that will eventually get to your city or pass by another one that does. Know how Fedex tracking sometimes shows your package was just an hour or so away but then went to Chicago for some reason before arriving a week later? Probably not that extreme, but that. They have their own logistics to manage, so just know that you get a delivery window usually measured in weeks and not days. It may still be late.
- While bogleheads like to self-insure and financially it is probably the right move, I think this is an area where it can make sense to cough up an extra $500 to get full replacement insurance if you have expensive furniture. Moving is stressful. Movers accidentally dropping your favorite piece and damaging your new home in the process makes that worse. Knowing it is getting replaced and fixed vs "Sorry, here's 20 bucks" can take the sting out. Even if you aren't overly attached to "stuff" your family may be.


Lastly, recognize its never going to go perfectly. Something will probably get damaged. Hopefully its the lamp you got from Walmart for $20 in college and not the shelf your great-great-great-grandfather built with his bare hands. Moving is not a precision science. The guys you are hiring are folks working much harder than even a typical manual labor job for less pay than many laborers will earn. Most are being as careful as they can. If you DIY an interstate move, I guarantee you walk away with a lot more broken/damaged stuff (and probably the worst backache of your life). You are paying professionals so that doesn't mean you can't have standards, but it does mean the occasional ding or dent is to be expected.
Mr. Rumples
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Re: Moving companies

Post by Mr. Rumples »

I have moved back and forth across the country. Even though I used "legacy" movers (Allied and United), in the end, as noted above, the work is outsourced to an owner/operator operation.

Once your load crosses state lines, in the event of damage, other than insurance, there is no recourse. Insurance is a gamble since the moving company hires the adjuster.

On the move out, when the furniture arrived some of it was literally strapped to the outside of the vehicle - picture the Beverly Hillbillies. On the way back, I saw them pack and wrap the upholstered furniture - I paid for this - but it was unwrapped when it arrived and dusty. The owner/operator unloaded the entire contents himself sweating over everything the entire time; when I asked, he said he was saving on labor.

I like to repeat my experience with an 1820's English pine chest of drawers. It survived the Zeppelin raids on London in WW1; the Blitz in WW2; the crossing over the Atlantic and it did survive the move out west. Coming back however it was damaged; reimbursement was minimal since the insurance adjuster (as noted above, their's) said it was "old." (On the plus side, all of my mother's china arrived perfect.)

Sell as much as you can before the move. Take the confidential stuff with tax ID#'s with you in your vehicle.
Last edited by Mr. Rumples on Tue May 11, 2021 9:56 am, edited 1 time in total.
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lthenderson
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Re: Moving companies

Post by lthenderson »

Cookiegirl wrote: Sat May 08, 2021 8:58 am Hi , we are relocating from New York to Sarasota, looking for moving companies, any recommendations?
Thanks
Are you looking to box is up yourself, load and unload or hire a full service moving company while you sit back and relax, or something in between? There are many companies that are dedicated to particular types of moving that wouldn't necessarily be who I would recommend for other types.
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JupiterJones
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Re: Moving companies

Post by JupiterJones »

I find Pixar to be a very moving company. Cried like a baby during "Up".
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adamthesmythe
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Re: Moving companies

Post by adamthesmythe »

60 cents per pound is the default, free insurance.

Interstate movers are also required to offer (at an extra charge) full value replacement insurance. You should buy it. In my experience they will repair or pay.
Random Poster
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Re: Moving companies

Post by Random Poster »

Honestly, U-Haul.

Pack it all yourself on your timetable, hire a loading crew to put it all in the truck, and unload it yourself at the destination.

The DIY move is the only one where I never had any damage to my stuff.
niagara_guy
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Re: Moving companies

Post by niagara_guy »

I used a company called U Pack (ABF trucking). They provide an empty trailer with several days to load your stuff. You only pay for the number of feet of the 28 foot trailer that you use. They deliver the trailer to your moving to site and you have I think 2 days to unload. They do not serve every area of the USA. I used them for a 1,000 mile move and I was extremely pleased (about the same cost as a truck rental with no gas, motels, …). The trailer does ride hard, so use blankets to protect things that can get scratched. Not sure if this option is what you are looking for or not.
adamthesmythe
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Re: Moving companies

Post by adamthesmythe »

OP has given insufficient detail (how much stuff, lifting ability, etc.)

I suppose the true Boglehead option is to sell everything that does not fit in a backpack and then hitchike south.
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Cookiegirl
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Re: Moving companies

Post by Cookiegirl »

These are great replies, I’m printing them all and using them as a guide,,
And, yes, I love the idea of the backpack/hitching, but we have 2 cats, not sure how that would work out, lol
Thanks everyone...
mkc
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Re: Moving companies

Post by mkc »

There were a couple of discussions in the last year regarding long-distance interstate moves and in particular mentioning furniture.

