How much did you pay for movers? (Boston: 2013, living) - Massachusetts (MA) - Page 2 - City-Data Forum

gf2020 · 05-19-2015, 10:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gokav13

So you are saying that $500 sounds like a lot to charge? I feel like that is reasonable, as I have heard that they can be so so expensive.

No, I think $500 sounds low!

495neighbor · 05-19-2015, 11:32 AM

I think $500 sounds reasonable if it includes gas, travel time and the truck, and looking at your list you don't have a lot of furniture. They should quote you their hourly or set rate on paper, so you don't get any surprise itemization. Unless you are living many floors up a long narrow staircase, that sounds like a 6 hour or so job to me.

gokav13 · 05-19-2015, 01:19 PM

Edits for Clarity;
This is on the third (top) floor of a multi level residential house in South Boston.
It has driveway access that leads directly to patio stairs to my back door.

I believe only two guys are needed.

Going from Southie to Stoughton (35 min drive)

The purpose of this post was to see what other people paid with a similar set up.

Dm84 · 05-19-2015, 01:20 PM

I'd pay for the third guy if they recommend it. It will go much faster with the third guy.

Shutout · 05-20-2015, 10:06 AM

Do a Google search of the 500 and 700 dollar companies and see if they have reviews..

mmyk72 · 05-22-2015, 12:21 PM

I used a company called Secure Movers. Found them on Yelp and took a gamble. Highly recommend these guys. They charge by the hour, + travel fee (maybe 1 hr) to initially get to your place. Travel time in between the old and new place is counted the same as the move time. My move had 2 guys and a truck (they also supplied the blankets). I think it was $75/hr and the rate varies slightly depending on whether it's high season (school moving time), weekdays vs weekend, mid-month vs beginning /end of the month.

They are very efficient. I also had a similar size apt with probably more furniture. It took about 1 hr to load and 1.5 hr to unload. It was a 1 mile travel for me so that took 15-20 min or so. For you, it'd be much longer and also plan that they drive very slowly once the truck is loaded. So your 35 min drive can become 1.5 hrs.

If you want to avoid paying for travel, you may want to rent a UHaul and hire a crew to load at the move out end. Drive to your new place and hire another crew for unloading. That's what someone I know did. However, you'd need to have the moving blankets yourself to keep your stuff from getting dinged up.

I paid a total of under $300 (with tips), and I couldn't be happier. I got quotes at over $1000 from the big name companies like Mayflower, etc.

If you have lots of big furniture or if you have a super heavy item like a piano, then a 3rd guy is needed. If not, 2 is sufficient for a 1-bedroom apt.

yankerefov · 12-07-2015, 06:56 PM

Don’t assume that big-name companies are best. Do not get estimates through websites that offer to “find you a mover.” Find the mover yourself and avoid the numerous scams associated with some of these sites. And don’t use household-goods brokerage services that find a moving company for you―they are not regulated by the laws that movers must follow.Moved 2 times with mozart movers.Both times cost me less than $400 to move a 2bd apt.

gokav13 · 12-08-2015, 06:49 AM

Hi all,
Just want to give you an update. I ended up putting all of this information on Craigslist. I said I wasn't looking for professional movers, but if you and your friends wanted beer and a couple hundred bucks to reply with their best offer. If they didn't email me with an actual number than I never responded. A lot of them would charge around $300 but I supply the truck, or some had trucks already. Great!

Then these two guys who actually worked for professional movers contacted me. On their days off they move independently and the company actually lets them use the truck if they want. So I think we agreed on $300, I gave them $75 tip and beer and pizza. They were more than happy. It took them around 3.5 to 4 hours - much quicker than I thought.

A note though - we did a lot of do it yourself, so when they came everything was READY. We broke down stuff for them. All they did was wrap and bring it to the truck and bring it in the house. No set up, etc. Basically any thing to make my pay reasonable and they were more than appreciative. They said they thought they would be working much harder.

I did take my precautions. I requested the license plate number of the truck and took a picture and requested to see their licenses at the time of the move. Last thing I wanted was them to be "following" us and never get off the exit and take off with our stuff.

Hope this helps others!

Parsec · 12-09-2015, 07:42 AM

Thanks for the update. I know I'm chiming in late here, but the $1,000 quote you got does sound high. I moved my whole house for about $1,000. They arrived with 4 guys and filled up their 26 foot box truck, then had to call HQ to bring over another truck. I got 2 trucks and 5 movers in total. Glad you got it all moved for a reasonable price.

Dm84 · 12-09-2015, 09:29 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Parsec

Thanks for the update. I know I'm chiming in late here, but the $1,000 quote you got does sound high. I moved my whole house for about $1,000. They arrived with 4 guys and filled up their 26 foot box truck, then had to call HQ to bring over another truck. I got 2 trucks and 5 movers in total. Glad you got it all moved for a reasonable price.

How long ago was this? Like everything else the price keeps rising.