moving companies? (rent, movers, mattress)

[mskitts]

Can anyone recommend a moving company to move from New Jersey to the Big Island? I inquired online and have been bombarded with phone calls. I just don't know who is reputable. I've heard there is a lot of fraud in the moving industry.

[Jane M]

Consider selling everything except the most personal items. Have those shipped USPS in flat rate boxes. Alternatively, you can rent a shipping crate, but you will have to load it yourself and pay for moving it onto a vessel and across the ocean. A moving company will cost you upwards of $15,000 It's the easiest option, but by far the most expensive. I think Royal Hawaiian movers has a pretty good reputation, but others may disagree.

[whtviper1]

Originally Posted by Jane M

Consider selling everything except the most personal items.

A moving company will cost you upwards of $15,000 It's the easiest option, but by far the most expensive. I think Royal Hawaiian movers has a pretty good reputation, but others may disagree.

I used Royal Hawaiian to Oahu and it was great - they pack everything. $15,000 is a lot of stuff.

I disagree about selling everything - you'll probably get bottom dollar selling where you live - and it isn't easy to replace everything - and that is expensive. Bring everything! And then sell what you don't need.

Moving is a tax write-off, so the government subsidizes your move (as long as you get a new job)

[ChezAloha]

I will second the recommendation for Royal Hawaiian. We used them to move from Portland to Kaua'i and received superb service from start to finish. Total cost for 4500#, including 2 months storage on the mainland and having our stuff trucked down to Long Beach to be loaded on the ship, was around $8500. The movers did all the packing, and unpacking here, and we had our own 20-ft. container even though our stuff only filled half of it. They contracted with another moving company for the mainland side of our move, but the people were wonderful to work with and the service was excellent. We had budgeted for the expense and more than feel we got our money's worth.

I'm in the middle as far as what you should bring: Don't get rid of everything, but don't bring everything either. In our case, we brought just the right amount and haven't added to or gotten rid of anything since our move about two years ago except for purchasing a washer and dryer. Less really is more here, but I'm also glad I didn't have to try and replace everything after we arrived.

[Jane M]

I just had a different experience. Royal Hawaiian quoted me $9000 to move hardly anything from CA to HI. We were not taking any furniture, no bed, no dressers, not even the TV just some clothes and kitchen supplies. Our house was only 900 square feet. So, based on my estimate, if you had a normal house of let's say 1500 to 2000 sq ft and you want to take all your furniture, you are looking at a hefty sum. The good thing is you can get an estimate from all the moving companies you want and decide which one you want to go with.

[MakamaeNeNe]

Originally Posted by ChezAloha

I will second the recommendation for Royal Hawaiian. We used them to move from Portland to Kaua'i and received superb service from start to finish. Total cost for 4500#, including 2 months storage on the mainland and having our stuff trucked down to Long Beach to be loaded on the ship, was around $8500. The movers did all the packing, and unpacking here, and we had our own 20-ft. container even though our stuff only filled half of it. They contracted with another moving company for the mainland side of our move, but the people were wonderful to work with and the service was excellent. We had budgeted for the expense and more than feel we got our money's worth.
.

Can I ask what major furniture helped to make up the 4500lb? Did they charge by the lb? (in other words, if you'd filled it up, it could've possibly been 9000lb-- would that have made it $17000?)

We are hoping to move by October-- depends on when we sell our house here in Chicago. Thanks!!!

[whtviper1]

Originally Posted by MakamaeNeNe

Did they charge by the lb?

You are charged by the lb

[mskitts]

Yes we have received a call from Royal Hawaiian who says they charge by the pound. We also heard from Kona Car Guy (no we are not moving a car) who says they charge by cubic foot, weight doesn't matter. Anyone familiar with them? Does anyone know which way gives you the better price.

[ChezAloha]

Originally Posted by MakamaeNeNe

Can I ask what major furniture helped to make up the 4500lb? Did they charge by the lb? (in other words, if you'd filled it up, it could've possibly been 9000lb-- would that have made it $17000?)

We are hoping to move by October-- depends on when we sell our house here in Chicago. Thanks!!!

Yes, they charge by the pound! We were frankly surprised by how little space our things took up in the container. It had been packed well though - absolutely nothing shifted during the move, and only one item had a small crack in it.

We brought a sofa, 2 wicker armchairs, coffee table, side table, tv stand and tv, table and six chairs and antique Japanese chest for the living/dining room; bunk beds and two dressers for our children's room; queen-size mattress and platform frame, dresser, and nightstands for my husband and my room; two stainless steel storage shelves; 3 lamps, a couple of small rugs, a few pictures and a very few decorative items. A small box of books. A small chest freezer. Basic linens. We also brought all our dishes & flatware, cookware and some small appliances. I did not want to replace all those things. But that's it. Nothing was very big or heavy, and nothing particularly fancy or formal - just stuff that we liked, that was useful and comfortable, or that was particularly memorable/meaningful for us. We're currently living in around 800 square feet and it all fits in very nicely without feeling crowded - we have everything we need to live simply and comfortably. We bought a washer and dryer after we arrived here.

One of the primary reasons we paid to move our own stuff over was that we moved with our children, and wanted our home to feel as familiar as possible for them after we arrived. We were not on an "adventure." If it had just been my husband and myself though we probably would have moved with our suitcases and mailed a few things over and purchased things we needed after we arrived.

My husband and I were both more than ready to downsize before our move, so getting rid of things back on the mainland wasn't too difficult for us. We just kept asking ourselves over and over if we wanted to pay to move something to Hawai'i; usually the answer was "no" and so it was either sold or given away to family or friends.

[Jane M]

Royal Hawaiian charges 1.99$ per pound with a 1,000 lb minimum. Again, I too, was quoted around 9,000$ for 4,500 lbs, but unlike Chez Aloha, that 4,500lbs did not include any furniture at all just some books, dishes, clothes, and some other non-heavy items. So, maybe the moving guy overestimated the weight. You definitely should consider downsizing.