Cross Country Moving?
Ed Stasiak
same question to misc.consumers and misc.legal.
moderated) but I thought someone here might be
able to pass on some info.
My friend is planning on moving from California back to
Michigan in the next year or so and called PODS to find
out the cost.
They want over $10,000 to move his stuff!
WTF?! I would think using PODS would be far more cheaper
then using a conventional moving company, as they're only
loading/unloading the pods and not physically handling
every single item the customer owns.
On the other hand, I remember reading that when using
a conventional moving company (United Van Lines, etc.)
one needs to be very careful and have a rock solid contract
that spells out everything in detail, as the moving company
will nickel and dime you death with hidden costs once they
have possession of your stuff.
Any advice and/or links to consumer help web sites related
to a cross country move that I can pass on to my friend?
mm
<esta...@att.net> wrote:
>This isn't really a home repair question (I did post the
>same question to misc.consumers and misc.legal.
>moderated) but I thought someone here might be
>able to pass on some info.
>
>My friend is planning on moving from California back to
>Michigan in the next year or so and called PODS to find
>out the cost.
>
>http://www.pods.com
>
>They want over $10,000 to move his stuff!
>
>WTF?! I would think using PODS would be far more cheaper
>then using a conventional moving company, as they're only
>loading/unloading the pods and not physically handling
>every single item the customer owns.
Maybe that's how they get you, because people think it will be cheap.
What does a regular moving company like United or Mayflower want?
Hard to believe but maybe 10,000 is cheap after all. 27 years ago, I
paid 800 dollars just to move from NYC to Baltimore, 3 1/2 hours.
Prices have gone up and Cal/michingan is a lot farther. Plus the guy
who moved me would have changed a lot more if he had realized how much
I could squeeze into an apartment. (He quoted the price sight
unseen, becaue he had a move to Boston and wanted something to do on
the way back. I tried to tell him that I had a lot of stuff. He gave
me a list of big furniture and asked if I had it. I really didn't.
All I had big was a spinet piano and two lightweight warddrobes but I
had loads of other stuff. But he was a mentch. He never complained.
I tipped them 200 dollars)
How many rooms in your house? Are they and the closets stuffed or are
you into fin shway. (sp?)
>
>On the other hand, I remember reading that when using
>a conventional moving company (United Van Lines, etc.)
>one needs to be very careful and have a rock solid contract
>that spells out everything in detail, as the moving company
>will nickel and dime you death with hidden costs once they
>have possession of your stuff.
I didn't see your post there, but this sounds like the kind of advice
given by someone who writes a weekly advice column and has to come up
with something to say. Sure, you should read the contract. Your
contract should list all the costs and there should be a sentence that
says, These are all the costs. I presume they fill out such a
contract and wait for you to sign it. Well, maybe they weigh the
truck before it is loaded and after it is loaded. I'm not sure**.
But I still don't see where nickel and diming will come in. So look
for a company with a good reputation., not just the national company
but the local affiliate, which is probably a separate company.
**That's how they did it when I moved a bunch of my mother's stuff to
Texas, but it was only a room or two and no one came out to estimate
it. Just the trucker who had a local guy to help load. So he weighed
his truck twice.
The only time we had trouble moving, there was some strike in
Pennsyvania, so they had to unload all our stuff in Ohio and wait
until they stopped shooting at the trucks in Pa. Why do strikes bring
out the criminal nature in so many people? There was extra damage
because of the extra unloading and loading. A corner of the washer
was crumpled and looked terrible but it still worked fine, and I think
one piece of furniture was scratched. I guess most contracts call for
them to repair damaged stuff, and they have was pencils in many colors
that they use to patch dents in wood.
Ed Stasiak
> > Ed Stasiak
> >
> >They want over $10,000 to move his stuff!
>
> or Mayflower want?
I dunno and he doesn't either yet. I got an email from
him last night about the cost of PODS and figured I'd
try to get him some advice.
> How many rooms in your house? Are they and the
> closets stuffed or are you into fin shway.
He's got a pretty big place but this move is precipitated
by a recent divorce, so I'm not sure how much stuff he
has left to move?
> > one needs to be very careful and have a rock solid contract
> > that spells out everything in detail, as the moving company
> > will nickel and dime you death with hidden costs once they
> > have possession of your stuff.
>
> this sounds like the kind of advice given by someone who
> writes a weekly advice column and has to come up with
> something to say.
I've personally never had to use a moving company but
from what I remember reading years back, (probably on
the misc.consumers newsgroup) moving co's will scam
their customers with additional costs once your stuff is
loaded on their truck and you have no choice but to pay,
as either they'll hold you stuff "hostage" or dump it right
back on the driveway if you don't.
