As moving season dawns, those looking to save money on the process have a truckload of options before them.
Preparation, research and timing are all factors in determining whether a move empties your pocketbook or merely lightens it.
A small move might be done for less than $200, with companies such as U-Haul offering half-day rentals of trucks with a 10-foot-long cargo bed for $170, complete with dolly and furniture pads. That can suffice for a sparsely furnished one-bedroom apartment or a storage unit hosting a handful of household items.
“If it's just boxes, if it's light furniture — those are definitely doable on your own,” said Tiam Behdarvandan, who runs Let’s Get Moving.
But those looking to limit the stress and physical effort of leaving a sizable home may want to opt for professional movers, with time and expertise as key considerations.
“We will do something in six hours that a regular client would do over 12 hours or over two days,” said Aaron Parker, who owns Toronto-based Parker’s Moving.
“People have lives to live; they don't want to physically be lifting.”
He said well-reputed movers protect items more effectively than clients would themselves, partly because of the equipment available, such as moving blankets, mattress bags and plastic wrap for leather or fabric furniture.
However, customers may want to transport some of the most fragile objects on their own, such as lamps, pictures and mirrors, according to New York-based Oz Moving & Storage general manager Nancy Zafrani.
“You can lay that painting in the back of your car and drive it from your old home to your new home,” she said.
Preparation and organization are crucial to save on moving time, and thus cost. Customers should purge as much clutter as possible pre-move — kitchens, closets, basements and attics are all sensible starting points — so you're "not moving things that’s basically future trash," said Zafrani. Selling goods online — via Facebook Marketplace or Kijiji, for example — offers a way to recoup some costs.
Efficient use of space is also essential, by packing awkwardly shaped objects together, like plants in a crate, for example, or using cardboard boxes for their "stackability."
“Those are very easy for the movers to be able to use the dollies and move everything very quickly. So I would say just be super prepared," said Behdarvandan, whose company employs 120 workers that staff a 90-truck fleet spanning most provinces.
"It's usually the little miscellaneous items that take a long time."
Anything from spices to jewelry can also find temporary lodging in otherwise unused space such as Tupperware containers.
Most movers offer additional services for a fee, including packing and unpacking, furniture disassembly and reassembly, and temporary storage. Packing services are typically done before the moving date, and may involve outsourcing to another company, adding to the cost.
“Taking apart beds is one of the best ways to save hourly,” Parker said.
Parker’s Moving charges $70 an hour per mover — so about $210 per hour for a two-bedroom apartment and $420 per hour for a four-bedroom house — plus $295 for the truck, which includes gas and $50,000 worth of insurance. Let’s Get Moving typically charges $139 to $149 per hour — weekends top the range — including the two or three movers involved as well as the truck.
A well-timed move can mean a cheaper one. Some movers, like Behdarvandan, charge a little more on weekends and substantially more on the first and last day of the month, when leases often start and end. Others charge more from April through September.
“I would recommend weekdays, middle of the month, that's when you can kind of get the best pricing,” Behdarvandan said.
Customers should beware potential scams, especially where suspiciously low quotes or excessive deposits pop up. Some movers advise against paying more than one-third up front — or, for long-distance moves, paying more than two-thirds until the truck is loaded.
“I’ve been in this business for 13 years, and I've heard of all kinds of scams,” Behdarvandan said.
In one case exposed last year by a CBC Marketplace investigation, a handful of moving companies would offer low quotes and then jack up the price several times over, sometimes by inflating the weight of goods shipped.
Behdarvandan said his company helped some of the cheated customers move free of charge.
To find a trustworthy company, he and Parker recommended word of mouth or outfits with longstanding reputations. Review sites such as Yelp and Trustpilot are another option, although Behdarvandan cautioned that false reviews abound.
It's also important to read the moving contract, which could reveal whether the company is a mover or actually a broker, which Zafrani suggests avoiding.
“They should make sure that the contract states that the property is actually being delivered into their home and not curbside” — or a further location, she said.
And on long-distance moves, she said, “Pay attention to the delivery window — is the moving company offering to deliver within 10 business days or within 90 days?
“The most important thing is to be an educated consumer."
This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 13, 2023.
Christopher Reynolds, The Canadian Press
