The Movers Who Hire the Homeless

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Category: Business Basics, Mover Stories

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It was only my second day as a mover when I was sent on a pack job. I was with two other guys. They’d been with the company a while, so it seemed totally natural when one asked me to label his carton of picture frames for him.

“Here, just use my marker,” I said, holding it out for him.

He just stared at it.

“He doesn’t label boxes,” the other guy said.

What he meant was, he couldn’t label boxes. My fellow packer was functionally illiterate.

But boy, could he pack a house.

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Help a Friend Move (Without Lifting Anything)

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Category: Neighborhood Advice

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Let’s say your friends are moving into a new home. For fun, let’s say they’re moving long-distance from Las Vegas to DC, so moving is an especially hectic and special time for them. That said, if these friends of yours are smart they’ve already hired long-distance helpers, so they’re all set for this big moving day. But you – being the amazing, thoughtful, generous friend that you are – still want to somehow help these friends with their move. Since the physical moving and lifting part is covered (thanks, HireAHelper!), you need to get a bit more creative when it comes to helping out.

Fear not! Moving is more than just picking up boxes; Here are five ways to help your friends move without any heavy lifting.

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A Customer and His Gun

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Category: Customer Service

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[Synopsis: Remind your customer what can and cannot go on the truck before there’s a showdown.]

Once upon a New York move, one of my crew came across a wooden box high up on the shelf of a customer’s walk-in closet. Naturally he opened it to see what he was going to be packing – and found himself looking at a handgun.

He closed the box and put it back on the shelf, then told me what he found. I went to the customer – who had already told us to pack up everything in the closet – and let him know that he still had his handgun in there and that if he wanted us to take it he would need to confirm a couple of things for us: was it in working condition? Was it was loaded? If so, he would have to unload it, as we are not allowed to transport ammunition. In cases of guns, we have to also record the make, model and serial number.

“I’ll take care of it,” he said rather curtly, and went upstairs.

Later he approached me with a concerned look on his face.

“So why was your guy looking through the boxes in my closet?” he asked. This is a fair question for any customer. For a guy with a lot of valuables, not to mention at least one gun, it can be an even greater concern.

“It’s not unusual,” I replied. “Some things we’re not allowed to take, so for liability reasons we need to know what we are packing.” In this case, we wouldn’t be able to take any ammunition that could have been in there. Plus there are things like jewelry and other valuables that we always suggest the customer take with them, instead of a moving truck. Our job is to keep things safe.

That answer seemed to satisfy him, albeit barely. He ended up taking his handgun away with him.

From the customer’s perspective, having one of their move crew open up a box and find their gun can be unsettling, and can even seem pretty shady. Same if it were a box full of jewelry, or expensive watches, or cash. That my guy came straight to me and told me about it so I could bring it up with the customer shows a solid level of honesty, not to mention responsibility. But from the customer perspective, all they see is a mover who was opening boxes and found their gun.

So what should you do?

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An informed customer will know that we can’t take certain things and should take other sensitive items with them, versus putting them on the truck. But most customers, no matter how informed, can hardly be expected to remember all the things movers won’t take. They’re kind of busy, you know, moving.

So remember to give your customers a verbal rundown of these things before the actual move, and again on the actual day of the move. This can minimize – if not eliminate – the chances of you or your crew someday coming face to face with a loaded gun.

Is It Weird to Help Your Movers? 10 Things Movers Absolutely Love

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Category: Moving Day

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Local movers in your area love to move quickly and efficiently, so take it from me, it’s definitely not a weird thing to help your own mover… but not by lifting anything! Helping them in other ways is more than just a load off their backs: the faster they can get done, the more money you will save.

To help move your move along, I can say from experience that these 10 areas are the best, most useful things you can do ahead of your move, even if you hired a full service move with a company like Moving Place . Of course, most movers will be happy to do the things on this list for you, but do everyone a favor – yourself included – and consider being mover ready if you’re looking to save the absolute most amount of money. I’ll tell them it was your idea.

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The Most Common Mistakes in Moving Your Alarm System Are These

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Category: How To Pack, Moving Checklists & Planning

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According to the FBI, home burglaries are the most common threat to a home. Burglars are nearly three times more likely to target homes without alarm systems.

There’s a loophole in the alarm system marketplace though; People cite moving as the number one reason why they cancel their alarm system service. Considering the average amount of times a person moves in their lifetime is currently calculated at over 11, now must be a good time to be a burglar.

But there are ways to make moving an alarm system way more effective. Yeah, moving the system can be a pain, but these things will make the entire process far more effective and easier.

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How to Move to Canada

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Category: International Moving

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The maple leaves are calling. You have found yourself singing, “Oh Canada,” and watching hockey (with actual interest). Now, you’re ready to douse yourself in real maple syrup and get stuck on your neighbor to the north. But before you get yourself into a sticky situation, recognize that Canada is actually not part of the United States, so moving there requires some serious effort. In fact, it can take up to two years to file all the correct paperwork and get approval.

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How Do I Load My PODS Moving Container?

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Category: Loading & Unloading Guides, Moving Containers

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So you reserved a portable storage container (also called moving containers or shipping containers and/or ‘PODS’ containers – which is actually the brand that reserves the containers, not a name for a container) what do you do next? How do you actually load a PODS moving container (besides hiring loading help)?

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How to Move in a Galaxy Far Far Away: Moving Tips From Star Wars

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Category: Moving Advice

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With The Force Awakens raking in over $2 billion worldwide, it’s pretty clear that people have Star Wars fever. So we figured it was a good time to share some moving tips from the epic franchise. Because if they can move from planet to planet, then you can totally handle a move to a nearby neighborhood. No force needed. (more…)

Should I Call a Locksmith After I Move In?

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Category: Buying & Selling a Home, Moving Checklists & Planning

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When moving into a new home, we understand that you probably have 1,000+ things to tackle on your to-do list, but today we want to squeeze one more thing on there.

Change your Locks!

Why Change your Locks? (more…)

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