Ed Pawlowski
"Ed Stasiak" <esta...@att.net> wrote in message
news:20445884-277a-4c53...@f8g2000yqn.googlegroups.com...
> This isn't really a home repair question (I did post the
> same question to misc.consumers and misc.legal.
> moderated) but I thought someone here might be
> able to pass on some info.
>
> My friend is planning on moving from California back to
> Michigan in the next year or so and called PODS to find
> out the cost.
>
> http://www.pods.com
>
> They want over $10,000 to move his stuff!
>
> WTF?! I would think using PODS would be far more cheaper
> then using a conventional moving company, as they're only
> loading/unloading the pods and not physically handling
> every single item the customer owns.
Depending on exact locations, you are looking at about 2500 miles. I'd
expect a regular trucker would charge about $5000 to $6000 for the run.
One factor is distance, but other factors are the amount of freight moving
between points. For instance, moving freight fro NC to MA may be $3000, but
the return trip can be had for about half that.
About four years ago a friend moved to Florida, about 1200 miles and paid a
regular moving company about $10,000.
jimmyd...@gmail.com
Hmmm.. back in 2003 we moved my father-in-law from Ca to Mi and it was
only$3,000 with a moving company. He had a 3 bedroom condo and they
loaded and unloaded everything. I would get a couple of additional
quotes.
GoodLuck,
aemeijers
moving the high-dollar and/or heirloom stuff, hopefully on your own in a
U-haul. Personally, I'd never move chipboard furniture, or any
mattresses over five years old, or anything that would be cheaper to
replace than move. I'd donate it to whatever local charity keeps the
warehouse of stuff for fire victims and abused women needing to set up
households, and take the deduction. But then again, I'm a bit of a pack
rat, and moving would be a good excuse to clear out the excess.
Of course, if the move is for a new job, and they are picking up the
tab, all bets are off. But even with that, I'd still move the valuable
or non-replaceable stuff myself. Heard too many tales over the years of
people realizing something was missing or broken, a month later.
--
aem sends, cringing at the thought of what moving out of this place (to
wherever) in a couple of years, is gonna be like....
Nate Nagel
Last time I had to do a long distance move, we used U-pack and it wasn't
anywhere near $10k (otherwise it would have been more economical to just
sell everything and buy new; at the time I didn't have anything
particularly valuable.)
We drove the cars, because moving a car any significant distance tends
to cost at least $1K unless you have a friend with a car trailer to move
it for you.
Another option, if you only have one car, would just be renting a truck
with a car trailer, but keep in mind that both the trucks and trailers
tend to be garbage (doesn't matter what company) and at least U-Haul
*will not* have your reserved equipment when you go to pick it up (this
is a universal truth) so it will not be a pleasant experience. It will
likely be the least expensive option, however.
nate
Percival P. Cassidy
> This isn't really a home repair question (I did post the
> same question to misc.consumers and misc.legal.
> moderated) but I thought someone here might be
> able to pass on some info.
>
> My friend is planning on moving from California back to
> Michigan in the next year or so and called PODS to find
> out the cost.
>
> http://www.pods.com
>
> They want over $10,000 to move his stuff!
<snip>
When we moved from NY to Michigan 6 years ago we used a service
connected to United Van Lines, I think. They parked a 48ft trailer at
our place and gave us 48hrs to load it. They gave us an approximate date
on which it would be delivered to our new place in Michigan, and then we
had 48hrs to unload it. I think perhaps approx. $3000.
We did have to get an OK from the municipality in NY to leave the
trailer on the street that long, since it wouldn't fit in our driveway.
The only problem I recall was when the moving company in Michigan called
long before the 48hrs was up and said they wanted the trailer back
already. We told them, "No way!" and that was that.
Perce
Pete C.
My one and only long distance move was about 6 years ago from CT to TX,
about 1,700 miles.
I did a U pack move, which made the most sense as my move included my
shop, forklift and truck and much of my stuff was palletized. Regular
residential movers aren't quite prepared to forklift 2,000# mills or
1,000# lathes, or to load 7,000# pickups and 6,000# forklifts into the
back of a 53' semi, but fortunately I am :) After loading and sending
the semi on it's way I had a day to wrap up and then fly down to be
ready to unload when the semi arrived.
The move cost about $6,000 which seems pretty reasonable since I had
100% use of the semi and driver for a full week, two days loading, three
days transit and two days unloading, and semis don't exactly get 50 MPG.
