Long distance moving companies Dallas to Seattle (apartment, insurance)

[quirky_alex]

I'm moving from Dallas to Seattle either in late September or October sometime. Moving a one bedroom apartment and possibly my car. My new job is applying for a relocation incentive for me that I will probably get, somewhere in the range of $2500-4500.i have to make my own moving arrangements, and then this amount will be included on my first paycheck.

What long distance, cross country moving companies do you recommend or recommend avoiding? Do you think the relocation incentive would cover a long distance move for a 1 bedroom and a car? Also if u don't find an apartment right away, I might need to have my belongings stored for a few days or so. I put in some info on a couple of websites to get quotes, and my inbox just explored with at least a dozen different companies. Only one of them offered a ballpark quote in the actual email, which was $1100 which seems low.

Any advice about using a cross-country moving company is appreciated!

[cpmunk]

what is your job and how much are you getting paid

[quirky_alex]

Are my answers to those questions relevant to adviceabout moving ccompany recommendations? I've already mentioned that my job will probably be providing me with $2500-4500 for relocation expenses, so I'd hope that can cover my moving costs.

[kaonevar]

When we moved from Dallas to Seattle 1.5 years ago, Amazon spent about $25K alone on relocating us, our stuff, and our kitties to Seattle. I seriously doubt you're going to find ANY company who will do a nearly 3000 mile relocation for under $10K.

[kaonevar]

The way around it would be to load up a uhaul yourself and drive it. And that will probably completely exhaust your relocation budget.

[quirky_alex]

Wow, based on what I've seen online, I'm shocked that a cross-country move would cost nearly 25k. Course, it depends on the amount of things and people you're moving. I.e. moving a 1 bedroom apartment and 1 person and 1 cat will be less expensive than moving a 3-4 bedroom home and several individuals. Also, I can see private companies like Amazon spending more money on their employees. You'd hope that would mean better quality, but Microsoft moved my friends from Pittsburgh to Seattle area and broke some of their china or crystal and they were pretty unhappy about it.

If anyone has experience hiring cross country movers or moving yourself (i.e. using Uhaul or Penske), then I would like to hear from your experiences!

[Seacove]

When we came to Seattle we sold our home and moved our furniture and cars via U-Haul. It wasn't difficult, maybe even fun because we were excited. We have since had three cross country corporate moves and those were expensive because they often transport your cars, pack, move and deliver your furniture and provide temporary housing.

Microsoft did not move your friend's furniture but your friends could have filed a claim with the actual mover.

[quirky_alex]

They probably did file a claim. Just remember them complaining about that. I've heard it advised to pack valuables yourself when using movers. And I know they're offer insurance.

[crum1515]

Make sure to clarify with the moving company that if you pack your own things that it will still be covered by the movers insurance. When I moved from Dallas it was required for the movers to pack something if I wanted to be covered by incidental damage.

I moved a 1 bedroom apartment and it came out to about 9,800$ - granted I didn't have that much stuff at all, just desk/computer/tv/couch/bed/dresser/clothes/table/chairs. I will have to look up name of the company I used.

[Ruth4Truth]

Don't use anyone who contracts with Allied for the unloading. Allied in Seattle employs ex-cons, and they can be weird, and careless with your stuff. It's not unusual for one of them to show up with alcohol on their breath. The interstate movers contract with local companies, so ask the companies you call who they use in Seattle for local labor.