Moving Preparation Guide & FAQ
Moving Preparation Guide
Planning Tips 4 Weeks Out
- Decide on the the items you want to move.
- We also come and do in-person reviews of house to use as basis for estimates.
- Try to make time to sell, donate or trash all items that you will not be taking with you.
- Make a list of things that need to be accomplished prior to the move: cleaning carpet, cleaning house, change of address with post office, letting friends know your new address, turning off utilities, turning on utilities at new location, getting best rates on utilities at new location, stopping newspapers, buying boxes and supplies to pack, allowing plenty of time to pack boxes for move day, etc.
- Do you need storage for your items? We can help you choose a storage option if you need.
- Begin using up all perishable foods in your refrigerator, freezer and pantry.
- Plan how you will transport expensive valuables such as jewelry, firearms, cash, ammunition or other extremely valuable items. (we would rather you protect your high value items.
- Try to determine the time you have available to pack prior to the move. It usually takes much more time than you think it does. Just by packing a few items per day of things you won’t need will pay off big when it gets closer to move time. If you need help we can do all or part of it for you.
- Make sure to keep handy all important documents such as insurance policies, medical records, legal, social security, vehicle registration and other things you might need to find quickly after packing.
Putting Things into Action - 2 to 4 Weeks Out
- Change of Address at the Post Office.
- Contact utility companies to disconnect at current location. (gas, electric, cable, internet, city services, phone)
- Contact utility companies at new location to connect.
- Make arrangements with church, Salvation Army or other charity to pick up items you want to donate.
- If there are items you want to sell have garage sale, Facebook Market Place or Craigslist.
- Buy moving supplies; boxes, packing paper, tape, etc. You can buy through us and we will deliver to your location.
- If you are going to pack start packing things you don’t need until after moving. Make sure to label the top and side of box with maintain contents and room where you want the box to go with dark marker. You will need to have basic outline of new location to help with marking boxes.
- Pack a box with most important things like mediations, small valuables, remotes that you will need immediately and won't have to look for them later. Put in your car so it doesn't get accidentally loaded in truck.
- PaP
Be Ready For Move Day - Few Days Before
- Have all boxes packed and appropriately labeled (on 2 sides), unless we are performing that service for you.
- Have all pictures-artwork down and packed, unless we are performing that service for you.
- Have all flat screen TV’s down, unless we are performing that service for you.
- Have all small-loose items in a box. Us having to pack boxes on move day increases time for move and ultimately move cost.
- Have all appliances unhooked and ready to go. If not we can perform that for you.
- Make sure there are no vehicles in front of house or driveways where we would need to park or walk.
Move Day!
- We will contact you before the move to confirm everything is ready to go.
- We will arrive promptly at established time and lead mover will call with at ETA.
- If there is any reason that something unforeseen such as traffic or mechanical issue we will notify you immediately.
- Upon arrival we will meet with you to review plan for the day and answer any questions you may have.
- Our movers will begin the process of applying padding-protection to walls, floors, doors, and stairs to ensure that that nothing is damaged during move process.
- All furniture and appliances will be wrapped with high quality padding and secured with stretch wrap. All boxes will be marked with room of new location.
- All items will be moved quickly but more importantly carefully to the moving trucks and adequately secured to ensure no movement occurs during transit.
- The location will be cleaned from any debris caused by us and left in same condition as we received it.
- Our movers may take lunch. Many times they will stop on the way to new location to do that.
- If you would like to expedite the move day you can purchase lunch (pizzas or something) that way they go directly to new location.
- At new location we will perform the same pre-move protection as noted above.
- All items will be moved and assembled, where necessary in appropriate location.
- House will be cleaned of all moving materials generated by us.
- You will be asked to look in the trucks to make sure they left nothing inside them.
- Make sure to check for any water leaks at both locations if we have unhooked refrigerators or washers.
- Lead mover will collect full and final payment as per agreement.
FAQ - Frequently Asked Moving Questions
Do I Need to Empty Dressers?
you can leave clothes in but take out anything heavy, loose or valuable.