I did have an extra $100 cost on each end for a tile bed wrecker which I
used to load and unload the pickup and forklift, and a couple hundred
for a 24' box truck with lift gate which I used on the loading end to
get my palletized stuff from several locations to the semi where I
backed the trucks together and palette jacked the stuff across.
All told it was a remarkably smooth move for the odd lot of stuff, and
yes, the move did also include the usual dishes, china cabinet, bed,
etc.
Tony
If I were to move far again I would go to "Old Dominion" trucking and
buy a used trailer for $1000. They have them most of the time and they
are road worthy, and they do any repairs needed before selling them.
get a tow truck to park it at the house, (the tow truck can drop it and
pick it up again at different angles to get it where a tractor can't.
Load it up and leave a center isle for things you will unload first.
Have a private trucker take it to the new house, and get a tow truck
again if needed to park it. When all done sell or give away the
trailer, or cut off the axles and every thing underneath, set it down on
blocks, and you will have one hell of a big shed. I mention "Old
Dominion" trucking because they seem to be everywhere I've ever been.
Other trucking companies get rid of there old trailers in a similar
fashion. The best part is you can take as long as needed to unload.
I'm in a very rural area and parking a tractor trailer here is no
problem. I'd think that if they can leave PODS all over the place, the
trailer wouldn't be much more of a problem?
Bob F
A friend of mine some years ago (before "Pods") moved by calling a trucking
company which dropped off a large wooden crate at her house. She packed
everything into the crate, including a piano, and nailed it shut. They picked it
up and delivered it across the country, setting it into her new front yard. She
said it was way cheaper than a mover at the time.
IIRC, the crate was maybe 8x8x16 feet.
krw
I've heard those horror stories too, but have never experienced
anything like it. My moves have gone rather smoothly, in fact. I've
had a few small things damaged but not enough to even bother with a
claim. My last move I had to drop the major company I'd chosen
because my new employer didn't want to pay up-front (no leverage).
They then suggested a local company that they've done business with
before. They were paying the bill, so I agreed. Worked out
flawlessly, in fact better than.
The key, IMO, is to READ THE PAPERWORK and investigate the moving
companies AT BOTH ENDS. You can also ask up-front for a guaranteed
not-to-exceed price and them make sure you got it. I found that the
major companies were more than happy to give this, but again READ THE
PAPERWORK *before* signing anything.
You can do google searches for the moving company at each end. Really
pissed people tend to spread the word. However, these people are not
always right, so read the specific accusations.
Did I mention, READ THE PAPERWORK?
Good luck to the mover.
krw
My last move, less than two years ago, was about $9K from Ohio to
Alabama, (~650mi). Nine months before that, I moved from VT to Ohio
(about 600mi) and the cost was about $6K. $10K from CA to MI isn't
necessarily bad, but if I read it correctly this is only one POD. That
may be high.
DGDevin
"Ed Stasiak" <esta...@att.net> wrote in message
news:20445884-277a-4c53...@f8g2000yqn.googlegroups.com...
> On the other hand, I remember reading that when using
> a conventional moving company (United Van Lines, etc.)
> one needs to be very careful and have a rock solid contract
> that spells out everything in detail, as the moving company
> will nickel and dime you death with hidden costs once they
> have possession of your stuff.
Yup, since deregulation the moving industry is a real swamp. The moving
company you think you're dealing with might turn over the job to
sub-contractors you wouldn't normally let on your property much less turn
over your possessions to. One trick they use is to announce that conditions
at the delivery end are not as represented, i.e. there are obstructions or
steep stairs or whatever they need to say, so they demand an extra fee and
if you don't pay they don't unload and inform you there will be storage fees
as well.
I'd make sure all the work was done by a local company with no gypsy
truckers involved since it's hard to sue someone who moves from state to
state on a regular basis to stay ahead of the law. I'd also consider moving
the most personally valuable items myself and let the moving company just
handle furniture and clothes etc.--no precious family heirlooms or hard to
replace items.
I'd probably have my lawyer look over the moving contract and make sure the
moving company knew that--could be money well-spent. I knew a guy who
employed an interesting tactic in a moving situation, when they were loading
up he had an off-duty cop he knew show up to provide "security" with his gun
and badge visible on his belt--in reality his job was to inform the movers
the customer knew somebody who could find them and make their lives
miserable. I suppose if your friend knows any outlaw bikers they might do
as well.
http://www.articleinsider.com/home-and-garden/moving/discount-moving-companies
mm
wrote:
My mother tried sold quite a bit, including our unabridged dictionary
that was almost a foot thick. I was 10 and I missed that thing until
I was 35 or 40 and bought one at a yard sale, for a dollar. (I didn't
really use it but I like having it.)
