The MoversCorp.Com Blog

Full Service Movers Marketplace
RSS

Posts Tagged ‘movers’

How to avoid moving scams

Posted on November 17th, 2011 No Comments

The following tips and advice can help you reduce the stress of moving your household to another city or state. First and most importantly, choose a professional moving company that can prove it is legitimate. The movers should come into your home and see how much there will be to move, and they need to visually inspect your household items in order to make an estimate.

Moving companies that do not write up an estimate are not legitimate, since this is a necessary first step in the moving process. Second, the movers should not require any down payment or deposit of any kind. This is the mark of a scammer—asking or pressuring the customer into believing that a down payment is part of the move. It is not. How are you to know that they will deliver your boxes and furniture once they have your money?

There are thousands of people who have fallen victim to this scam—they give the moving company money before the move and either never see that company, or their things, again, or the scammers show up at the new house asking for more money than the original amount that was quoted to the customer. In effect, they hold the customer’s furniture hostage, until their demands are met, which is illegal, but happens all the time. You can prevent this by making sure you know the moving company’s reputation, their physical address, their web site and their telephone numbers.

They must also have the right certificated and licenses. Ask for their DOT and MC license numbers. It is also helpful to research the company to see if there are any published complaints about them by previous customers and if so, what type of problems they encountered. Check with the Better Business Bureau as well. From local movers to car moving companies you must always look into their business before choosing them.

One more red flag that can help you to avoid being scammed by a moving company is if they advertise much lower rates than every other company that you have checked into. They may try to lure customers with attractive pricing, but a legitimate mover will always offer an estimate based on actual market values for their services, since there is a lot of competition among movers. If you find a mover and do not have much information about them, you can always check them out by searching the Federal Motor Carriers Safety Administration, (FTCSA), at www.fmcsa.dot.gov.

It is smart to visit a site like moversquote.org to get free mover quotes and compare them as the movers are pre-screened and licensed.

The guest post is provided by MoversQuote.Org.

Bookmark and Share
Tags: , , ,

Preparing for Long Distance Move

Posted on October 17th, 2011 1 Comment

Moving in general is a very stressful task; it is even more challenging when you have to move long distance out of state. When moving long distance, the key to a successful move is to plan ahead. You want to give yourself at least a month and a half (two months would be ideal) to get things together before moving day arrives. During the first few days of those two months should be spent trying to locate a long distance mover.

Experts would tell you that you should select at least five or six prospective movers before narrowing them to just two that you can work with and compare prices and services.

Most of the times word of mouth is the ideal way to find a long distance moving company. You can source numbers of long distance moving companies from your friends, families and work acquaintance. Their feedback about the company would go a long distance for you and would be part of the deciding factor. An internet research about a specific company can also help you determine if they are as good as they say they are. The reviews and testimonials about the company from previous clients would be enough indication if you should visit their office or move along to a next long distance mover.

Those companies that you visit in person would usually display their proof of legitimacy with an array of certificates on the wall or you would see their business license as well. However, you can still go that extra mile by checking up the company through the Better Business Bureau.

Once comfortable with the moving company and their rates, one of the first things you should do after setting a moving date is to get rid of the excess stuff you may have laying around the house. You can choose to either throw them away or put them in the hands of friends and relatives if they are in good condition. Since moving is costly, you may also want to consider selling off some of your stuff through a garage sale in order to recover your money. Once you have gotten rid of the clutter, the next thing to do would be to make a list of all the items that you now have in your home that you intend to take to your new home.

Next, make a list of the items that you are moving with before you start packing them in containers, boxes etc. Experts would advise that you pack room by room and well ahead in advance to avoid the rush. Use strong boxes; you can get them free at your neighbor grocery store and remember to bolster your breakables with bubble wrap or even with newspapers. As you pack, remember that you should not exceed 50 pounds per box; don’t forget to seal and label your boxes as well.

If you are mving with jewelry, documents and other personal effects, the best thing to do is to personally take it with you to avoid it being misplaced when you get to the new home. You should also travel with medications which should be stored in leak-proof containers.

Finally, a week before moving day, inform the utility cable and phone companies about your move so that you would no longer incur charges when you move. Depending on the state that you live in you may be able to transfer your service using the same provider; other times you have to create a new account with a competing company. Either way, ensure that the basic essentials such as lights, water and heat are functioning before you move in.

This is guest post from FindGoodMovers.com, moving portal of long distance movers.

Bookmark and Share
Tags: , ,

Across Country Moving Concerns

Posted on October 15th, 2011 No Comments

As most would imagine, moving across country can be a huge undertaking and with it comes twice the anxiety that one would endure even when moving within their own state. There are many things that could and have gone wrong on across country moves; some of which you can prevent ahead of time to eliminate further stress.

The moving company that you choose to relocate you and your family to another state can determine if your move would be successful or not. That’s why it is imperative that you properly screen the moving companies by making sure to do proper background checks and research on them. Without research, you could be putting your household items in the hands of a company that could either steal or damage your items; this is definitely not the way you envision your moving day.

Even with legitimate companies, there is always that chance of Murphy’s Law looming over your long distance move. Here are a few cross country concerns that most experience and ways in which you can handle them.

They say timing is everything when making a cross country move; unfortunately if you get all your things on the truck on time when moving day arrives, there is really no telling when your household items would arrive at your new home. In most situations, you have customers who get to their new place of residence well ahead of the moving vehicle; sometimes it can take hours, other times it can take days.

The main cause for scheduling problems is if the company has multiple clients that are moving around the same time. It would be wise to talk to the moving company ahead of time to guesstimate a time or amount of days that it would take them to deliver your items. Most movers usually give a window of three to seven days; if this is the case then you can find ways to work around that. Perhaps you can stay at a cheap hotel or bed and breakfast close to your new residence so that you can be on standby when the movers get there with your household items.

