Moving and Storage Question

[CateP]

We are making plans for the BIG MOVE. I have not moved in 13 years and noticed there are a lot of those "pod" type companies that drop off a portable moving container(s) at your house and you pack it up. When you are done packing, they move the container(s) to your new location. We are going to have to store these moving containers until we buy our new house. We would also like the company to supply moving supplies such as moving blankets, boxes etc.

My questions are:

Has anyone done this before and have any advice, hints, recommendations?
Can we store these containers at any storage place or do we have use the company locations?
Does anyone know of a company in NH that may have services in NJ?
Any recommendations for local storage companies that may let us store these containers?


Thanks in advance for your replies.

[jkjoshuatree]

We rented one from PODS when we did our wood floors over. The thing I did NOT like about renting one was that we had to keep it for X amount of days, even if we didn't need it for that long.

It was just an big, ugly, empty container in our driveway for two weeks longer than necessary.

Here's their website for Southern New Hampshire.

http://www.pods.com/southern-new-hampshire.aspx

[thebix]

We moved from Richmond VA to Laconia using PODS in 2009.
The timing was about as your plan, we visited this area in March 2009 (stayed at the Fireside Inn), bought a ranch house in South Down, and are very pleased.
We packed one PODS in February to de-clutter in preparation for the sale and put it in storage in the Richmond franchise facility.
Packed 2 more full size and one smaller one in May. They were all shipped together to the Nashua franchise facility, then trucked one at a time to Laconia until all were in the driveway.
We hired a packing company to load them in Richmond and unload here. (one day each end, saves a lot of heavy lifting and they know how to load. And then the PODS are not blocking your driveway too long.) They were one of several referenced by PODS: Pack and Load Service http://packandloadservices.com/.
They supplied the moving pads.
But we bought the shipping boxes online (http://www.usedcardboardboxes.com), and also found Home Depot with comparable prices for moving boxes and supplies.

We selected PODS as they were one of the few such companies that serviced the Laconia area and also our origin, Richmond. There were some companies that would only cover southern NH, or did NH but not RIchmond. Depends on the franchisees.
The PODS never leave the PODS system, but I would expect that you could arrange for storage in the Nashua facility rather than leaving them in NJ.

[TheProfessor]

* Has anyone done this before and have any advice, hints, recommendations?
* Can we store these containers at any storage place or do we have use the company locations?
* Does anyone know of a company in NH that may have services in NJ?
* Any recommendations for local storage companies that may let us store these containers?

Moving household items can be an excruciating experience.

Pods come in different sizes. Pods can be delivered, picked up, and re-delivered to destination.

But finding a location to leave a Pod for awhile may not be possible or cost effective. Most people will utilize one of the many storage places seen in most cities and towns. This does require packing and unpacking and storage rental fees.

There is no one best way to move household goods and furniture.

Check prices of renting a UHaul type van with mileage and insurance. Then check the prices of the Pods. Then check the price of a regular mover. Regular movers usually go by weight and not volume.

Many moving companies are reputable. But some moving companies are quite unscrupulous. Stop in to any reputable moving company and do read the federally mandated phamplets and brochures and obtain a blank copy of any contracts and read the contracts. And do check on insurance for both loss and damage.

Whether it is Pods or a moving company - all are known for not showing up on time both at pickup and drop off. If a moving company do ask how many times your household goods and furniture are transferred from truck to warehouse to truck to delivery. And do ask how many actualy companies or driving companies are involved. Depending on the amount of items - one truck could drive from NJ to NH in one direct trip. But do ask.

It sounds like you plan on storing items for a time. Using the Pod system may not be the most cost effective way. Whether you pay rent to leave a Pod someplace or rent from one on the storage rental places - the price/cost will be there.

On a personal note, I let my new neighbors store 3 Pods on my property for a couple of months. I did not charge them. So they had to pay the Pods company for all of that time. But no extra fee for leaving the Pods on my property.

There is no one good answer.

[TheProfessor]

Now let me state the other side of what can happen.

A friend sold home in Lakes Region. New home in Naples, Florida was not yet built. So household goods and furniture were stored at one of those storage facilities in Concord, NH. And for a few/many months.

I did advise my friend to be very careful in choosing a moving company. He advised me that he needs no such advise as he is a sharp business executive.

He found a 'fixed' price to move all of the household goods and furniture from Concord, NH to Naples, FL for $1,785.00. He obtained a written contract for the fixed price.