We had parties and there was a lot of liquor too, and in order to
avoid paying the moving cost, my mother decided to drink as much of it
as she could. After a while, she decided it wasn't a good idea for a
recent widow to be drinking as much as she could. So she moved it,
and some of it probably got moved 2 more times and then a few blocks
to my house. She stopped drinking before she became an alky.
>U-haul. Personally, I'd never move chipboard furniture, or any
>mattresses over five years old, or anything that would be cheaper to
>replace than move. I'd donate it to whatever local charity keeps the
>warehouse of stuff for fire victims and abused women needing to set up
>households, and take the deduction. But then again, I'm a bit of a pack
>rat, and moving would be a good excuse to clear out the excess.
It's a good excuse but are you sure you would do it? :)
>Of course, if the move is for a new job, and they are picking up the
>tab, all bets are off. But even with that, I'd still move the valuable
>or non-replaceable stuff myself. Heard too many tales over the years of
>people realizing something was missing or broken, a month later.
In my only pro-move, an original oil was lost, not by anyone famous
but by an art college girl who had my apartment before I moved in.
Picture of a girl vaguely semi-nude. I liked it. :) I called the
moving company. I went back to NYC and asked the new tenants. I
finally found it about 5 years later, at my new house in my own
suitcase. I thought it was too big to fit and even after finding it,
I didn't remember putting it in there.
Caesar Romano
wrote Re Re: Cross Country Moving?:
>But he was a mentch.
What is a "mentch"? It's not in my dictionary.
--
Work is the curse of the drinking class.
Douglas Johnson
>On Sat, 20 Feb 2010 05:25:24 -0500, mm <NOPSAM...@bigfoot.com>
>wrote Re Re: Cross Country Moving?:
>
>>But he was a mentch.
>
>What is a "mentch"? It's not in my dictionary.
You need to get a Yiddish dictionary:
http://www.yiddishdictionaryonline.com/
Mentch translates literally to mean "man". But a good idiom for it might be
"standup guy". Yiddish is fading fast. I'm going to miss it.
-- Doug
AZ Nomad
>On Sat, 20 Feb 2010 05:25:24 -0500, mm <NOPSAM...@bigfoot.com>
>wrote Re Re: Cross Country Moving?:
>>But he was a mentch.
>What is a "mentch"? It's not in my dictionary.
jfgi
aemeijers
I've always seen it spelled 'mensch', fwiw. Mebbe that is what he was
ragging on.
--
aem sends...
Caesar Romano
<po...@classtech.com> wrote Re Re: Cross Country Moving?:
Thanks for the info.
mm
wrote:
>On Sat, 20 Feb 2010 05:25:24 -0500, mm <NOPSAM...@bigfoot.com>
>wrote Re Re: Cross Country Moving?:
>
>>But he was a mentch.
>
>What is a "mentch"? It's not in my dictionary.
Someone who lives up to his responsibilities. Male or female.
Aem may well be right that it's usually spelled mensch, but there is a
t-sound in the word and a t-letter in the Yiddish spelling.
Phisherman
I moved from California to Tennessee in 1989. The cost was about
$12,000. I also moved a car with my stuff. That included 30-day
storage. I was happy--I wrote the cost off my taxes because it was a
job move, and the housing costs are now a fraction of what they were
in CA. My auto insurance had a 70% reduction in cost. The
windshield cracked during the move but it was replaced by the moving
company's insurance.
Stormin Mormon
I thought, to find a new place. In the meantime,
the cost of the storage unit was more than the
value of the contents.
If you can't find a cheaper move, maybe give
everything away and buy new when you get there. Or
have a yard sale, and let it all go, cheap.
My guess is that a Ryder or other rental truck,
and do your own driving makes sense. Keep within
sight of spouse or family member, who's driving
the car. Keep in contact via CB or FRS two way
radio, and do your own driving.
--
Christopher A. Young
Learn more about Jesus
www.lds.org
.
"Ed Stasiak" <esta...@att.net> wrote in message
news:20445884-277a-4c53...@f8g2000yqn.googlegroups.com...
krw
wrote:
>On Sat, 20 Feb 2010 05:25:24 -0500, mm <NOPSAM...@bigfoot.com>
>wrote Re Re: Cross Country Moving?:
>
>>But he was a mentch.
>
>What is a "mentch"? It's not in my dictionary.
Did you do a web search? From:
http://www.allwords.com/word-mentch.html
mentch
noun
1. (literally) A human or person.
2. A person with integrity and concern for others.
3. A gentleman.
Etymology: Yiddish (mentsh), an honorable person, from German Mensch
(person).
