NorthStar Moving Company

Worst experience I had with moving company. Don’t believe on the rating in Yelp or Google, these are all fake comments and rates. They are unorganized; they took 8 hours to load the trucks and when they get to our new home it was already evening and they were just rushing and dropped everything. They didn’t unwrap almost anything, left they trash behind; we end up unwrapping everything. I have collected 3 extra-large box of their blanket.
And worst of all, they have damaged our furniture, appliances, floor as you can see in the pictures (Kitchen table base, Refrigerator, office cabinet, chairs and floor). I haven’t had chance yet to open my boxes!!

Move size: 4+ Bedroom Home Service cost: $3850

I would recommend NorthStar to my own parents.  That's how great they were with a $3,100 one bedroom apartment move across the country.  Our stuff traveled more than 2,700 miles and not one item was broken, severely damaged, or lost.  Amazing!My NorthStar experience first began with a phone call with Ted.  I had some basic questions and he was friendly and helpful.  A few days later, Ilan D. came to our apartment with his laptop handy and made a quick assessment/inventory list of our belongings.  He was calm, friendly, helpful and not pushy at all.  Ilan seemed like a nice typical dad (in his early forties?)  We had other companies also come out to do an in-house estimate, which I highly recommend.  The guy from a company that contracts with North American was a bit annoying and pushy, so we are glad we went with NorthStar instead.  Ilan immediately emailed us a flat rate/not-to-exceed estimate which we accepted and signed a few days later.We painstakingly packed and labeled our items (everything except furniture) ourselves.  I had my own secret labeling system.  NorthStar sent three, young, nice, respectful, and thin men to us for the pick up.  The guys were surprisingly strong and were extremely careful about disassembling our furniture.  They took our heavy boxes and furniture down our treacherous stairs to their truck without incident.  One kindly asked us if he could play music from his phone, which we all appreciated.  It helped break the silence.  We had cold bottled water, juices, and some energy/cereal bars for them.They took our belongings to their storage facility in Chatsworth since we didn't know the exact address of our new place yet.  Finally, when we picked a new place I called NorthStar to give them the address.  He recommended I email the info to their general email address.  Unfortunately, the email was never read or the guy never entered it into their system.  When I called a couple days later, they had no idea we were ready for pickup.  But the second guy, Adam D., worked really hard to get the delivery going.9th - Called NorthStar and emailed them that we were ready for delivery13th - Called NorthStar for a delivery update and they had no idea we were ready for delivery13th - Adam D. emailed me back and said our belongings would be delivered sometime between the 13th & 25th (13 day window)27th - Actual delivery day.  18 days after I initially called.  14 days after my second call.  Pretty good considering our building only allows moving in/out M-F during business hours.Delivery was fine.  It was three young (Russian?) guys who worked fast.  I feel like the delivery guys had an easier time because they don't have to be as careful putting together the furniture as the guys who take it apart.  The guys who take it apart upon pick up have to spend a lot of time wrapping the furniture pieces and not lose little screws and bolts.Our total move cost was approximately $3,100.  It was approximately $400 over the original estimate because we used a few extra weeks of storage beyond the first free month ($130 ), elevator at the destination ($50 ish), two "long carry" charges ($150 ish), and an additional 3% charge for using a credit card to pay.  Tips for moving:Have several companies do an in-house estimate.Buy moving insurance.  http://Moveinsure.com was easy.  Glad nothing happened to our stuff, but if it had caught on fire we would've been okay.  Devastated, but okay.Finish your packing before the movers arrive.  They told me that we would be surprised by how many people aren't finished packing their stuff when they arrive to take it away.  It took me much longer than I thought.If you're doing a self pack like we did, make your own labeling system and keep a list of all the boxes and their contents handy upon pick up and delivery.  Check off boxes/furniture items as they arrive at your new place.  That way when the delivery guys are done, you can say, "Thanks, we have all our stuff" fairly quickly.Have cold water bottles, gatorade, packaged snacks, etc. ready for the movers.  It doesn't cost much and they usually appreciate the gesture.Tip.  I don't know how much the moving guys get paid, but a tip is usually appreciated by the guys.  Actually, no matter how much they get paid they are working really hard to move your lazy [EDIT]  heavy [EDIT] belongings.Call the company several times leading up to the pick up date.  Confirm that they are coming.Call and email NorthStar several times about the delivery and get updates from them.  I called to notify them that we were ready for delivery, but the guy who answered did not actually enter it into their computer system.  Several days later, I called and they had no idea I was ready for delivery.  Don't hesitate to call them!Review your moving company on yelp, google, moverreviews, etc. :).

