This is my second move with North star this week. These guys are so fast and efficient. Had to move a 1600 sq ft house and as usual no problems at all. Furniture and walls are exactly as they were before the move in both houses. Employees are professional and all good people. Would use them again in a heartbeat and highly recommend.
Art
They were all friendly and hard working moving all our stuff into our first home. We have two small boys with plenty of odd shaped kiddie toys and sports gear. We also have a large number paintings and other art work. Luis R’s team did a great job by carefully packing and moving all our. We couldn’t have asked for better movers!
It was a substantial move and I approached it with more than a little anxiety. I did research on moving companies and found that the reported problems were frightening (damage, shipments held hostage, etc.). I put the move out to bid and found NorthStar was not the lowest but was very competitive and had by far the best reviews and recommendations, and as I worked with them, I saw that they earned their excellent reviews, from start to finish. Here’s our experience:
Estimated Cost: They gave me an estimate, based on the inventory I provided them, with easy to understand calculation of their pricing. Everything is based on weight, not the number of boxes or the amount of time it takes to load or unload, which was different from the local moves I’d done in the past. This meant that the cost was very reasonable, even for a 3,000 mile move. Samantha was our rep and she was very helpful in explaining everything, so no surprises.
Pick-Up: Erik, Melvin and two others (apologies for not getting the names) did an amazing job of wrapping furniture and loading everything and were extremely friendly and helpful. I was a careful packer but had them pack a lamp in their special boxes and was glad I did. I also purchased a dozen blankets in advance, which saved some money and they used all of them plus a few of theirs. The cost for their packing materials was less than I could get on my own. They did a careful inventory and then gave me an updated estimate.
Actual Cost: After the shipment was picked up, it was weighed, item by item, to get an actual cost. We ended up shipping significantly more than originally anticipated (not uncommon) our revised bid reflected that. Our final cost was actually less than the revised bid. Happy surprise.
Move Updates: We signed a contract based on an actual pick-up date and a window for delivery. I was nervous not knowing the actual delivery date, but Illyas, our dispatcher, provided ongoing updates and we were able to plan accordingly. We got preliminary schedule after the shipment was weighed, along the route, 24 hours in advance and 1 hour in advance. We were so grateful they got everything there within the delivery window, before my daughter started classes.
Delivery: The two people who delivered could not have been nicer. They placed furniture, assembling the bedroom set, attaching the mirror to the dresser, etc., and placed the TV and printer where they needed to go, which would have been hard for my daughter to do on her own. All boxes marked fragile were in perfect shape. Boxes not marked fragile were treated a little more roughly, but everything arrived in good shape and all boxes were intact.
Follow-Up: Both the day of delivery and after having a chance to unpack, NorthStar called to make sure everything was fine. We found a damaged lamp shade and they were great about compensating us for that (Ram was especially helpful). They have a form they emailed us and it was easy. Given the move (2,500 pounds over 3,000 miles), I was delighted that this was the only problem and they resolved it beautifully.
I wholeheartedly recommend NorthStar. It’s scary to move long distance and they made it as easy as possible.
I recommend that you check out the California PUC and Better Business Bureau for reports on movers. Here are those URL’s:
California PUC: https://delaps1.cpuc.ca.…
Better Business Bureau: http://bbb.org
Credit where credit is due. You people are just the best; from my first contact with you people over the phone I got a great impression of professionalism and courtesy right down the line.
I want to single out for praise Gil and Angel, who did a perfect job of moving from one place to two different places several antique pieces of some value for their quality but even more for sentimental reasons. Gil and Angel were unfailingly pleasant, courteous, and most important, knowledgeable–in short, they knew what they were doing every step of the way.
Gil is a great communicator; he knows how to listen. If I’d make a suggestion, he would either agree or explain succinctly and persuasively the reason he wanted to do it in a way he considered better or safer. (I assure you I really didn’t ask that many questions–or need to– but the point is I was really impressed with how he handled himself as well as he moved and packed my furniture!
He and Angel too reflect very well on your company. They were as careful with my stuff as if they have been hired to move Marie Antoinette’s bed out of the Palace of Versailles! I never would have believed the chore of moving furniture could be made to be such a pleasant experience.
Thanks so much,
Kevin Thomas
On behalf of the children we serve, I would like to thank NorthStar Moving for your Contribution of 1 truck with 4 men. Friday, May 6th from 9am-2pm, on Saturday,May 5th from 9am-4pm and Sunday, May 6th from 9am-2pm to the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Greater Los Angeles’ 14th Annual Wine Tasting and Auction on May 5th, 2007. The donation of your time and generosity contributes to our ability to raise the necessary funds that enable us to grant the wishes of children in Los Angeles County living with life-threatening medical condition. This year’s event raised approximately $300,000. With your contribution, we will continue to bring hope,strength, and joy this year to nearly 400 children in our community.It is through generosity such as yours that we have been able to grant over 5,900 wishes over the past two decades. Your gift makes possible the wishes of children like triplets Allison, Jared and Nicholas all living with cystic fibrosis. These siblings were able to leave their worries behind as they lived out their dreams of taking a Disney Cruise. This vacation brought a new found happiness to the triplet’s lives. We thank you for helping make wishes such as these come true. On behalf of Make-A-Wish Foundation of Greater Los Angeles, thank your for Helping us Share The Power of a Wish.
Warmest wishes,
Sascha Coble,
Director of Special Events
We want to thank you both personally for the sensational job that you and your team of professionals did for us in our recent move to New York City! Your team of wonderful men knocked on our door bright and early, and they were energetic and eager to start working. They were fast, hard working and very professional. All four men divided and conquered different areas of the house to pack all our items with great care and concern. As you both know, we had many very fragile Art sculptures and heavy paintings that are cumbersome and large scale and they took the extra time to be sure all our Art was packed securely and labeled as such. Really, these men were terrific! Gadi, you are a fantastic representative of NorthStar. From the minute we met you, we liked you. You exude sincerity and warmth and have great confidence in your Company. You made a daunting project seem easy. You walked us through the entire process from beginning to finish and gave us timeline updates while the truck was in transit. We really appreciated that. Our shipment arrived in a timely fashion and Ram made sure everything was unpacked as carefully as it was packed. Ram also stayed in constant contact once our shipment was in New York. Everyone at NorthStar was friendly, competent, professional, and a pleasure to work with. We most definitely will use you in our next move and we will recommend NorthStar to all our family and friends. You all are a first class operation! Thank You NorthStar!
With all our gratitude and best wishes,
Dawn and Ed Massey
Garden in Transit, New York City