Bob F
> One time I rented a storage unit. Took longer than
> I thought, to find a new place. In the meantime,
> the cost of the storage unit was more than the
> value of the contents.
I think storage unit places live off of people like this.
aemeijers
auctioning off the contents of abandoned storage units, when people
realize their old crap isn't worth paying the ransom on. Most really
don't let bidders inspect before they bid, other than maybe a peek in
the door, so they go cheap. If I had a pole barn and a pickup truck, I'd
be tempted to bid once in a while, but I think most of it is garage sale
quality at best. Chipboard furniture, half-dead stereos, old clothes,
that sort of thing. One of the storage places near here actually lets
people set up storefronts in the units, and I think most of their stock
comes from abandoned units they bought up. Between them and the
bottom-feeder used furniture stores, an outsider is likely to get outbid
just to make them go away.
(I miss living in apartments, and getting all the post-divorce dumpster
diving goodies, either from couples that lived there splitting up, or
people moving into a 1-bedroom with half a house full of stuff, and
realizing it won't fit.)
--
aem sends...
Oren
<esta...@att.net> wrote:
>> mm
>> > Ed Stasiak
>> >
>> >They want over $10,000 to move his stuff!
>>
>> What does a regular moving company like United
>> or Mayflower want?
>
>I dunno and he doesn't either yet. I got an email from
>him last night about the cost of PODS and figured I'd
>try to get him some advice.
>
He could buy an ocean cargo shipping container in CA for cheap,
instead of renting PODS. Makes for a nice shop/storage at the new
place. Various sizes from 10' (rare) to 40'. Transport by truck or
train.
>> How many rooms in your house? Are they and the
>> closets stuffed or are you into fin shway.
>
>He's got a pretty big place but this move is precipitated
>by a recent divorce, so I'm not sure how much stuff he
>has left to move?
>
"Craters & Freighters specializes in packaging, crating, and shipping
items that are too heavy, oversized, and fragile for standard shipping
companies." * Have you friend check this site.
>> > one needs to be very careful and have a rock solid contract
>> > that spells out everything in detail, as the moving company
>> > will nickel and dime you death with hidden costs once they
>> > have possession of your stuff.
>>
>> this sounds like the kind of advice given by someone who
>> writes a weekly advice column and has to come up with
>> something to say.
>
>I've personally never had to use a moving company but
>from what I remember reading years back, (probably on
>the misc.consumers newsgroup) moving co's will scam
>their customers with additional costs once your stuff is
>loaded on their truck and you have no choice but to pay,
>as either they'll hold you stuff "hostage" or dump it right
>back on the driveway if you don't.
I've had three moves, using national companies. FL-NY 1989. NY-PA
1990. PA-NV 1995. Prices were between $10,000 and $19,000. (?)
National companies charge for the boxes an packing materials. One
company thought the could pack-up our kitchen in a day or so. It took
them closer to 4 days :-)
A local move across town five years ago cost me about $600.
With a national company I always take out "insurance"! Lost or broken
items were covered, so I was reimbursed.
*
David Nebenzahl
> How many rooms in your house? Are they and the closets stuffed or are
> you into fin shway. (sp?)
The Asian aesthetic practice you provided a somewhat comical attempt at
transliteration for is feng shui, pronounced "feng shway".
--
You were wrong, and I'm man enough to admit it.
- a Usenet "apology"
Tony
After seeing all these prices I feel much better, I thought I wasted
thousands for my move 5 years ago. From PA to TN. The household stuff
wasn't bad but I have a lot of other "stuff" I moved myself, like a 2
ton antique safe.
HeyBub
> This isn't really a home repair question (I did post the
> same question to misc.consumers and misc.legal.
> moderated) but I thought someone here might be
> able to pass on some info.
>
> My friend is planning on moving from California back to
> Michigan in the next year or so and called PODS to find
> out the cost.
>
> http://www.pods.com
>
> They want over $10,000 to move his stuff!
>
> WTF?! I would think using PODS would be far more cheaper
> then using a conventional moving company, as they're only
> loading/unloading the pods and not physically handling
> every single item the customer owns.
>
> On the other hand, I remember reading that when using
> a conventional moving company (United Van Lines, etc.)
> one needs to be very careful and have a rock solid contract
> that spells out everything in detail, as the moving company
> will nickel and dime you death with hidden costs once they
> have possession of your stuff.
>
> Any advice and/or links to consumer help web sites related
> to a cross country move that I can pass on to my friend?
I'm stunned. The Pod People are moving thousands of empty pods to Michigan
anyway, looks like they'd cut some slack.
On the other hand, they have to move thousands of empty pods to California
also...