Service cost: $3100

As a renter, I have moved a lot. Moving is a pain. Make it less a pain and go with NorthStar.

Here’s why your pain remedy is NorthStar. During a move, so many things can go wrong—and for my last move, it seemed everything did. A star guided me to Wendy at NorthStar through those darkest days of moving. NorthStar went so far beyond what anyone could anticipate, I am left in shock. Five gold stars any day of the week.

Miscommunication had taken place, and the building that I was moving into had given away the elevator timeslot. I told NorthStar this, and we rescheduled for the following day to move my items into the new building. NorthStar would hold my items overnight.

Day of the move. I had asked how long it would take to move a 1 bedroom and was told about 4 hours-5 hours. I asked if we could switch my appointment with NorthStar to the afternoon, since I had to work in the morning. When the movers showed up, we only had a few hours to move everything out of a very large 1400-sq-ft 1 bedroom. I had everything packed, except a few unboxed items. We worked at high speed until the building staff said that if we continued, I could receive a fine of over $1,000. NorthStar and I decided to stop. We had moved most of my items out, but we had 8 biggest need-an-elevator items left: couch, lamp, bookshelf, bar stools, bed, chair, and 2 TVs. While the great Northstar crew were confident that we would figure it out, I felt disheartened and discouraged.

Wasting money is why it was disheartening. Each time the elevator is reserved/used at my old building it is $250, but a whopping $500 at the new building. Having to do a second move meant $750 more in elevator fees alone. Now I’d also have to pay for a full second day of movers coming and loading, driving, and unloading the truck. I estimated all that would cost at least an additional $1,400 even though it is only 15 miles from downtown Los Angeles to Marina Del Rey. A second day meant an extra $1,400 expenses.

Gets better.
The mattress had gone in the truck, but not the frame of the bed. I didn’t have a bed so I tried to book a hotel, but it was 11pm, so late that nothing was available. So couch at my old place it was. Literally, everything went wrong. Well I did have couch.


The Wendy Lady
The next day, Wendy called me and asked me about the move and heard about all the issues. She came in eager to solve problems, and that she did. She never tired, and her energy kept me going just when I was ready to give up.

I talked to the staff at the building I was moving from and to, and they said that the soonest I could have the elevator again was Monday. Scheduling problem: Saturday, my current apartment had to be clear because a crew was coming to sand and finish the unit’s wall-to-wall hardwood floor. Sunday, the cleaning crew would arrive. Monday, I had to give it back to the landlord. With all the items left, how could all that get done?

Wendy took on the challenge and went for it. At first, NorthStar didn’t have a crew available so I had booked another company, but Wendy was persistent. She said that if Northstar started something, they were going to get the job done. She found another crew, and I was able to get the elevator at my old place.

Wendy and her Northstar crew did get it done. They got the items out of the unit in time for all the work to take place. They offered to waive fees for driving and provide free storage. They really went so far and beyond what even your parents would do it is crazy. The workers stayed late and drove my stuff to a storage unit that I had rented in Venice to store the items until the other elevator became available. They never stopped working. It was incredible. Furniture piece after furniture piece, they moved.

More companies need to be like NorthStar. Not just get the job done. But take customer service to such an extreme that it is at a level where the customer is wondering what just happened. Who are these people? Companies don’t do things like this. But Wendy at NorthStar did.

If you are looking for a moving company whom you can depend on and can hold accountable, NorthStar are your movers.

Thank you, Wendy, for being the star who pointed me in the right direction. Thank you, NorthStar for guiding me get home.

Move size: 1 Bedroom Home Service cost: $2000