Review by Max F.

I did a TON of research before making my move from San Francisco to Florida and I am very happy with the service NorthStar provided.

I was only moving about 1 bedroom’s worth of stuff and didn’t want to break the bank on this move. The “big” companies gave me quotes around $3600, which was more than my stuff was worth! The sketchy companies that give you quotes from the internet (DON’T USE THEM) gave me quotes under $1000. NorthStar quoted me around 2,500 and the offered me a flat-rate quote (I could have done one based off of weight if I wanted).

My estimator, JC, was friendly but very honest. Example — At one point, he told me that one item I wanted to move was not worth it — he explained that it would cost a lot, because it was heavy AND it was the kind of thing that breaks in cross-country moves. He didn’t have to say this, and his company would have made extra money if we’d tried to move the item.

JC stuck with me for the entire pre-moving process. I asked him about a million annoying questions and pestered him endlessly. I even changed my inventory multiple times at the last minute. In hindsight, I was probably a pain in the ass to deal with. Still, every request was responded to promptly and accurately. 

On move-out day, the crew of guys arrived (Augustine and the two Joses) and got right to work. My apartment had a CRAZY-NARROW stairwell, and the guys managed to get my large and awkward furniture out without messing up the building’s paint job. They packed and wrapped all of my furniture really well and we very courteous and professional. 

I had asked the guys at NorthStar to hold my belongings in storage for about 20 days before sending them out so that I’d have time to find an apartment. They agreed and gave me a 10 day delivery window (the way these guys move your stuff cheaply is to pack it into a huge 18-wheeler with other people’s moves — so the truck doesn’t leave until it’s full…hence the window). 

The only bump in the process came with the delivery of the items. I was under the impression that I’d get a call one week prior to delivery. Once the middle of the window rolled around, I called in to the company and found out that I would actually only get a ONE DAY warning before my stuff arrived. This was less than ideal. The next day, before my new apartment was ready, I got a call from the truck driver saying he was ready to deliver THAT EVENING. Luckily, he was very nice and was able to hold off for two days and I had enough time to get everything ready.

The truck that arrived was from a moving company that NorthStar had contracted with to complete the transportation of my stuff. I have heard that sometimes this is where problems pop up, but I had no such issues. The guys were able to back the HUGE truck into a really tight spot and then very quickly and carefully unloaded everything.

Overall, I had a very good experience and would not hesitate to use NorthStar if I’m ever moving within Northern California again.