You don't say if you are thinking of moving yours, but TBH, what works in one region often doesn't "fit in" with the homes of another. Upstate NY I'm thinking traditional, dark woods. Not likely to fit your new Florida lifestyle. Plus what works in one home might not fit the spaces of another.

It's been rare that we've found the furniture we moved from one home to another worked well. We lived with it for a while in some cases, but typically donated then replaced most of it. Consider saving the moving expense and donating it or selling it before moving, and put the savings towards new(er) furniture that fits your new home better.

And as others have mentioned, purge-purge-purge. Get rid of as much as you can before you move.
smitcat
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Re: Moving companies

Post by smitcat »

mkc wrote: Tue May 11, 2021 8:43 pm There were a couple of discussions in the last year regarding long-distance interstate moves and in particular mentioning furniture.

You don't say if you are thinking of moving yours, but TBH, what works in one region often doesn't "fit in" with the homes of another. Upstate NY I'm thinking traditional, dark woods. Not likely to fit your new Florida lifestyle. Plus what works in one home might not fit the spaces of another.

It's been rare that we've found the furniture we moved from one home to another worked well. We lived with it for a while in some cases, but typically donated then replaced most of it. Consider saving the moving expense and donating it or selling it before moving, and put the savings towards new(er) furniture that fits your new home better.

And as others have mentioned, purge-purge-purge. Get rid of as much as you can before you move.
"Upstate NY I'm thinking traditional, dark woods."
Westchester county?
evelynmanley
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Re: Moving companies

Post by evelynmanley »

Does anyone have a recommendation for a moving company to move from San Francisco to Vancouver, Washington? Moving contents of a one-bedroom apartment. Thank you!
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Re: Moving companies

Post by RudyS »

Mr. Rumples wrote: Tue May 11, 2021 9:42 am
Sell as much as you can before the move. Take the confidential stuff with tax ID#'s with you in your vehicle.
Two great ideas! And if you take the confidential stuff in your car, take it into the motel at night with other valuables.
mariezzz
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Re: Moving companies

Post by mariezzz »

evelynmanley wrote: Mon Mar 18, 2024 4:38 pm Does anyone have a recommendation for a moving company to move from San Francisco to Vancouver, Washington? Moving contents of a one-bedroom apartment. Thank you!
The fact that you're moving to Canada makes all the details more complicated - you need to worry about clearing customs at the border, and finding a moving company that will move your stuff across the border, unless you rent a truck and drive your belongings across the border yourself.

I know someone who made almost the same move as yours a couple years ago, except they ended in northern Washington.
But I know someone else who moved to Canada from the US. The Canadians are going to want a detailed itemization of what is in every box. I'd suggest researching what the current Canadian regulations are. If you plan hire a moving company, do the Canadian authorities expect you to cross the border with your belongings? My friend literally DID create an itemized list for EVERY box and he still spent about 4 hours at the border - belongings were about the equivalent of a 1 BR apt or less.

I assume with a one bedroom apartment, you weren't looking for a full-service moving company (if you are, absolutely avoid Allied/NorCal - my friend who moved to WA hired Allied which subcontracted the Bay Area packing to Norcal; it was a disaster, from start to finish). About 2 years ago, I used U-pack for a move within the US, and I was really pleased with them. But I had a 3- BR house to move (less furniture than many people, though), and used about 15 feet of the moving truck U-pack dropped off. Once I factored in gasoline costs if I rented a Penske truck, U-pack was cheaper. And I didn't have to drive the truck

I don't know if you can rent a Penske truck to move to Canada - you used to be able to (my friend did), but that was a while ago.
I don't know if U-pack will move your stuff across the border, but if not, and if you still wanted to use them, you could have them deliver your stuff to a Public Storage facility near the border (maybe in Bellingham; you would unpack the U-pack truck at the facility), and then rent a Penske trip for the drive from there to Vancouver.

You also might want to seriously consider getting rid of as much as you can or putting things in storage, to avoid the hassle of itemizing everything and clearing customs at the border. If you're moving for a job, and your employer is providing moving support, perhaps they'll have some helpful hints.
evelynmanley
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Re: Moving companies

Post by evelynmanley »

mariezzz wrote: Mon Mar 18, 2024 9:46 pm
evelynmanley wrote: Mon Mar 18, 2024 4:38 pm Does anyone have a recommendation for a moving company to move from San Francisco to Vancouver, Washington? Moving contents of a one-bedroom apartment. Thank you!
The fact that you're moving to Canada makes all the details more complicated - you need to worry about clearing customs at the border, and finding a moving company that will move your stuff across the border, unless you rent a truck and drive your belongings across the border yourself.

