Help us Choose a Mover
Tip It!Now that we’ve sold our current house and bought a new one (or have at least gone under contract at both ends), we need to start thinking about actually moving. We have a bit of time but, since summer is the high season for movers, we need to start thinking about getting estimates and actually getting on their schedule. With that in mind, I was hoping that y’all could provide some recommendations as to especially good (or bad) moving companies. I should note here that we’re looking for a full service, interstate move — pack, load, haul, and unload at the other end. So… Got any suggestions as to who to contact, or how to go about choosing amongst the various options?
For more information on moving, check out my Roadmap for a Successful Relocation.
Published on April 14th, 2006 - 13 Comments
Filed under: Moving
About the author: Nickel is the founder and editor-in-chief of this site. He's a thirty-something family man who has been writing about personal finance since 2005, and guess what? He's on Twitter!
Related articles...
» Buying a Used Piano» Roadmap for a Successful Relocation
» Money vs. Happiness: Which Would You Choose?
» Save Money by Questioning Your Purchases
» Favorite Mutual Fund Company?
» Opening a TreasuryDirect Account
» Weekly Roundup: The Internet is Getting Expensive Edition
» Should We Get Rid of 401(k) Plans?
Was this article useful? Please sign up to receive our content via e-mail:
13 Responses to “Help us Choose a Mover”
Leave a Reply
Top Cards by Category
Earn $200 Bonus Cash Back after you make $500 in purchases in your first 3 months. 5% Cash Back on up to $1,500 spent in bonus categories each quarter.
Receive 10,000 Membership Rewards bonus points when you spend $500 in your first three months of card membership. Redeem bonus points for gift cards valued at $100. This is a charge card with no pre-set spending limit.
Receive 10,000 Membership Rewards bonus points when you spend $500 in your first three months of card membership. Redeem bonus points for gift cards valued at $100. This is a charge card with no pre-set spending limit.
Enjoy a 0% introductory rate for 18 months on Balance Transfers and 6 months on Purchases. Earn up to 5% cash back in categories that change.
Enjoy no balance transfer fee for a limited time. 0% introductory rate on Balance Transfers and Purchases. Earn up to 5% Cashback Bonus in categories that change like gas, restaurants, department stores and more. Limitations apply*
Enjoy no balance transfer fee for a limited time. 0% introductory rate on Balance Transfers and Purchases. Earn up to 5% Cashback Bonus in categories that change like gas, restaurants, department stores and more. Limitations apply*
Enjoy amenities for you and your business, like: complimentary airport club access, including American Airlines Admirals Club(R) lounges.
5% Cashback Bonus in categories that change like gas, restaurants, department stores and more. Limitations apply*. Up to 1% unlimited Cashback Bonus on everything else. No annual fee
Earn 3X points on airfare, 2X points on gas and groceries, and 1X points on everything else.
Reports to 3 major credit bureaus monthly and acceptance at millions of locations worldwide, including website purchases and reservations.
- How to Become a Millionaire
- How to Get Out of Debt
- The Best Dollars I've Ever Spent
- How Our Estate Plan is Structured
- How We Paid Our Mortgage In Less than 10 Years
- Money Making Ideas
- How to Manage Your Asset Allocation with Multiple Accounts
- Consumption Smoothing - Save While the Saving's Good
- How to Save on Groceries
- How Much Life Insurance Do You Need?
- Eleven Great Books About Money
- Dave Ramsey is Bad at Math
- Dish Network Customer Service SUCKS
- $8,000 Homebuyer Tax Credit
- Pay Off Mortgage Early or Invest?
- How to Claim the First-Time Homebuyer Tax Credit
- Reduced Credit Limits? Share Your Experience
- $15,000 Homebuyer Tax Credit
- Ethanol Blended Gas = Lower Mileage?
- Termite Control: Sentricon vs. Termidor
- How Much Should You Pay a Babysitter?
- Federal Income Tax Rates Went Down but Your Federal Tax Withholding Increased. Here's Why...
- Would the "Fair Tax" Gut the Economy?
How to save money on insurance
- Double-Check Your Ally CDs
- Stocks are Not Bonds, CDs, or Savings Accounts
- The Best Values in Colleges - 2012 Edition
- Five Myths About Renter's Insurance
- Own Your Investments, Rent Your Fun
- Citibank to Issue Credit Cards in China
- Heartstrings and Pursestrings
- Saving Money at the Grocery Store: Store Brand Pricing on the Rise
- Missing Tax Paperwork?
