PODS, Pack Rat, another shipper?

[kermit116]

We are likely going to be doing a move several states away in the near future. We're going to have to pack up and move some of our furniture & personal items before listing our home, and those items will need to be shipped and stored for about 2-3 months in the town where we are moving until we find a new home there.

We are working on getting quotes from PODS and Pack Rat for shipping & storage services. I'm curious if anyone has recommendations for these or other companies based on prior experiences. We did two prior long-distance moves, and both times we used ABF U-Pack. On our first move, that worked out fine, but on our second move we had some trouble getting access to our container to unpack it at the delivery location. It wasn't a huge issue, and everything was fine in the long run, but we're interested in seeing what our other options are.

Any tips would be appreciated!

 

[dededisney]

We used PODS when we moved from New Hampshire to California and they had to store it in California until we closed on our new house. We had no problems at all and would recommend them to anyone. Once we new when we were going to close on our house they dropped off the pod on that day and we told them when we wanted it picked up and then they dropped off the 2nd pod we had. Very easy (if you have to move yourself!)

 

[kermit116]

We used PODS when we moved from New Hampshire to California and they had to store it in California until we closed on our new house. We had no problems at all and would recommend them to anyone. Once we new when we were going to close on our house they dropped off the pod on that day and we told them when we wanted it picked up and then they dropped off the 2nd pod we had. Very easy (if you have to move yourself!)

Did you find their pricing to be competitive with other services?

 

[tloveswdw]

We've used pods twice, and they were great each time. No issues, easy to change dates, nice drivers who rang the bell to make sure the toddlers could watch

 

[dakcp2001]

We used Abf relo cubes. We also hired movers helpers to pack them and unpack them on either end, it was much cheaper.

 

[dededisney]

Did you find their pricing to be competitive with other services?

We didn't check other self moving companies, but when we got quotes for full service moving companies...it was a lot better! We had known someone else who used PODS and they had a good experience as well, so that is why we went with them.

 

[HulaHoopy]

We used PODS in the fall when we closed on our house and could not move into the new one yet. They stored both our pods for about three weeks. I was able to find a coupon code via google and the price ended up being cheaper than 1-800- pack rat. The only small issue I had was not scheduling the delivery soon enough. As soon, as you have your dates you should put it on their schedule.

Our items did not shift in the move at all and all our items were just as we placed them in the pod.

 

[got2sammies]

My mom used UHAUL when she moved back here from Florida.. She had no problems with them dropping off a container, then they stored it until she closed on her condo.. The stuff did shift but my brother packed the container.. so I blame his packing skills

 

[a1tinkfans]

Used PODS end of last year for our long distance move. It is being stored in a location that is Climate controlled, which other companies did not offer. They arrived on time, very professional, tho there were some missing clips inside, A call and they brought over a handful for us.
Just be sure to fill every gap so things dont shift aka break..Its been several mos and we anticipate no issues when we finally get settled....
Good Luck with the Move.............

added: we also found that some of the competitors literally used a wood type structure with tarps??? Scary IMHO, we wanted security and limited exposure to elements and were very happy with the construction