GET LOCAL & LONG DISTANCE MOVING QUOTES

Residential moving is generally any items moved from a residential home, apartment, condominium or any other place that a person might reside in. It could include the content of a full house with basement or perhaps just the content of one’s garage or basement. These items may be from a where you currently live or may be moved from a storage locker, another address or even moms attic.

Any belongings that you might have in your place of residence (or storage) would be considered a “Residential Move”. These types of moves or relocations require a moving company or moving service. Typically, Local moves are within the same city or within 100km of where you live now (about an hour’s drive). These types of moves are generally priced on an hourly basis. Some charge travel time, some build in the travel time and some use a combination or fuel charge etc.

If you’re moving across Canada, moving to another province or to another part of a province, this is considered a long distance move. These types of moves are generally priced per lb. (Kg). The items you are moving are weighed on the truck, and you are provided with the scale weight of the items. Whenever possible, get an “in house” estimate. They are free, and a written quotation is limited to be accurate within 10%. When comparing long distance moving estimates, they will generally be quoted per lb. and possibly of a fuel surcharge (this covers the variable price of gas) could be included.

International moves consist of two different categories. International North America, mainly to the USA or Mexico or “overseas moves”. International moving is any move that goes from one country to another across an International border.

Any move that can go on a truck and be driven to its destination easily and economically is considered an International North American Move.

International moves that are not able to be driven by truck and must be shipped by a boat are considered “Overseas Moves”. This includes destinations to some USA states (Protectorates) such as Hawaii, Alaska and Puerto Rico.

Moving to the USA (continental) is similar to any long distance move. Prices are generally per Lb. or by cube. There are of course immigration requirements as well as customs and brokerage requirements when necessary. Some items may not be legal to import into the USA and animals, pets and plants also need to have special attention, as there may be special requirements in order to import them into the USA. Your International Mover will be able to assist you with items you can and can’t move, but you will need to contact the proper authorities with regards to immigration.

Overseas moves and moves to the non-contiguous USA or Mexico must go by boat. This requires your belongings to be shipped by container. Overseas Movers will pick up your items in a regular moving truck and then transport them to the exit port where they will move your items into a shipping container appropriate for the size of the move. The same thing happens on the other end of the move at the entry port, unless arrangements are made otherwise.

Again there are certain items that cannot be moved in containers or to other countries without consulting with the proper authorities. You will need to check with the moving company and customs.

Specialty moves are just like how they sound. They don’t quite fit in to a “Residential Move” category.

Specialty moves are usually antiques, special pieces of furniture, billiard tables, work out equipment or artwork etc…

They may be heavier items like a hot tub, piano or special equipment. Moveit.ca has a large network around the country that can handle just about any move requirement you have. It may need to be specially wrapped, packaged or palletized. Our movers know just how to handle these specialty items.

There are many types of specialty moves and if you don’t find the right one on our list just enter it in the comments section and we will get you some great prices. The appropriate company for the move will respond to you with an estimate and details of how it will be moved.

Please provide as many details as you can, such as the type of piano. Is it an apartment size piano or a grand piano? Are there stairs involved? Is the item heavy and coming out of a basement? Does it need special packaging or need to go on a pallet? Let us know as many details as possible so that we can provide you with an accurate estimate.

If you are relocating to another province or it’s just too far to drive your car and you don’t want the wear and tear, you need an auto mover. Sometimes called auto haulers, vehicle transport car carriers, they all mean the same thing. Your car is moved on a car transport truck or by rail. If it is being moved overseas it will be shipped in a container and put on a boat.

Most car haulers offer two types of quotes. Either “Door to Door” or “Terminal to Terminal” Door to Door means that a driver from the car shipping company will come to your residence, pick up the car for you and drive it to the terminal, where it will be loaded on either a truck or a rail car.

A way to save money is for you to drop off the vehicle at the terminal.

If you need to have your car shipped to its destination as fast as possible, consider only having it shipped by a car transport truck. These tend to have faster delivery times and make fewer stops. They might be a bit more money but are well worth it. Not only will your vehicle ship faster, there is better tracking of the car. Sometimes the dispatch will give you the cell phone number of the truck driver, and you can find out exactly where your car is.

If you are on a budget and time is not a big concern, rail is generally the cheapest way to ship a car. The rail cars stop numerous times across the country, and the tracking isn’t as good.

Of course if you have a very expensive car like a Ferrari or an antique show car, you will want these types of cars shipped on a “Covered Carrier”. Covered Carries are specialty car transport trucks designed to handle high value low clearance type vehicles.

Office moves or “commercial” moves are considered a relocation of an office and its equipment form one location to another. These types of moves are generally for a business or company. They are similar to residential moves but may require specialized handling, tracking and secure movement of files and other sensitive material. Some Residential Movers also specialize in office or commercial moves and have specialized trucks and inventory systems to track the movement of sensitive items. Office moves usually involve the relocation of important files and computers and sometimes dedicated servers and safes. Always uses an experienced office mover that is familiar with handling these types of moves.

Moveit.ca has specialty trained office movers that are able to move office furniture and equipment from one floor to the next, or across the country. Whether it’s a small office moving locally or a large corporate relocation across Canada, Moveit.ca will find you the best prices from highly qualified Office movers.

Self-moves are growing in popularity and are great for smaller moves. They are also great for people that are willing to move and pack their own stuff into a container or truck. Typically a self-move involves a moving company that will either drop off a container or trailer at your residence. You are then responsible for packing up your own items and loading them into the container or trailer. Once you have loaded the container or truck, the company will drive your items to their new destination, where you unload your belongings.

These systems do have some draw backs. The main one is that they do not insure your items. If you pack something incorrectly and it breaks, it’s your responsibility. They also have their limits of availability, especially going long distance or to remote areas. You will also have to get your own boxes (typically a professional moving company will “loan” you their boxes and you give them back once you’ve moved).

You will need to provide your own padding and wrap if needed, as well as labour at both the origination and destination. For local moves, if you are willing, self-moves make a lot of sense. If you’re moving across the country, compare the advantages of an insured, professional mover. You may find it is a better value having your personal belongings insured, properly wrapped and of course saving your back by hiring a professional Moving company.