WHAT TYPE OF MOVE DO YOU NEED: CHOOSE THE RIGHT ONE AND SAVE MONEY ON YOUR MOVE

Don't pay for your move more than it costs. It is a matter of fact that you can reduce your moving expenses if you find the right way to move.

But how do I find a cheap way to hire professional movers?

First of all, you need to understand, that not every website that offers moving services is a professional moving company representation page. There are a lot of broker's websites where you may submit your moving request for a quote. Then the broker, a website owner, will sell your information to 4-5 moving companies, who will send you non-binding quotes without any obligations. Most of the high ranking moving websites you'll find searching online, are doing this kind of business and selling moving leads. Queen City Moving is not like the rest!
You can submit a moving form with us here, but we cannot promise an exact binding quote if you do not provide us full inventory list. Queen City Moving has an hourly rate for services with a box truck : $95/Hour and without it.    In some cases, we can figure your total payment with an exact sum, but this amount will always higher than our estimation calculation of your total charges for your unique move.

Why choose Queen City Moving?

Other websites may be merely sources of moving brokers. The best way to find out if a company is a moving broker or a mover -  is to contact them via phone. Also, every professional moving company must have its name and MC and DOT license numbers painted on both sides of each truck. If a company fail to do so, companies may be issued a hefty fine. The MC number is not only the license number, but it is the proof of insurance too. MC number doesn't mean that a company has operation authority for the transportation of household goods, and that's why you need to check this number on the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Agency website . You can Google this number or search at the FMCSA website , to check if this company is authorized to be a household goods carrier or has authorization as a general freight carrier only. If a company has an MC number authorized as a HOUSEHOLD GOODS carrier, this company is a professional moving company as well as a Federal Motor Carrier. Federal Motor Carrier Safety Agency checks companies moving insurance expiration with the insurance agency.

SECONDARY, Let's place all moving services into three basic types:

THE FIRST TYPE is a full-service moving company with its own truck, permanent employees, office rental expenses, and hourly rate. This company will complete your move, using its own truck, supplies, and insurance coverage.
Going with a full-service company is the most expensive way to move. In Charlotte, North Carolina, full-service moving rates start at $100 per hour for two men on the truck. Usually moving companies also add supply fees, gas, and other extra fees. Our company's rate for this service is $95 per hour (plus a onetime $150 TRUCK&FUEL&SUPPLIES fee) without any additional charges.

THE SECOND TYPE is a full-service moving company with a flat rate.

Sometimes, especially in small moves, flat rate moving services will minimize your moving expenses. Usually, it happens because of subcontractors and truck owner-operators with their own trucks, tools, and crew members working on a side of the professional moving company. Flat rate moves will be a more efficient way if your apartment is small and easy to move, located on the first floor, and so on. If your move is more difficult, then a bigger flat rate will apply because a moving company must be reimbursed with expenses for labor and supplies. That's why a small move flat rate will be more profitable for you than other types of flat-rate full moving services.
There are a few top websites where you can start a flat rate full moving service action for your move, like www.uship.com or www.thumbtack.com . These websites provide free-of-charge services for a person who wants to find movers for a flat rate, but these websites will charge movers for making bids or before they receive payment from you, which will increase your rate.

THE THIRD TYPE is a self moving service.

Self-moving service means, that you have to rent a truck or container, and then hire a company, that provides moving labor to load, unload, and drive the truck. Sometimes this is the most efficient way to move, especially if you have a big house or many bedrooms in your apartment. In Charlotte, NC self-moving service companies' prices usually start from $90 per hour for two guys. A truck rental combination costs usually start at $120-$200 per day and extra fees depend on truck size, mileage fees, and the local area.
This type of move is usually reasonable for big moves or long-distance moves. If you have to move a studio or one-bedroom apartment, flat rate full-service movers will cost you around $500-$800 total, that will include truck, supplies, gas, etc. At the same time, only a truck rental will cost you around $100-$150, but you will also need to pay mileage fees, buy gas, buy supplies, rent professional moving tools and blankets, pick the rental truck up, and bring it back to the rental facility on time to avoid a late return fine. You will also need to pay for moving labor service to the self-moving service company, where rates start at $90 per hour and sometimes more than that. Most of these companies charge a travel fee of around $25-$50.

A company that provides moving labor for self-moving services can't provide insurance coverage for your belongings during transportation inside the rental truck, unless they buy this insurance, especially for your move, which will increase your total charges. Government-authorized moving companies can carry insurance during transportation only inside their own authorized by FMCSA truck, with company name and license numbers painted on both sides of the truck .

Sometimes moving companies offer self-moving service as well, as part of the full moving service. In this situation, it's reasonable to ask them what type of move will be more efficient for your moving needs.

If a moving company offers self moving service only, it's best to check the internet about this company, read reviews, and check them on Better Business Bureau website . Top websites where customers can hire a self moving service companies are www.movinghelp.com , www.hireahelper.com , www.moverscorp.com . Even if you find a self-moving service company on top high-ranking websites, you need to research the internet about this company. The government does not closely regulate the self-moving service market. General liability insurance policies and local licenses are only two requisitions to sign into this market. Don't kick it out, if you will find bad reviews about all moving companies, you have checked. Every moving company has some portion of bad reviews. During your research, ask yourself how many times you wrote a good review after using any kind of service, which was completed quickly and in a professional manner and how many times you wrote a negative review if a service had disappointed you. Sometimes there is a situation with inappropriately aggressive consumers. It's a good idea to check out how a company responds to negative reviews and shows efforts to improve an unfortunate situation.

The main thing in choosing a moving service is to understand a reasonable timeframe in which a moving company will spend to serve your moving needs. If you hired a moving labor-only company or craigslist guys, they probably will work faster than a traditional full-service moving company. A full-service moving company, on the other hand, will take more care with your furniture items because these guys carry financial liability for any damages during the whole moving process, including transportation that occurs inside their truck. To prevent damages, a mover needs to cover each furniture item with a blanket and wrap it over with a furniture shrink wrap. It takes more time than loading unwrapped items into a rental truck.

When our company uses our own truck, we provide insurance coverage during the whole move, including transportation, loading, and unloading processes. On average, a one-bedroom move, takes around 3 hours, although this depends on the floor where the apartment is located at. For example, it may take 6-7 hours to move a larger apartment with more fragile furniture that is located on the third floor. It's really hard to estimate how long time will take to move a two or three bedrooms apartment or a house, but it takes an average of 4-8 hours. Sometimes Queen City Moving completed an entire move in 2.5-3 hours when both locations were on the ground floor with many items to wrap.

The main thing that is necessary to understand is that a consistent company will care about their BBB accreditation, take care of your personal items, and try to be quick at the job. Craigslist guys will work faster, but they will never care about possible damages. It's also very important to understand that full-service movers need time to steady items inside of a truck to prevent freight shifting during transportation. However, if self-moving service seems cheaper and faster than traditional full moving service, furniture damages may occur, making the save pointless.

To plan your move and understand type the of move you need, ask yourself how long it will take you to move your apartment or a house yourself. Think about yourself wrapping each furniture item, loading it into the truck, and then carefully situating it inside the truck for safe transportation. Then think of how much time it would take to unload it at the destination location. No doubt, professional movers will do it a little bit faster, but you need to understand the reasonable time frame for your move. Calculate your moving costs if you're using a full moving service or hiring moving labor-only along with a truck rental on your own. If a moving company provides full moving service as well as self-moving service, it's reasonable to call them and ask what type of moving service will be more efficient in your specific situation.

Author: Mikhail Zavorokhin .
Authors web-site .