- Is Your Investment Allocation Right?
April 14th, 2006 at 2:21 pm
Whatever you do, don’t look for a mover on the internet. You’ll end up finding some low-rate crooks who will seem to be the best deal in town but end up robbing you blind. Read the information on this website on picking a really good mover…
http://www.movingscam.com/
…and check out their forums for opinions on the best movers in your area…
http://www.movingscam.com/forum/
The key is to try to find a few different companies with offices located near you–not some national company that subcontracts to part-time help. The best place to find a mover is in your phone book; it’s one of the few reasons to actually keep a paper phone book in your house.
April 14th, 2006 at 2:45 pm
Get a case of beer, some pizza, and find some friends.
April 14th, 2006 at 5:54 pm
You didn’t say where you’re located or whether your move is local or interstate, so it’s hard to recommend a mover. You might check out the ConsumerAffairs.com site, there is some good information there:
http://www.consumeraffairs.com.....panies.htm
You might also ask your insurance company and check with the BBB
April 14th, 2006 at 7:09 pm
It’s interstate, and we live in the southeast.
April 15th, 2006 at 3:16 pm
Hi,
Are you going to blog about your mortgage hunt ? Would be interested in they way you go about gettting your financing. I am closing next month and got a 30 year fixed at 6% – only .50% origination fee too !
April 15th, 2006 at 5:47 pm
I will write more about this in the future, but it sounds like you did pretty well. We have been working through a mortgage broker that we’ve used in the past. Low fees ($395 flat rate vs. % origination) and good service. Unfortunately, rates have been in the rise, and we ended up locking at 6.375% (with no discount points). Compared to the 5.75% that we currently have, I’m kind of bummed, but c’est la vie. We also considered going though Pentagon Federal Credit Union, as they don’t charge any servicing fees, and they have pretty competitive rates. They also offer a 90 day lock at no charge.
April 15th, 2006 at 7:12 pm
I was moved from Indiana to Michigan by an affiliate of Atlas Van Lines. Greatest thing ever (along with, say, my wife, DVR, LASIK, and Super Tecmo Bowl). All of my previous moves had been in a pickup, so this was several orders of magnitude better- an Indy company came in to estimate, then the Michigan company came down, packed, moved and unpacked.
My wife’s company paid for the move, and for the taxes related to the move, so I can’t speak to the value, but I couldn’t have been happier with them.
April 15th, 2006 at 9:35 pm
Use the qoutes you get to batgain with other companies, my brother saved 50% on his move when he told the others what his quotes were!
April 16th, 2006 at 12:55 am
I’ll see what I can do to get the name and number of the central company that is in charge of Disney employee moves. My sister works for Disney and when she transferred, the company that was in charge of everything was a dream to work with according to her. But then again, the company has to be nice or it would lose Disney’s business.
One interesting thing to realize with the bigger moving companies, is that most people are somewhat contractors and work for themselves (or the paycheck) and are kind of contracted throught the moving company to fulfill the move.
Good Luck!
April 16th, 2006 at 11:10 pm
Whatever you do, do NOT use U-Haul. If you do self-move, use Penske.
April 18th, 2006 at 2:00 am
Here’s some quick advise:
1. get at least 3 quotes from different interstate movers.
2. rates are regulated by federal interstate tarrifs
3. see what coverage your personal insurance policy (homeowner’s aka HO) gives you and your posessions – movers insurance is expensive.
4. see if you can self pack and still have insurance coverage
5. there are several things you can compare:
a. hours for packing, loading and unloading
b. estimated weight or cubic inches
c. estimated packing materials
d. cost for materials
I think interstate rates are set at a price per pound, so you can’t negotiate much there. The movers will weight your shipment en route so if they have a non-binding estimate, they’ll true up or down.
5. Try to get a not to exceed estimate – use it as a negotiating tool between the three carriers.
6. Negotiate how you’ll pay – not all accept credit cards – which will give you the most protection.
7. see if you can buy the packing materials more cheaply and if you’ll still have coverage.
8. give away as much as possible before you leave. in general i think charitable deductions will net more than garage sales. Think NC 3x% + 8.25%. In my case that’s 41.25% of claimed value vs. probably 5-10% from a garage sale.
9. Don’t forget to factor in clean-up costs for the house you’re leaving.
10. See if the mover will credit back returned boxes. Be careful about when you return them – some charge to pick them up.
Good luck,
makingourway