What are the best days of the week to move?

Have you been thinking about scheduling your upcoming move for the best day of the week to move rather than going with the standard weekend choice? Some people are wising up to the fact that sometimes things just go smoother when you do them on the right day rather than the day that works best for them.

While Saturday and Sunday might work best for your schedule, your best moving days are actually going to fall on the work week and that’s not always the news moving families want to hear. If you can rearrange your schedule for your upcoming move, you’ll find that moving between Monday and Thursday is going to be a heck of a lot easier than moving over the weekend. Find out why, below.

Why moving on the weekend isn’t best

While the most popular day to move is on a Friday, this doesn’t mean it’s the best day to be moving. This was the most chosen moving day in the recent past and that’s because most people can easily take off a Friday from work and they hope to have the weekend to relax after the process.

While it’s tempting to move on a Friday and enjoy your new home over the weekend, you’re going to be up against the challenge of finding movers with availability on that day and traffic tends to be more chaotic. After Fridays, Saturdays tend to be the most popular day to move, but it’s another hard to book and you’ll be dealing with everybody off work and driving at the same time as you.

It turns out that the best days to move are between Monday and Thursday, despite Tuesdays being the least popular moving day. There is far less demand for movers making it a cinch to schedule your moving day, and taking the day the off work to get it done will pay off in big ways. You’ll likely save money hiring movers during this strange part of the week when no one else is moving, and you’ll have the weekend to look forward to unpack and get organized before the work week.

What time of year should I choose?

If you’re looking at your options for the best time of year to plan your relocation, be sure to avoid May and June, the most popular moving months in the country, and the timeframe from Memorial Day to Labor Day in general. Depending on the weather in your area, scheduling a move for the months between September to April will likely save you money and make it easy to schedule being the slower season for moving.

Is there a best time of day or best week out of the month?

Since you’re taking the day off work, you may be tempted to sleep in before the move, but you should actually keep things early since the early bird gets the worm. The early morning is the best time to move with an arrival between 8-10am, and you’ll love the better temperatures before the hot sun later in the day.

Consider scheduling your move in the middle of the month too, because mid-month moves tend to allow for the best availability since they are the lowest in demand. The first of the month and the end of the month are busiest as leases start and end.

If you’re getting ready to move, be sure to schedule it between Monday and Thursday mornings, in the middle of the month, avoiding a May through August move. You’ll find that following these tips makes it easier and more affordable to get your move done fast and efficiently from professional movers!

Why You Need Professional Office Movers When Relocating Your Chicago Business

Relocating comes with a lot of work, a lot of details to consider, and a lot of things to do. That is why hiring a moving company to handle the heavy lifting makes sense for your back, your schedule, and the safety of your belongings. When it comes to an office move, many people think that they can just have their staff handle moving their own belongings and that a moving company isn’t necessary.

If you are relocating your Chicago business, you are wise to leave the job to a professional office mover who will know how to not only protect your sensitive materials, but they can stick to a timeline to make sure you aren’t out of the office for long and help keep you organized from start to finish. Take a look at the reasons below as to why it is important to hire a professional office mover.

Staying organized and on time

First and foremost, your professional office movers will keep things organized and on time for you. It’s too easy for an office move to become unorganized and keeping your team out of the office for longer than intended.

Hiring a professional office mover means that you can rest assured that you’ll keep company data, your calendar, lease paperwork, and more organized from point A to B utilizing the crates and boxes they bring to you for the move. You can focus on other details while your moving crew helps you efficiently move your office’s sensitive information, equipment, and furniture to your new office.

You can also guarantee a return to the office date to your clients because you can count on your movers to keep things timely. When you move on your own, it’s too easy to find yourself with more stuff to pack, move, unpack, and set up before you can get back to work than you were expecting.

Since your movers can get you an ETA of how long the move will take, you’ll be able to plan accordingly to get things done before and after the move with a timeline in place. They can tell you how long to expect for packing, moving, unpacking, setting up, and cleaning up from the move so that you can know when to expect to be back to work.

Helping with the technological elements

In addition to the hassle of packing things without damaging them, moving them to the new location, unpacking them and setting up your office, your movers can help you in the technology department as well. Just like the time you had someone set up your office phone system and your desktop computer, your moving crew will be able to disconnect all of your technology, move it efficiently, and set it back up for you at the new location.

If you had to hire a team to set everything up for you, you will likely need help getting everything set up again at the new location. Allow a professional office mover to handle all of your office belongings and your technological needs so that you can focus on taking care of your clients before and after the move.

