Anyone use a Moving Service (US-Canada)

[kedar9]

Hi,

Has anyone here used a moving company service to move furniture and other goods from US to Canada?
Plz recommend some services. How much did it cost and is there a specific procedure to follow?

I have already declared all the goods and furnitures when I did my soft-landing.

Thanks.

 

[Svanbavel1]

Hi, I used PODS to move from CO to NS and to be honest, I would not recommend using them! The question would be, how much are you moving cross-border? If you plan to drive your goods, I hear using Uhaul is the best option. I don't know anyone who has used a large transportation company to move though.

I will tell you, that if you plan to use a service to move your goods, if they ask you for your passport and say it is required for the driver, I can promis you IT IS NOT! I would be happy to share the details if you plan to go that route.

 

[21Goose]

I used Humboldt Moving (Massachusetts) to move from Boston to Toronto. It was easy and they were very professional. It cost me exactly USD 3841 (just looked at my invoice) to move the contents of a 2-bedroom apartment (about 2/3rd of a large truck).

Here's how it went

1. Like you, I had already landed and declared my goods to follow. I had those documents with me.

2. Back in the US, I called up a few moving companies. Humboldt seemed the best, so I asked them to come do an appraisal.

3. On the scheduled day (same week I called), a lady came to my house with an iPad app. She looked at everything, made notes on the Ipad, took some photos of the furniture. I had already boxed up 99% of the things, so it was pretty quick, she just had to count the boxes and look at the bigger stuff.

4. The next day, they emailed me with their estimate based on the appraisal. I was happy with the cost and agreed to the contract. I told them that I would schedule the move after I'd moved to Canada and found an apartment. The contract was valid for three months.

5. I drove to Canada the next week. After two weeks, I got an apartment. Then, I called up Humboldt and asked them to begin the move. I emailed them a copy of the goods to follow form and the BS-65 that Canadian customs had stamped when I landed.

6. They scheduled time (my neighbors had the keys to my apartment and had agreed to be there on move day), and on the day, they arrived and packed everything up. I wasn't there, but my neighbors said they did it in two hours, and were professional and polite. They wrote out a complete inventory of everything that went into the truck and asked the neighbor to sign it. This was later emailed to me.

7. About 6 days later, the driver called me up and said that he would be in Toronto the next morning, and I was to meet him at the customs clearance office in Mississauga.

8. I met him there the next morning at 8:00 AM. I had my passport, PR card, and goods to follow forms. The process took about 20 min (most of that was just waiting in line), and it was very easy. The officer merely looked at the papers, and then stamped them and handed them back.

9. Then, I drove home, and the truck followed. The rest was just unloading.

Oh, and every single thing they packed had a yellow sticker on it with a number. This was compared with the inventory list at the end of the unloading so I knew that everything was accounted for. There was no damage or missing items.

I have no idea if I was just lucky, but I am a satisfied customer

 

[kedar9]

I used Humboldt Moving (Massachusetts) to move from Boston to Toronto. It was easy and they were very professional. It cost me exactly USD 3841 (just looked at my invoice) to move the contents of a 2-bedroom apartment (about 2/3rd of a large truck).

Here's how it went

1. Like you, I had already landed and declared my goods to follow. I had those documents with me.

2. Back in the US, I called up a few moving companies. Humboldt seemed the best, so I asked them to come do an appraisal.

3. On the scheduled day (same week I called), a lady came to my house with an iPad app. She looked at everything, made notes on the Ipad, took some photos of the furniture. I had already boxed up 99% of the things, so it was pretty quick, she just had to count the boxes and look at the bigger stuff.

4. The next day, they emailed me with their estimate based on the appraisal. I was happy with the cost and agreed to the contract. I told them that I would schedule the move after I'd moved to Canada and found an apartment. The contract was valid for three months.

5. I drove to Canada the next week. After two weeks, I got an apartment. Then, I called up Humboldt and asked them to begin the move. I emailed them a copy of the goods to follow form and the BS-65 that Canadian customs had stamped when I landed.

6. They scheduled time (my neighbors had the keys to my apartment and had agreed to be there on move day), and on the day, they arrived and packed everything up. I wasn't there, but my neighbors said they did it in two hours, and were professional and polite. They wrote out a complete inventory of everything that went into the truck and asked the neighbor to sign it. This was later emailed to me.

7. About 6 days later, the driver called me up and said that he would be in Toronto the next morning, and I was to meet him at the customs clearance office in Mississauga.

8. I met him there the next morning at 8:00 AM. I had my passport, PR card, and goods to follow forms. The process took about 20 min (most of that was just waiting in line), and it was very easy. The officer merely looked at the papers, and then stamped them and handed them back.

9. Then, I drove home, and the truck followed. The rest was just unloading.

Oh, and every single thing they packed had a yellow sticker on it with a number. This was compared with the inventory list at the end of the unloading so I knew that everything was accounted for. There was no damage or missing items.

I have no idea if I was just lucky, but I am a satisfied customer

Thanks for the detailed reply.

Very curious to know the cost you incurred.

 

[Immodjin]

I've never done any moving myself as I've already hurt my back once when I was lifting weights. A friend gave me the number of a company that works internationally. And here is their information about all their services. And they have a person who does declarations for some kinds of antique furniture and personal items. Anyway, we managed to organise everything in two days. When I was moving myself I could only find boxes and film for packing in a week. So if you value your time and don't want to hurt your back like I did, it's best not to try to work too hard.

 

[EbonyHodge]

As for specific services, I'd recommend looking into freight services in your area. They should be able to provide quotes and information about the process.

 

[ElliotOrtiz]

Moving furniture and goods from the U.S. to Canada can be a daunting process, but there are options to help make it go smoothly. One opportunity to consider is hiring a professional team of movers. They will have the experience and equipment to move your belongings safely across the border and get them to your new home in Canada.

 

[moose17]

If you're in a situation where driving a U-Haul is possible, I'd recommend that along with hiring movers for a few hours on each end to load and unload it for you. It's a lot of savings over a full end-to-end service, you're not coordinating with possibly multiple people for it, and you keep your goods with you the whole time.