10 Questions to Ask Before Hiring a Local Moving Company in Syracuse, NY

1. How does Reliable Movers charge for local moves? Do you charge by the hour or offer flat-rate pricing?

Reliable Movers operates differently from many local moving companies in the Syracuse area. We offer flat-rate pricing based on the size of the moving truck and how much space your belongings take up inside the truck.

After going over a quick inventory of your furniture and household items, I can determine what size truck you’ll need and approximately how much space your shipment will occupy.

A typical three-bedroom home can usually fit into one of our 26-foot moving trucks. For larger households, we also have 28-foot and 30-foot moving trucks. Our larger trucks come with crews of 4–5 men.

We do not offer hourly rates. The majority of the time, our flat-rate pricing beats movers who charge by the hour. Hourly-rated movers have no financial incentive to finish your move in a timely manner.

What takes an hourly crew all day to move, our experienced crews can often complete in half the time.

Our goal is simple: Get your belongings moved, your furniture set up, and your family sleeping in your new home and your own beds that night.

2. What is included in your local moving price? Are there any additional or hidden fees?

Our flat-rate pricing includes the truck, professional labor, fuel, furniture disassembly and reassembly, furniture pads, shrink wrapping, and basic moving insurance.

Specialty items such as pianos, gun safes, and hot tubs are priced separately. Additional charges may also apply for excessive walking distances, elevators, or stair carries.

If you let me know about any of these items or access conditions before your move, I can include those charges in your estimate.

There are no surprise charges when I have the correct information upfront.

3. How do you determine what size moving truck I need, and what happens if my inventory changes?

I determine the truck size by taking an inventory of everything being moved. This can be done over the phone, during an in-home estimate, or by having the customer send pictures of each room.

One thing I’ve noticed is that customers often underestimate how many boxes they’ll have. Before COVID, the average household had approximately 50–70 boxes. Since COVID, we’ve seen a significant increase, with some households now packing over 100 boxes.

I always ask customers to keep me updated as they’re packing. If your inventory increases, I may need to move you into a larger truck or add a second truck for an additional charge.

We’ve also been using our Ram ProMaster vans more frequently to accommodate overflow when a shipment takes up more space than originally estimated.

The important thing is communication. If you keep me updated on your furniture and box count, I can make sure we send the right equipment and crew for your move.

4. Do you use your own employees and moving trucks, or hire subcontractors and day laborers?

Reliable Movers does NOT use subcontractors or day laborers. Every move is handled by our own employees using our own moving trucks and equipment.

Our employees are handpicked, usually through referrals from our current crew members. Many come to us because they’re family members or longtime friends of employees already working here. We currently have three brothers working on our team.

Our longest-serving employee, Kevin, has been with us for 20 years.

All employees are trained by Mike, the owner, and Kevin. We don’t send inexperienced workers into customers’ homes without proper training.

We know our employees, we know their experience, and we know who is handling your belongings.

When you hire Reliable Movers, you’re getting our own trained employees, not a crew of strangers hired for the day.

Meet Our Moving Crews →

5. Do your movers disassemble and reassemble furniture, and how do you protect it?

Our flat-rate pricing includes standard furniture disassembly and reassembly. Larger or more complicated pieces, such as IKEA beds, gym equipment, and oversized desks, may require additional labor at an extra charge.

Furniture is protected with moving pads and shrink wrap before being loaded onto the truck.

For items requiring additional protection, such as sculptures, artwork, china cabinets, and delicate furniture, we also use large-bubble wrap and cardboard when needed.

Our crews take the time to properly protect your furniture before loading it, not just when it arrives at your new home.

6. How do you handle apartment moves involving stairs, elevators, and long walking distances?

Customers need to let me know at the time of booking if there are stairs, elevators, or long walking distances at either the pickup or delivery location. These conditions require additional labor and may result in an additional charge.

If an elevator is involved, I ask customers to reserve it for our exclusive use during the move whenever possible.

Our crews cannot share elevators with residents or other delivery services while moving furniture because of liability concerns.

Let me know about these conditions before moving day so I can include any additional charges in your flat-rate estimate.

7. Are you licensed and insured for local moves in New York State? What happens if something gets damaged?

Reliable Movers has been a licensed New York State intrastate and interstate moving company for nearly three decades. We average 20–25 local moves per week.

New York State requires companies transporting household goods within the state to be licensed through the New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT). The NYSDOT reviews and approves moving company applications and requires several types of insurance coverage.

If something is damaged during your move, all claims must be submitted in writing by email or text, along with photographs of the damage.

Before hiring any moving company, make sure they are properly licensed and insured. Just because someone owns a truck doesn’t mean they’re authorized to move household goods for hire in New York State.

View Our Insurance and Licensing Information →

8. Can Reliable Movers handle pianos, gun safes, hot tubs, and oversized furniture?

Yes. Reliable Movers handles specialty items on a regular basis.

We average 200–250 piano moves per year. During COVID, we were moving approximately two pianos a day, six days a week.

Our hot tub moving season typically runs from April through November, depending on the weather. We average 100–150 hot tub moves per year. We have specialized moving carts and a flatbed trailer for handling hot tubs.

Gun safe moving really picks up in September when hunting season starts. Our crews regularly handle gun safes weighing anywhere from 100 to 3,000 pounds. We have the equipment and experience to move these heavy items.

Pianos, hot tubs, and gun safes are priced separately from standard household furniture because of their weight, size, equipment requirements, and additional labor involved.

9. How far in advance should I schedule my local move, and what happens if my closing date changes?

If possible, we ask customers to schedule their move at least 5–10 days in advance. However, we can often accommodate last-minute moves depending on availability.

Our moving schedule changes almost hour by hour. Many customers run into closing issues, construction delays, or unexpected changes to their moving dates. We understand these situations happen and do our best to accommodate last-minute bookings and rescheduling.

We also offer a load-and-hold service. We can load your belongings onto one of our moving trucks and hold the shipment for up to 48 hours for an additional fee.

This is especially helpful when your closing dates don’t line up or your new home isn’t quite ready.

We understand moving dates can change, and we do our best to work around those changes.

10. Why should I hire Reliable Movers instead of another local moving company in Syracuse?

Mike started out as a laborer for another moving company many years ago. When he started Reliable Movers in 1996, he wanted to do things differently. He made changes to how moves were handled and added services that other moving companies weren’t offering.

I’ve worked in the moving industry for almost 30 years. I spend countless hours researching the industry, watching how it changes, and finding ways to improve our business. We’ve come a long way from advertising in phone books to running a business in the internet age.

One thing Mike and I have never changed is our commitment to flat-rate pricing for both local and interstate moves.

One of the biggest complaints customers have about moving companies is being overcharged. We wanted to eliminate that problem by being upfront about our pricing. No surprises, no unexpected charges, and no customers wondering what their final bill will be.

We’re one of the few moving companies that actually publish our moving rates right on our website. I do that because I want customers to know we’re honest, fair, and transparent about what we charge.

I also built our Meet Your Movers page so customers can see the actual employees who will be coming into their homes. We have nothing to hide.

We pay our employees fair wages because I believe that when you take care of your employees, they take care of your customers. That’s one of the reasons so many of our crew members have stayed with Reliable Movers for years.

Mike and I have spent nearly 30 years building this company. We’re still personally involved in the business every day.

I want customers to know who they’re hiring, what they’re paying, and that they can trust us with their belongings. That’s what Reliable Movers has always been about.

Meet the Reliable Movers Team →