If an office mover is right for you, be sure to call The Professionals Moving Specialists in your area to get the move done carefully, efficiently, and properly, from start to finish.

May is National Moving Month

It’s May in Chicago, which means beautiful weather, baseball season has begun, and everyone is moving. This is the perfect time of year to move being not too hot and not too cold like a move in the summer, fall, or winter would be. It’s also a great time of year because the kids have finished up the school season but summer camps haven’t quite begun yet.

Since everyone is moving in Chicago right now, what are some ways to move efficiently with the extra traffic, moving trucks, and busy streets of moving crews? Take a look at these tips for moving that may help you in Chicago during this national moving month.

Why move in May?

May has become the National Moving Month everywhere, but especially for Chicago, where the weather has finally warmed up after a long winter, but it’s not so hot like the upcoming summer months that bring on the sweat.

This is a great time to count on great weather that is less likely to dehydrate you or make you think twice about packing your jacket, and the sun is out after a spring full of rain showers. Just make sure you’ve gotten all of your packing supplies and movers hired well before May since everyone is going to be booking their move for this month.

Tips for your upcoming Chicago move

When you’re preparing for your move, make sure you find a company to work with that can give you an in-home estimate and has a BBB accreditation to ensure they are licensed and valid. Those that have a BBB accreditation are required to keep up with their licenses, which will be easy for you to confirm through some online research.

Then be sure to give yourself plenty of time to prepare for the move, especially with all of the costs involved and time needed to get one of the great area companies to help you or to start the packing yourself.

Your in-home estimate should be free and allow you to discuss everything that you’ll need moved, like the storage items in your basement or specific appliances, and ask questions about anything you don’t understand, along with asking about the insured value of your belongings and when additional fees may come up. Get a written estimate with a few companies and compare costs, reviews, and your experience with each before making your decision.

Once you’ve chosen your professional movers, get the contract signed and have all of your questions answered in writing before the move. Make sure you have a plan in place for the moving day, a truck secured, and your new house is prepped for move-in.

You’ll need to setup utilities in your new home so that you can use the lights, water, and air conditioning on moving day, and be sure you’ve secured with the new building or neighborhood that a moving truck will have access and a place to park for unloading. Find out if there will be other moves happening on that street that day so that you can strategize where your truck will go and what time of day to have everything happen.

What’s going on in Chicago this month?

Now that you’ve settled into your new place, you’re likely going to be ready to enjoy some of the excitement of the city going on this month. This is the perfect time to arrive as baseball season has just started and the weather is feeling great. You can unpack those summer clothes and get ready for more time outside, enjoying the fun of the Navy Pier, relaxing at the beach, or doing some shopping at the Magnificent Mile.

This is the month for Cinco de Mayo, Mother’s Day and Memorial Day weekends which means you’ll find activities celebrating these fun holidays like Mother’s Day brunch and a huge Memorial Day parade in the Loop. Be sure to also make time for the Lincoln Park Wine Fest on the 20th, Beer Under Glass on the 18th, Bike the Drive on the 28th, and Mayfest on the 19th which will offer an outdoor beer garden, pretzels, music, and fun in a giant heated tent on the street.

It’s National Moving month right now and the perfect time for your arrival to Chicago. Make sure you’ve hired a professional moving company to properly handle your belongings and household memories, and once you’re settled in, start enjoying some of the exciting things going on around this incredible city.

A 7-Step Plan for Hiring a Professional Moving Company

Have you started looking at professional moving companies? This is a big decision for your family’s upcoming move which means you need to your due diligence before making a decision. Along with asking around for referrals and getting estimates from your top contenders, you’ll need to research their credentials and make sure they don’t have any complaints against their brand. Take a look at this 7-step guide that will make it easy for you to hire a professional moving company.

Research and get referrals

Begin by doing your research for local moving companies and talking to friends, real estate agents, coworkers, and relatives about their recommendation for moving companies in the area. You can check online listings or the phone book near your home to find out who might be able to help in the area.

Since you’ll need them to come to the home in the near future to give you an estimate, you won’t want to work with someone too far away. It may surprise you that some of the well-known brands or big-name companies are not always going to be the best option and that local businesses are often a better choice.

Talk to Moving Companies

Now that you have some names that you’ve been referred to or had good reviews online, it’s time to start talking to these companies and do your initial screening. Talk to each of your recommended movers and look at their reviews online to see what others have to say about their experience.

Call the Better Business Bureau for your final choices to see if there is anything you need to be aware of. You may want to check websites like movingscam.com to see if any companies have been blacklisted from consumer complaints.