I know someone who made almost the same move as yours a couple years ago, except they ended in northern Washington.
But I know someone else who moved to Canada from the US. The Canadians are going to want a detailed itemization of what is in every box. I'd suggest researching what the current Canadian regulations are. If you plan hire a moving company, do the Canadian authorities expect you to cross the border with your belongings? My friend literally DID create an itemized list for EVERY box and he still spent about 4 hours at the border - belongings were about the equivalent of a 1 BR apt or less.

I assume with a one bedroom apartment, you weren't looking for a full-service moving company (if you are, absolutely avoid Allied/NorCal - my friend who moved to WA hired Allied which subcontracted the Bay Area packing to Norcal; it was a disaster, from start to finish). About 2 years ago, I used U-pack for a move within the US, and I was really pleased with them. But I had a 3- BR house to move (less furniture than many people, though), and used about 15 feet of the moving truck U-pack dropped off. Once I factored in gasoline costs if I rented a Penske truck, U-pack was cheaper. And I didn't have to drive the truck

I don't know if you can rent a Penske truck to move to Canada - you used to be able to (my friend did), but that was a while ago.
I don't know if U-pack will move your stuff across the border, but if not, and if you still wanted to use them, you could have them deliver your stuff to a Public Storage facility near the border (maybe in Bellingham; you would unpack the U-pack truck at the facility), and then rent a Penske trip for the drive from there to Vancouver.

You also might want to seriously consider getting rid of as much as you can or putting things in storage, to avoid the hassle of itemizing everything and clearing customs at the border. If you're moving for a job, and your employer is providing moving support, perhaps they'll have some helpful hints.
The move is to Vancouver, Washington, but I'm sure your info about moving to Canada will be very useful for someone going there. Thank you very much for the heads up about Allied/NorCal and recommendation for Penske. Thank you!
mariezzz
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Re: Moving companies

Post by mariezzz »

Seriously missed the "Washington" in your post. I'd say go with Penske or U-pack. You can negotiate with Penske - get a quote from Penske online, then call U-haul, and see if they'll underbid, then call back to Penske, and see if they'll lower the rate. Penske keeps their trucks much better maintained in general, compared to U-haul. (You can also usually negotiate for an extra day of time for no extra charge with Penske.) But, in recent years, one-way rental rates have sky-rocketed because the companies also are able to lease the trucks for local package delivery. Get a quote from them, then see what U-pack wants to charge (U-pack charged me a base rate for the 1st 5 feet, plus $99 per extra foot - so if you pack your stuff really tightly (keeps things from moving en-route, and to the ceiling, you save money. Buy some ratchet straps at Harbor Freight to attach across the truck every 5-7 feet.)

The nice thing with U-pack is (1) you won't run out of space, and (2) you have 3 days at each end to pack/unpack the truck - so it's not so crazy. And, you don't have to drive the truck yourself (wouldn't be terrible to drive a Penske truck from San Fran to Vancouver, WA). But, you need to make sure you'll have space on both ends for a 26 foot trailer, plus some room behind it to load/unload. Some cities may require permits to leave the trailer, but U-pack usually can tell you this. Be careful, however, as they may go by zip code, which can span across cities, and they may enter the wrong city. You can call the city and double-check. You kind of have to dig around the U-pack site to understand the process of truck delivery, packing, then delivery on the other end, but they do have good videos which I found very helpful. Their agents were pretty helpful too. Note that unless you pay a little extra, they only give you an estimate of when the truck will arrive, but it's accurate within a few days.

If you go with Penske: I'd advise buying the additional (insurance) coverage Penske sells. You don't want to have to pay out of pocket for damage, and most auto insurance doesn't cover damage to moving trucks (coverage through credit cards, including AmEx, doesn't cover trucks either). Check out CA state laws - I don't think they have a state law that requires companies to cover the trucks (liability & damage) themselves; some states (like MN) do.

For full - service companies: I think many have struggled with finding good workers. If they're being contracted through an employer, the company might have more motivation to provide better service, since the employer provides a lot of business. I think if you're an individual hiring them, you're at the bottom of their priority list.
Last edited by mariezzz on Tue Mar 19, 2024 11:03 am, edited 1 time in total.
evelynmanley
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Re: Moving companies

Post by evelynmanley »

mariezzz wrote: Tue Mar 19, 2024 10:54 am Seriously missed the "Washington" in your post. I'd say go with Penske or U-pack. You can negotiate with Penske - get a quote from Penske online, then call U-haul, and see if they'll underbid, then call back to Penske, and see if they'll lower the rate. Penske keeps their trucks much better maintained in general, compared to U-haul. (You can also usually negotiate for an extra day of time for no extra charge with Penske.) But, in recent years, one-way rental rates have sky-rocketed because the companies also are able to lease the trucks for local package delivery. Get a quote from them, then see what U-pack wants to charge (U-pack charged me a base rate for the 1st 5 feet, plus $99 per extra foot - so if you pack your stuff really tightly (keeps things from moving en-route, and to the ceiling, you save money. Buy some ratchet straps at Harbor Freight to attach across the truck every 5-7 feet.)