He did ask me on moving day to travel to Concord, NH to make sure all went well. The moving truck arrived 2 hours late. The moving truck came up from NYC. The moving "guys" while loading truck called their boss in NYC and stated that in no way could they load all of this "stuff" for the price agreed to. Cell phone calls went everywhere that day and the price agreed to by all parties jumped up to $2,475.00. But it went up in increments with each cell phone call. I was not involved in any of the 're-negotiations' or cell phone calls.

Two weeks. That is what he was told for delivery to Naples, Florida. Two weeks came and went. Then the third week. Then a guarantee of Monday the following week. On Tuesday mid moring a tractor trailer shows up. And the driver states that he needs $2,500 in order for he and his partner to unload and deliver the household goods and furniture. No credit cards accepted. No checks accepted. Must be cash. If they didn't pay the cash the furniture would go back to the warehouse and they would be charged for unloading goods and a daily rate for storage.

So, in order to finally get their stuff. My friend had to go to bank and get cash to pay the movers.

So the 'bargain' price he obtained searching online for an inexpensive furniture move of $1,785 turned into almost $5,000.00.

There is a moral to this story some place.

[Irish mist]

Now let me state the other side of what can happen.

A friend sold home in Lakes Region. New home in Naples, Florida was not yet built. So household goods and furniture were stored at one of those storage facilities in Concord, NH. And for a few/many months.

I did advise my friend to be very careful in choosing a moving company. He advised me that he needs no such advise as he is a sharp business executive.

He found a 'fixed' price to move all of the household goods and furniture from Concord, NH to Naples, FL for $1,785.00. He obtained a written contract for the fixed price.

He did ask me on moving day to travel to Concord, NH to make sure all went well. The moving truck arrived 2 hours late. The moving truck came up from NYC. The moving "guys" while loading truck called their boss in NYC and stated that in no way could they load all of this "stuff" for the price agreed to. Cell phone calls went everywhere that day and the price agreed to by all parties jumped up to $2,475.00. But it went up in increments with each cell phone call. I was not involved in any of the 're-negotiations' or cell phone calls.

Two weeks. That is what he was told for delivery to Naples, Florida. Two weeks came and went. Then the third week. Then a guarantee of Monday the following week. On Tuesday mid moring a tractor trailer shows up. And the driver states that he needs $2,500 in order for he and his partner to unload and deliver the household goods and furniture. No credit cards accepted. No checks accepted. Must be cash. If they didn't pay the cash the furniture would go back to the warehouse and they would be charged for unloading goods and a daily rate for storage.

So, in order to finally get their stuff. My friend had to go to bank and get cash to pay the movers.

So the 'bargain' price he obtained searching online for an inexpensive furniture move of $1,785 turned into almost $5,000.00.

There is a moral to this story some place.

Yup.....this is common practice in that business. Lot of scum in the moving business.

[Lakepilot]

My in-laws had a similar experience with a Concord based moving company, when moving from Naples to the Lakes Region. Fortunately their over run wasn't 2x, but it was still quite bad.

[robmac]

Diggins & Rose in Hudson,NH. does both Pods and regular moving. Having moved up and down the east coast several times I will tell you using a pro was good however make sure to get insurance.One trip to FL. a $3000.00 dollar move resulted in $5200.00 in damage,if no insurance you get paid pennies by the pound. I did the U-Haul deal coming north and found it very inexpensive and with the help of family and friends a few pizzas and beer pretty easy all in all. I also found renting for U-Haul is cheaper going north on a one way than it is going south. Which ever way you choose plan plan plan,amazing how much stuff we accumulate over the years.

[fatlazyless]

Crowley Moving on Olde Route 3, on the Plymouth-Campton line, very close to Rt 93-Exit 26 is a moving and storage company where you can go there to the big old victorian house and office and chitchat with Bob Crowley and his wife about what's up with making the move with Crowley Moving.

Lug-haul-drive-stack-pack-load-unload-& all that good stuff!

[Paugus Bay Resident]

We did our move from Gilford to So FL last year with PODS. I believe we ended up using 4 of the large ones.

The thing that worked out best was that we had a staggered pickup and delivery so we weren't inundated with stuff to pack / unpack. We packed them in sequence and they were delivered in that order. We'd unpack for a few days, they'd pick up that POD and delivery the next. Worked our well for us.

They can arrange for local help packing and unpacking if needed. We did it ourselves, but next time:laugh:

[Paugus Bay Resident]

Did want to reiterate a couple of things mentioned above.

