Month: June 2015

Most people agree that summer is the best time to move. The weather is fairly reliable, there are more homes and apartments available to choose from, and there are more daylight hours to work with. For these reasons and more, summer is the busiest time of year to move.

More people moving means more demand for the services of moving companies, trucks, and storage space. What can you do to get good movers in August and September? The following 4 tips can help.

1. Plan Ahead

The worst thing you can do for an August or September move is to wait until the week before your move to start calling around for trucks and help. By that time, all of the trucks will be reserved, and you won’t be able to find help.

Make your plans early. Find a good moving company a month ahead of time. This may require the organization of many different factors on your part such as move in and move out dates, employment or school start dates and other details. You may find it helpful to work on a printed-out calendar to coordinate everything.

The earlier you begin looking for a good moving company, the more options you’ll have. As you search for a good moving company, ask the following questions:

• Are you licensed and credentialed?
• Are you registered with the New York City Department of Transportation?
• Do you have testimonials or a list of references?
• Are you affiliated with any national or worldwide moving business organizations?
• What kinds of services do you offer?
• Do you have your own storage facilities?
• Do you have insurance?
• Do you have staging services?

Starting early gives you the time necessary to ask these questions and find the mover you feel the most comfortable with for your big day.

2. Compare Costs

Moving can be an expensive proposition. Between apartment deposits, utilities hook-up fees, and the cost of movers, it can be difficult to stay within your budget.

Starting early on your search for a moving and storage company can help with keeping your costs down. You’ll have more options when you begin early, and when it gets closer to that busiest time of year, moving companies will be strained and may have to charge more to squeeze you into their schedules.

3. Settle On Services

A good moving company will offer a slew of services, and you’ll need to decide which ones you’ll need. Do you want your movers to handle the entire move from packing to unpacking? Do you just need them to load the truck? Do you need your moving company to supply you with packing materials and storage facilities?

The earlier you begin looking for a mover, the more of these options will be available to you. If you wait, some of these services may be booked up.

4. Communicate Well With Your Movers

Let’s say you followed the above advice to start early, compare costs, and settle on services with a good moving and storage company. You’re good to go. But if your moving plans change a little–maybe your new apartment won’t be ready for a few days–it’s important that you stay in communication with your moving company.

Schedules are tight for moving companies during the busiest time of year, and if your plans change, don’t wait until the last minute to tell the movers. If you do, you might find yourself without a truck available. When you stay in touch, however, your moving company can often switch things around a little to keep everyone’s move on track.

Moving in the summer is great, and you can make the experience smooth and hassle free by planning ahead, comparing costs, settling on services early, and communicating well with your movers.

What do you think of when you hear the words “Moving Day”? Whatever it is, you probably don’t think about luxury. Moving day doesn’t have to be exhausting for you. In fact, you can have an extraordinary moving experience when you hire a luxury moving service to do all the dirty work for you.

Imagine what it would be like to have someone take care of the entire move for you. Instead of planning, packing, and hefting boxes, you can continue with your life as normal while someone else takes care of everything. White glove moving services even unpack your boxes, plug in your electronics, and arrange your books on your shelves. All you have to do is come home.

Specifically what can a trusted NYC luxury moving company do for you?

Transport Your Art and Antiques

If you’re nervous about taking chances with your art and antiques, a luxury moving service may be the best solution for you. Trying to fit one-of-a-kind pieces of art into standard cardboard boxes just doesn’t feel right, but a luxury moving service can provide you with custom-built crates for your most precious possessions and even store your art and antiques in climate controlled storage during the move.

Move Expensive Electronics

Not only can electronics be difficult to unhook and pack up, but they can also be fragile. Specially designed packing and crating materials can keep your electronics functioning beautifully, even after a move. Luxury movers have the expertise to handle these items with great care and even to get them hooked back up for you at your new home. For more information about moving electronic equipment please see this blog post.

Care For Your Wine Collection

A wine collection can be a nightmare to move if you don’t have the packing materials, transportation requirements, and expertise to handle the job. A full collection of aged wine requires different temperatures, and older wines shouldn’t be subjected to excessive shaking. A white glove moving service can help to ensure that your wine is carefully managed as it’s transported from one location to another. To learn more about moving your collections read this blog post

Move Musical Instruments

Smaller instruments like flutes, guitars, and trombones can be transported in your car, but pianos, organs, and large collections of instruments require special care. Not only are some of these instruments very heavy, but they may have thousands of moving parts. Luxury movers are experienced in caring for such items.