The nice thing with U-pack is (1) you won't run out of space, and (2) you have 3 days at each end to pack/unpack the truck - so it's not so crazy. And, you don't have to drive the truck yourself (wouldn't be terrible to drive a Penske truck from San Fran to Vancouver, WA). But, you need to make sure you'll have space on both ends for a 26 foot trailer, plus some room behind it to load/unload. Some cities may require permits to leave the trailer, but U-pack usually can tell you this. Be careful, however, as they may go by zip code, which can span across cities, and they may enter the wrong city. You can call the city and double-check. You kind of have to dig around the U-pack site to understand the process, but they do have good videos which I found very helpful.

If you go with Penske: I'd advise buying the additional (insurance) coverage Penske sells. You don't want to have to pay out of pocket for damage, and most auto insurance doesn't cover damage to moving trucks (coverage through credit cards, including AmEx, doesn't cover trucks either). Check out CA state laws - I don't think they have a state law that requires companies to cover the trucks (liability & damage) themselves; some states (like MN) do.
Thank you again! You are a wealth of information. The friend I am asking this question for is looking for a moving company, isn't able to drive a U-Haul or such. Would you have any recommendations?
mariezzz
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Re: Moving companies

Post by mariezzz »

I was editing my previous reply when you replied. I added a paragraph at the bottom re: full service moving companies.

With U-pack, you can personally hire people to simply load up your belongings for you, or you can hire them to pack and load. It is NOT cheap to hire people but it's less expensive probably than going with a full-service moving company. You can look on yelp, or other internet sites, for such companies. When I looked, they wanted a guaranteed minimum number of hours for at least 2 people, and rates were higher on weekends & towards end/beginning of month.

A one-bedroom apt isn't going to be all that bad - are there family & friends (or people from church, etc.) who could at least help on one end or the other?

If someone is going to hire people at both ends, one should carefully consider how much their furniture, etc. is really worth - is it cheaper to give much of it away and replace it later? When I made my move with U-pack, I constantly asked myself this question. In the months before I moved, I gave away a lot for free on craigslist - if weather is dry enough, you can just put it on curb, then post pictures on craigslist with the nearest intersection listed (I wouldn't give exact address).
Last edited by mariezzz on Tue Mar 19, 2024 11:24 am, edited 2 times in total.
evelynmanley
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Re: Moving companies

Post by evelynmanley »

Thank you again for such great information and ideas! Very, very helpful.
mariezzz
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Re: Moving companies

Post by mariezzz »

Don't assume that if you go with a full service company, that your belongings won't be touched once they're loaded into the truck at your house. With Allied: at some point, my friend's belongings were moved from one truck to another, and several boxes went missing. Some items ended up broken because the packers did not pack them all that well. The packers also arrived with far too little packing materials, despite the fact Allied had sent someone out to assess how much there was to pack. (If you pack boxes yourself, Allied won't assume liability for breakage.) You'll want to have a good inventory of each box that Allied packs. Allied/Norcal numbered each box, but there were boxes that weren't included in the inventory (but were there at unloading), and others that were included in the inventory went missing. Allied's inventory process left a lot to be desired. Allied also delivered the belongings more than 2 weeks later than Allied had said it would be. The workers were also hurrying toward the end to unload the truck and tried to jam furniture through too narrow doors, damaging exterior door frames and furniture. My friends also found a photo album that was not theirs in the truck at delivery; the workers did not seem all that concerned about getting it back to the owners. Allied did have good ratings, and they weren't cheap - but my friend hired them as an individual. Plus, the economy is strong, so finding workers may be an issue. I'm not sure other full service companies may be any better. You may get lucky, or you may have a similar experience.
evelynmanley
Posts: 1029
Joined: Tue Sep 21, 2010 9:13 am

Re: Moving companies

Post by evelynmanley »

Wow - what a nightmare. Thank you for sharing. I'll let you know what my friend decides and how it goes. Thank you!
Gecko10x
Posts: 390
Joined: Thu Jun 06, 2013 8:10 pm

Re: Moving companies

Post by Gecko10x »

Looks like you have tons of good advice already, which I haven't read fully.

But I thought I would add our recent experience. We moved 2000+ miles last year and paid a premium to a company with what looked like a stellar reputation. I will not bother to go into significant detail, but let's just say I was not happy in the end. I wanted the process over badly enough that I didn't bother pursuing recourse for damaged items that the movers lied to my face about and neglected to report internally.

I have no idea what I will do in the future, as I both loathe the process of moving and have zero trust in anyone I would hire. I will probably end up doing the bulk myself somehow.
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