Get an estimate from the final choices

Now that you’ve narrowed it down to a couple of choices, you’ll want to collect estimates from your top choices. For moves out of state, you’ll need to find out if the company will give you a written offer with a capped amount that they promise not to exceed. That way you can at least count on a capped amount that you won’t go over in paying for your move. The final costs of a move are typically more than the estimate and non-binding estimates are legal, but a binding not-to-exceed cap is better.

How the estimate should go

Once you have your estimates, you’ll want to understand how the process works. You’ll need to make sure you have everything from the closets to the attic that you’ll need to be handled on moving day. On moving day, if the movers believe you have more than what was on the estimate, they may try to challenge the estimate and have you to pay more unless you can prove that your estimate covered the correct amount.

This would also be the time to discuss if there will be elevators, stairs, a long distance from the curb, or other details that will affect the move. Make sure to collect the company information, references, and license numbers at this time.

Research final choices

Now you’ll want to compare the bids, and you’ll want to do some research on your final choices from there. While one may be offering a better rate, they may not have been in business as long as another company. Make sure they are incorporated in your state and look through searchable databases of business on the internet. Make sure you review their moving credentials and reviews!

Choose your moving crew

Now it’s time to make your selection. Select a mover that you feel confident about and confirm the details of the move once you’ve called.

Make sure you have an inventory

Lastly, you’ll want to get a written copy of the inventory list on moving day. Make sure they have directions to your home and a good phone number to reach them.

These are the 7 steps you’ll need to hire a professional moving company for your upcoming move. Contact The Professionals Moving Specialists for your Chicago move!

Make Sure you Don't Get Scammed by a Moving Company

Have you ever heard of people getting scammed by their moving company? You don’t want to find yourself in this nightmare. Moving is already a stressful time and you want a professional moving company that you can count on.

Most companies would try to help make the process a smooth one, but you may come across a company that is out to scam you. Watch out for cheap ads on Craigslist, book a company early and thoughtfully, and be sure you know what to do in the event that you are in a bad situation like this. Take a look at some ways to avoid being scammed on your upcoming move.

Warning signs to watch for

A good place to start is to make sure you are as organized and rested as possible, in order to avoid being taken advantage of while you’re feeling frazzled and vulnerable. Look for warning signs and be on guard for the possibility that they come up.

Look out for deals that are too good to be true, such as a Craiglist offer that sells moving services for way too cheap. Many times a scam will occur when the price is offered too low and then a contingency comes up causing a price increase, such as stairs or a long loading route. When you have to make an agreement verbally rather than on paper, you may find yourself fighting with the movers at your destination with your belongings being withheld from you without further payment.

How to spot a winner of a company

Avoid any signs of a bad moving company and trust professional movers with a great reputation in town or online. Look for online reviews with great credibility and positive feedback, while being realistic if you think a company looks too good to be true with a perfect rating.

When you choose a company that seems trustworthy, call them for information on handling your upcoming moving. You should get to work with a moving coordinator or a manager that will oversee the move. While some issues could come up that can’t be avoided, your move coordinator should be your point person to help when an unforeseeable situation comes up.

Having a coordinator means that someone is being updated when an issue pops up, such as not having a key to get into the new home or furniture not fitting through the door. If a company offers this service, you can likely feel at ease, while one that doesn’t offer this service should make you remain watchful for any red flags.

Tips for prevention

While being scammed by a moving company can happen to anyone, it’s helpful to take a few precautions. Along with seeking out a company with good reviews and a great reputation in town, watching out for offers too good to be true, and considering avoiding any companies that don’t provide moving coordinators, consider booking early when there are still many choices available to you. You won’t fall for deals too good to be true and you’ll have time to build a relationship with a company before it’s time to move.

If you get a bad feeling from a company or find communication is lacking, it may be time to look for someone else. Does the company live up to promises, such as getting you a timely estimate and contacting you when they said they would? If you hire this company, remember that they will be handling your precious belongings and you’re trusting them with the safety and efficiency of the process.

While you may have to pay a deposit for the move, watch out for companies that ask for full payment in advance or a really large deposit. A small deposit lost by moving to a new company is worth it if you feel uncomfortable with a company, but a large deposit or full payment would show signs of a company not worth dealing with.

If you find yourself in a scamming situation, make sure you have a manager’s name and contact information that you can reach if something goes wrong. Sign a contract that lists the minimum value protection for you the customer, and a way to declare the value of your items. Then if something were to happen, you could take them to court with documented proof, as well as talk to the Better Business Bureau. Of course, a social media blasting will make this company look bad and will warn others to avoid them.

Don’t get scammed by a moving company if you can avoid it; use these tips to know what to look for.