Do You Disconnect & Reconnect Appliances?
yes as a courtesy we do that for you. We do not disconnect or reconnect gas appliances. We are not plumbers so we ask that you check both locations for any water leaks prior to leaving and a few times at new location for a couple days for any leaks.
Do You Disassemble & Reassemble Beds?
yes we do that as part of the regular service and no add on charge just the time it takes to accomplish the task. We will diassemble cribs but will not reassemble at new location due to insurance.
What Do I Need to Do With My Refrigerator?
that is the last thing we load and first thing we unload. If you take out the refrigerator loose items we can typically transport with frozen items in (unless long distance, in which case everything needs to come out). If you are putting your refrigerator into storage buy some baking soda to leave inside to prevent must and odors.
Are You Insured?
yes we have the required general auto liability and cargo insurance as required by the Texas DMV for household movers. Make sure to ask any mover if they have that, many are not insured.
How Do I Pay?
you can pay the team lead credit card, check, cash, Zelle or Venmo. They will provide you with a copy of the receipt for services. There is a 3% surcharge for credit card payments.
Do You Use Day Labor?
No. Our movers who are the best in the business and they work for us and we do not utilize day laborers. We also perform background checks on our moves.
What Do I Tip the Movers?
tips are not required. But as many service industries they are surely appreciated if you think they did an outstanding job for you. We have customers that pay from $20 - $100 per mover, just depending on the type, complexity or length of job.
Do You Provide Discounts for Seniors or Veterans?
yes
Are You a Registered Mover?
yes we are registered with the TX DMV #009860039C and the US DOT #2635175. Always ask your movers if they are approved and registered moving company. You can look movers up here https://apps.txdmv.gov/apps/mccs/truckstop/ to see if they are registered Texas Department of Motor Vehicles. There are many movers that are not registered and most likely not insured.
How Long Does It Take To Complete a Move?
every move is different and we provide an estimate of time and hourly rate, travel or truck fees if applicable on each job. We do have a 3 hour minimum on each job. With the exception of very large jobs we schedule movers and equipment to accomplish the job in one day.
What is Your Arrival Time?
Our standard arrival times are between 8:45 AM – 9:15AM unless prior arrangements made for other times. Our movers are only schedule for one move per day so you are the only focus for them.
What Time Does Billing Start?
When the movers arrive at your location the time begins and ends once the job is totally complete. They calculate time in 15 minute increments.
How Do You Protect the Furniture?
yes, all furniture and appliances will be wrapped with a furniture pad and stretch wrap. Not all movers do that but we find this is the best way to protect your belongings during transport.
Are There Any Hidden Fees?
we provide the hourly rates, hours estimate, travel time, truck fees or other on the estimates. The only charges we have on a move would be for bed bags, boxes, TV boxes or anything you desire to purchase from us.
Do You Brings Tools and Equipment?
yes we bring the right number and size of vehicles, furniture pads, stretch wrap, dollies, tape at no additional charge. We also bring TV boxes and bed bags at an additional charge. Also a team member will have the necessary tools required for the job.
Do You Provide Packing and Unpacking?
yes we provide both packing and unpacking at an additional hourly rate plus materials.
What Do I Need to Do to Prepare for Move Day?
make sure all boxes are packed and labeled (if you pack your own). Try to utilize small boxes as much as possible and fill with paper/bubble to prevent crushing. This would include decorations, kitchen items, pictures, closets, lamps and lampshades, etc.
What Does Standard Insurance Cover?
it covers the standard mover reimbursement of .60 cents per lb as required by the Texas DMV. All moving companies utlize this liability release coverage. If you want additional or full coverage you should get that prior to the move day.
Do I Need to Be Present During the Move?
it is preferable that you are but we have had clients that need to leave for various reasons throughout the day and we are ok with that.
Are There Upcharges for stairs?
no.
If There Are Long Walks or Difficult Areas Should I Let You Know?
yes. It is an important planning tool for us to know beforehand.