[goldensky]

I am planning to move from other state to Hartford/CT in near future, so I will need to hire a mover.

1) which is better? Big-national Moving company vs. a small local mover?

2) a company from the leaving city? vs. a company move to?

[richrf]

Just made a big move from Chicago to Stamford. Still waiting for the mover to arrive. I chose Pickems Kane but it doesn't matter. All of the moving companies use the same trucks and drivers and all cease communication once they have a contract signed. It is a roll of the dice. No way to plan or choose using research. You get what you get and you accept the results. Like playing the stock market.

[JayCT]

I am not sure a small local company is equipped or willing to make a large long distance move. I believe you should start with a company locally. They will have to come out and review your home furnishings to determine the size and cost of the move. It would be hard to do that from a great distance. Jay

[pulpfiction]

Mac's Moving (based out of New Haven) is awesome.

Very fair prices and extremely professional.

Excellent review on Yelp, as well as several posters on here.

[goldensky]

which company is better? Big-national company? or small local company?

[John Doh]

some thoughts on movers:

1) You get what you pay for however I would caveat this with one mans outrageous expense is another mans "I can't believe it was so cheap"
2) Check the AMSA website and see if the mover you are looking at is "ProMover" registered with them
3) Check BBB
4) Some movers will tell you that it they charge by volume. Run from those. Why do you think there are weigh stations all over the place.
4) Get more than one estimate. I had a couple movers walk through the house, inventory all our goods and estimate the weight of our belongings. They gave me estimates for the weight of all the items in our house and gave me quotes based on that.
Be careful there are movers out there that will give you one estimate then when they deliver will require an additional payment that was not quoted to you and not unload until you pay them, basically holding your goods hostage. Well rated ProMovers will not do this to you.

[goldensky]

Originally Posted by John Doh

some thoughts on movers:

1) You get what you pay for however I would caveat this with one mans outrageous expense is another mans "I can't believe it was so cheap"
2) Check the AMSA website and see if the mover you are looking at is "ProMover" registered with them
3) Check BBB
4) Some movers will tell you that it they charge by volume. Run from those. Why do you think there are weigh stations all over the place.
4) Get more than one estimate. I had a couple movers walk through the house, inventory all our goods and estimate the weight of our belongings. They gave me estimates for the weight of all the items in our house and gave me quotes based on that.
Be careful there are movers out there that will give you one estimate then when they deliver will require an additional payment that was not quoted to you and not unload until you pay them, basically holding your goods hostage. Well rated ProMovers will not do this to you.

Thank you a lot!!

[MrGompers]

If you're within a 1000 miles i would suggest renting a U haul truck and doing it yourself. You can even attach a trailer to haul your car at the same time.

I did this before from Delaware to Conn and drove late at night with little traffic. Cost with a trailer was $300+gas+tolls. Driving a truck with a trailer isn't that hard as long as you don't need to back up and you have to remember to make wider turns.

If you really can not do it yourself I would suggest selling everything and buying new stuff in CT. If you have a vehicle that has towing ability you can rent a small trailer from U haul. They can even install the trailer hitch for your car if you don't have one. IMO its not worth hauling average furniture/appliances around the country unless you have something that is incredibly valuable.
I once sold appliances when moving via craiglist and they were gone in one day. Placed the add on Saturday stuff was gone on Sunday.

For another comparison a friend of mine moved from Michigan to Mass about 15 years ago with Mayflower and it cost $3,000. I don't know if this is a standard price because his employer paid for it. That price included gas and tolls.

[goldensky]

Originally Posted by MrGompers

If you're within a 1000 miles i would suggest renting a U haul truck and doing it yourself. You can even attach a trailer to haul your car at the same time.

I did this before from Delaware to Conn and drove late at night with little traffic. Cost with a trailer was $300+gas+tolls. Driving a truck with a trailer isn't that hard as long as you don't need to back up and you have to remember to make wider turns.

If you really can not do it yourself I would suggest selling everything and buying new stuff in CT. If you have a vehicle that has towing ability you can rent a small trailer from U haul. They can even install the trailer hitch for your car if you don't have one. IMO its not worth hauling average furniture/appliances around the country unless you have something that is incredibly valuable.
I once sold appliances when moving via craiglist and they were gone in one day. Placed the add on Saturday stuff was gone on Sunday.

For another comparison a friend of mine moved from Michigan to Mass about 15 years ago with Mayflower and it cost $3,000. I don't know if this is a standard price because his employer paid for it. That price included gas and tolls.

Thanks MrGompers!! I think it is a good idea!!

I will have to move my stuffs, since I have a nice piano and sofas, furniture which I don't want to sell or throw aways.

In CT, are there Latino people waiting around Home Depot or Lowers so that I can hire them to take down stuffs from the U-Haul truck to a house? It could take 4 hours, how much normally do I need to pay them? $100/person?

[goldensky]

How about U-Pack?