Secondly, another problem that can plague a cross country move is the exorbitant rate that you may be asked to pay. Because of the nature of the move to several miles away, it is quite easy for a moving company to inflate their prices on customers who do not know any better. Not only are customers charged with the moving fee but some moving companies are known for sneaking in moving supplies fees etc. and make the bill twice the amount that it really is. All this can be avoided if you initially get your moving company to supply you with a written estimate as well as a signed list of household inventory. On this paper there would be information about the total weight of your household items as well as the cubic feet. Always keep that document close to you; it would be the one thing that would prevent you from paying outrageous fees at the end of your move.

Theft is also a big concern in cross country moves as there are a lot of rouge movers who take the opportunity to steal from customers during transit. Again, this would be a good time to do your research on a few cross country moving companies before making a decision. The Internet is very useful in assisting you when it comes to getting more information about a specific moving company. There are two websites that currently provide moving customers with the evidence that they need to determine if a moving company is legitimate or not. They are the Better Business Bureau website at www.bbb.org and the Safety and Fitness Electronic Records (SAFER) System at www.safersys.org These are the sites where complaints are lodged about a specific long distance moving company that you may want to hire. It is also good to do background checks on the owner of the moving company as well as to see how long the company has been in business and their track records before you take that leap.

The worst thing that could happen is to complete your thorough research on the moving company and then find out that the work has been subcontracted to a company that specialize in long distance moving. In this situation, the moving company that you initially hire would move your household items only so far before reaching at a cut off point where the subcontractor takes your items the rest of the way. This is not a good scenario; you want to find out before hand if the original hired company would be getting your items directly from point A to point B. If this is not the case upfront, then you can always switch to another moving company that offers this service.

This is a guest post by Matt Hammerton, Marketing Manager of Cross Country Movers, the web company that provides moving leads.

Bookmark and Share
Tags: , , ,

Summertime moving tips

Posted on July 15th, 2011 No Comments

Summertime is usually the month that most people choose to move home; the fact that the kids are on break from school and the weather is mostly sunny makes this time of year a particularly popular one. But even while summer conjures up brilliant sunshine in the nation, one also must not forget the rainfall that is also likely to show up as well.

True, the rain is a welcoming change especially when there have been days of record-breaking heat. And while those who work outside would welcome the rainfall to keep them cool, rain is indeed a mover’s nightmare that could very well impede progress during moving.

A little bit of rain would never cancel a move. However, if it is a thunderstorm type of scenario, then you are better off changing the moving date. For those who are unable to put off moving day because of legal landlord issues, then be prepared to put in that extra work to protect your furniture from the elements.

For your furniture, it is best that you use some heavy duty tarp to wrap or cover as well as plastic, the latter especially when covering mattresses and sofas. Avoid the use of shrink wrap as water can still seem into it.

Moving the furniture to and from the truck in the rainy weather can also be tricky. True, the top portion is covered and protected but what about the bottom part of the furniture that may have to touch the wet or muddy ground?  Moving experts would advise that you make a walkway out of either old carpets or rugs for which you can drag the items into the house. On moving day, ensure that you make the movers’ job as easy as possible. You can do this by using lots of sheets, towels, blankets, whatever you can find to lay in the house to prevent the movers from slipping. You want to lay them out smoothly so that the movers would not trip or fall. You simply cannot ask the moving crew to remove their shoes when they enter your home. That’s why it is important to either spread material on the floor or simply have a mop handy to clean up the mess.

Bookmark and Share
Tags: , , , , ,

How to budget your moving expenses

Posted on May 23rd, 2011 3 Comments

Moving house while trying to save some money may seem like an oxymoron; let’s not kid ourselves, moving can be an expensive undertaking whether you are purchasing or renting a property. Purchasing a home can set you back quite a bit especially when legal and closing fees are involved. Renting a house or apartment is not cheap either; most landlords require that you make a two month security deposit before moving in as well as you may also be required to pay for your own background check.

Just thinking about how much money one has to spend on moving is enough to make you want to stay put and make the best of where you currently stay. But it really does not have to be that way especially if you get down to some good old budgeting.  With the economy forcing most to tighten the grip on their wallets, this is one good way that you can see your money and know exactly how to spend it.

If you are not in a hurry to move from where you currently stay but have intentions of moving someday, it would be wise for you to start a savings account specifically for moving. For those purchasing a house, while the cost of your house may be covered by the mortgage banks, remember that you also have to save for other things that you would need for the house. These essentials may include the cost of paint; you may also need to pay for lawn care as well, not to mention you have to save money for the movers or may even need to install a security device. You can start as soon as possible to save towards the above mentioned essentials.

For those hoping to rent you should be saving for your rental deposits, money to pay the movers plus have a little left over for emergencies.

Now here is where the budgeting comes in. With the money that you decided to save each month, you can now go forward with hunting for your new home. For renters, if you have managed to save at least $7,000, you should be looking for a rent that is ten percent of what you save especially if you want to be able to pay your bills and have surplus. Looking for an affordable rent does not mean that you have to compromise your taste and safety; if you have to spend another hundred dollars or two to get the kind of home that you want and in your desired neighborhood, then by all means you should do just that.

You may also want to get quotes from those involved in the move including the movers, or the rental truck for self move, as well as the rental deposits for the homes you may be interested in. Once you gather this information, you can use these quotes against what you have saved to determine if you would have enough left over to go forward with your move or if you would have to continue saving some more.

Bookmark and Share
Tags: , , , , ,
« Older Entries

Powered by WordPress | Log in | Entries (RSS) | Comments (RSS) | ilookgood! theme by iwritealot!