Grandfather clocks are often put in the same category as musical instruments because they need the same kind of care. Like pianos and organs, they’re very heavy, and they also have moving parts that must be secured during transport. A luxury moving company will make sure the pendulum is secured before moving it to your new home. to learn more about piano moving check out our blog post.

Other Considerations

In addition to handling art and antiques, expensive electronics, wine collections, and musical instruments, a luxury moving service creates a pleasant and easy moving experience for you. You won’t have to lift a finger while your moving service takes care of the following tasks:

• Packing and unpacking
• Protecting your door frames, white carpet, etc.
• Arranging your furniture in your new home
• Reassembling items that had to be taken apart for the move
• Organizing, scheduling, and loading
• Managing moving in high-rise buildings
• Creating an inventory and floor plan

Trusting these tasks to a white glove moving company gives you the freedom to continue to accomplish your own work and see to the aspects of your relocation that only you can handle–such as meeting the new neighbors and helping the rest of your household to adjust to their new surroundings.

Is a Luxury Moving Service Right For You?

If you’re looking for a moving service that can manage everything from start to finish, and if you’re looking for a service that is well-equipped to deal with special items such as wine collections and fine art, a luxury moving service may be the best solution for you. To learn more about the luxury moving services offered by U.Santini, contact us at 718-768-6778.

The big day is almost here! You’ve hired a trusted NYC moving company, arranged the details of your new home, and signed the papers, but what can you do to prepare for the movers who will be arriving to transport your belongings from your old home to your new one? This is a question we hear a lot, so we’ve put together some tips to help you in your preparations.

As with everything in life, thinking ahead and preparing well will smooth your path in the future, and it’s certainly no different on moving day.

Clean and Organize

Your entire move will go much more smoothly if you have cleaned and organized your home ahead of time. If you have hired professional packers, make sure that like items are together. They won’t know that the attachments for your food processor are stored in the closet in the hallway; they’ll just pack things where they find them. They also won’t know that you had meant to throw out all of that old paperwork on the desk in your bedroom. So go through each room and clean and organize before packing and moving day.

Purge

One of the best things about moving is that it gives you a chance to go through your belongings and get rid of items you don’t want or need any longer. It’s best to dispose of unwanted items before the packers and/or movers arrive, but if you’re planning on taking a trip to the thrift store after the move, just put all of your unwanted items in one area and label them “Do Not Move!”

Dispose of Hazardous Chemicals

Moving companies don’t transport hazardous chemicals, so it’s best to dispose of them before moving day. If you’re moving in Brooklyn, take your hazardous chemicals to a special waste drop-off site, or take advantage of DSNY SAFE disposal events. Hazardous chemical items include automotive products like spent batteries and motor oil, unwanted medications, thermometers, pesticides, paints, and syringes.

Separate Important Documents and Valuables

Some people feel more comfortable transporting important documents and valuables themselves, and if you have items you’d like to transport yourself, mark them clearly so the movers don’t include them on the moving truck. For example, if you have paperwork for your new home that you’ll need on arrival, you probably won’t want it to go on the moving truck because it won’t be easily accessible. Although professional packers do an excellent job of packing fragile items and valuables, some people just feel better about handling grandma’s antique tea set themselves, and that’s fine. Just make sure you’ve made preparations for such items ahead of time.

Consider Your Plants

Plants don’t travel well in boxes on a moving truck, so you may need to make special arrangements for them. You may need to find new homes for some of your plants, at least temporarily. If you’ll be driving your plants to your new home, be sure to place them in an open-top box that will catch any soil that spills out during the move.

Make Arrangements for Pets

Moving day can be very disconcerting for pets, and having cats or dogs underfoot can be dangerous for the movers. To keep everyone safe and happy, make arrangements for pets to be safely cared for away from the action of packing and loading. If you must keep your pets nearby, consider keeping them in a traveling crate or enclosed kennel. Better yet, take your neighbors up on their offer to help by letting them keep the pets for the day.

Double and Trip Check

Before the movers arrive to load up the truck, go through every closet, cupboard, cabinet, and drawer to make sure you haven’t left anything behind. It’s much easier to find these hidden treasures before the movers show up than to have to move them later by yourself after the truck and your helpers are gone.

When you take the time to prepare before the movers arrive, your NYC move will be much smoother and less stressful. By following the above tips, you’ll be fully prepared for the movers, and soon you’ll be enjoying your new home.