1 - we did get a rider from our home owner carrier to cover the "goods in transit"

2 - estimate the number of PODS you'll need be prepared to add 1. We figured we'd need 3 and ended up using 4

[LIforrelaxin]

Some thoughts on Moving... I have moved all sorts of different ways... I have done big moves and small moves, from the west coast to the east coast, and from Mass, to Vermont.... and many moves in between... How you go about moving yourself is completely dependent on your budget...

Now the 1st thing as mentioned here, is check with your homeowners insurance, and see if you can get a goods in transit rider... You probably have to pay some additional adders if you are storing you goods for a while... but talk it out with the agent, and make sure you have personal coverage for the move, as there are something movers will not cover, especially if you pack things yourself....

Second, though they cost more, if you decide to use a moving company, make sure you use one of the big name movers.. not some small time outfit.. Mayflower, Allied, etc. All have agents all over the country and do a 1st rate job... They also have huge storage facilities all over the place, and work all of this into their quotes, as long as you know ahead that you will need storage.

Now when it comes to these PODS... I believe if you are moving an apartment or small town house they are fine... When it comes to a large home... And depending on what portion of the work you planning to do yourself nothing beats a major mover.

[CateP]

I am having a bit of bad luck locating a "Pod " company that services the lakes region. Both "PODS" and United Mayflower " said they did not service the lakes region area. The closest we could get with the PODS was Portland, ME.

Hmm. Not sure this portable storage container idea is going to work out.

[hilltopper]

I used PODS to move from Merrimack, NH (just north of Nashua) to Meredith. :confused:

[CateP]

I used PODS to move from Merrimack, NH (just north of Nashua) to Meredith. :confused:

We don't have a house to store a POD yet, so we need off-site storage until we find a house.

[hilltopper]

I believe our stuff ended up in Portland, ME after it left Merrimack, NH. It then cam from Portland to Meredith.

[Paugus Bay Resident]

When we used PODS for our move from Gilford last year, the local depot was in Manchester. Things could have changed since then (July), but I have the bills to prove it :)

[CateP]

Well it looks like the most economical and safe thing to do is what I did 13 years ago when I moved from Maine to NJ. Rent a rental truck, hire a professional moving crew (loading and some packing only), drive up to Gilford, unpack the truck with a local crew, put everything into a storage unit, and then return the truck to a drop off place in Gilford. The cost for a move like this (NJ shore to Lakes Region) is running close to 2k. (Not including monthly storage, truck rental #2 and the re-pack and unload crew.)

Sheesh-moving is expensive.

[CateP]

When we used PODS for our move from Gilford last year, the local depot was in Manchester. Things could have changed since then (July), but I have the bills to prove it :)

Okay, this is the deal with PODS and NH right now. The closest I can get a POD from NJ is to Portland, ME or outside Boston. The franchises in ME and MA are currently not servicing the lakes region and the customer service guy thinks it's because of snow. He said the POD franchises can "turn on and off" the zip codes they service. So a POD franchise in ME or MA is more likely to service the lakes region in good weather. (July)

[braunbayboater]

We used 1-800-PACKRAT for 2 different storage/moves and were extremely satisfied. Unlike other companies the containers are steel and extremely clean and easy to load. We had a couple of months between pack-up and our new move-in and we were fortunate enough to have a relative let us store them in their extra driveway. ( Pack Rat would store them at their facility for a small fee). We had 2 16 foot containers and they held the contents of a 4 bedroom house including some outside furniture. Our contact was David Blamy 503-713-8761 dblamy@1800packrat.com

[songkrai]

Long time in business in NH.

Ray the Mover of Manchester, Inc.
Customer Service
Sales Administration
Toll Free: 1-800-321-7170
Fax: 603-626-0699
Email: raythemover1@comcast.net

[Lakepilot]

Long time in business in NH.

Ray the Mover of Manchester, Inc.
Customer Service
Sales Administration
Toll Free: 1-800-321-7170
Fax: 603-626-0699
Email: raythemover1@comcast.net

This the company I referred to in my post #7. I think you can do better.

[nada]

just looked at the pods website in nashua, and i see wolfeboro on their list maybe you could find a place willing to store it wolfeboro then rent a truck here to move the contents if it is to a place not on thier list,yes a pain,but maybe a cheaper option to look into

[SIKSUKR]

This the company I referred to in my post #7. I think you can do better.
My in-laws had a similar experience with a Concord based moving company, when moving from Naples to the Lakes Region. Fortunately their over run wasn't 2x, but it was still quite bad.

Just so you know,The owner is a friend of mine and they are not based out of Concord but Manchester.