Sean Donnelly is a writer for USA TODAY Homefront. His content draws on more than three years of experience in the moving industry. He started as a laborer and was quickly promoted to moving crew leader. Sean also served as a move coordinator, where he conducted in-home and virtual estimates for customers. During his time in the industry, Sean assisted more than 500 clients with their relocation needs. Thanks to his years of hand-on experience, he understands all aspects of moving — from proper preparation to the quote process to effective packing techniques. Sean studied English literature and creative writing at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, and is still located in the greater Springfield area. When he isn’t writing, Sean is a cohead coach of the boxing team at his alma mater.
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Moving long distances can be challenging because few companies have a nationwide service area without relying on third parties. Moving APT is a moving broker that aims to add credibility to this formula by providing visibility into its moving partners via detailed company bios on its website.
Moving APT partners with more than 2,500 individual moving carriers across the U.S., which includes many other movers that we rate highly. Its partner companies provide everything from container moves to full-service cross-country moving at transparent rates.
While trusting a broker and its various partners with your belongings can be a mixed bag, Moving APT makes a smart bid for your trust by providing excellent visibility for its moving partners.
Moving APT scored 4.5 out of 5 stars on our proprietary rating scale and is our choice for the best mover for complicated interstate moves. Its number of moving partners and quality customer service teams make it easy to deal with at all stages of the booking process.
Its partner companies can offer container moves and full-service relocation services. While it specializes in interstate moves, this provider provides quality assistance if you move locally.
Like many moving brokers, Moving APT has customer service issues. According to customer reviews I read, these quality control problems mostly point to the negligence of Moving APT’s many partner companies it works with, not the broker itself.
Moving APT’s wide network of moving partners makes it a great choice for complicated long-distance relocations, especially if you live in a major city. I also experienced this mover’s quick and easy quote process firsthand. Getting an accurate quote for your move can take as little as 20 minutes and always involves a visual survey of your goods.
I like that Moving APT publishes descriptions and bios for its partners in larger urban markets, such as Miami, New York, Los Angeles and Dallas. These breakdowns can give you greater visibility into the movers and van lines Moving APT works with and, hopefully, hassle-free moving dates. All brokers featured in these write-ups are fully registered with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) and are highly regarded in their areas.
Moving APT’s customers face many of the same issues as other brokers’ customers. Quality depends on the specific moving teams and labor each partner company provides, potentially leading to hiccups throughout the moving process. Your moving day is only as good as the professional movers assigned to your relocation, which is evident in negative reviews.
While this broker is clear about its status as a broker, plenty of reviews mention services not being fulfilled and invoices exceeding initial quotes when movers show up.
Most brokers require large deposits to book, which serves as their booking fee for the move. The deposit amount I was quoted was 32% of my quoted total. While not unheard of, I found brokers that charged around 20% for booking, which can be far easier on your bank account. This large deposit can deter you if you’re on a tighter budget or have your money tied up with other essential relocation expenses.
Moving APT specializes in long-distance relocations but offers quality local moving services in all 50 states. Aside from price matching capabilities, Moving APT offers a standard range of guaranteed services with each move it provides. This includes loading and unloading, basic disassembly and reassembly of furniture, and released liability coverage for all goods transported or otherwise handled. As a bonus, you can add 30 days of free storage to any long-distance move.
This broker also provides many guides and general moving resources on its website, which can help if you’re a first-time mover or lack experience. This includes a basic timeline breakdown of a successful move, which can help make the buildup to any move more manageable.
Moving APT’s service offerings will largely depend on the partner carriers it has in your area. Aside from the 30 days of free storage that it offers with long-distance moves, it also provides long-term storage in secure facilities at an additional cost. These same partners also have valuation coverage options that go beyond the released liability coverage movers must provide.
As a bonus, Moving APT’s partners can provide packing and unpacking services, vehicle shipping, crating and packing materials if you need them.
To price out my sample move, I spent 20 minutes on the phone and spoke with two people: a Moving APT booking agent and a local moving company representative. During the call with Moving APT, I submitted my basic move details, including my sample home size (three bedrooms) and moving distance (roughly 2,800 miles). Next, Moving APT connected me to a representative with a local mover near my hypothetical starting point.
My cross-country move quote involved a brief rundown of all the furniture and items I was moving. Ultimately, I had to press for a ballpark estimate since most moving companies won’t yield binding quotes without a video call or in-person appraisal of the home and all your belongings.
Moving APT quoted me $10,600 for this 2,800-mile move, including packing services, which had a stand-alone price of $1,600. Therefore, the total would have been $9,000 if I opted to self-pack. This mover also offers 30 days of free storage near the destination address for all long-distance moves. In either case, my required deposit to book would be $3,402. In the event of a cancellation, I would be eligible for a full refund until seven business days before moving day.
My Moving APT representative mentioned that it offers price matching for all moves, which not many competitors do. If I received a lower quote from another company, Moving APT would lower its rate to match.
Moving APT also includes a chart of estimated rates for local and long-distance moves on its cost calculator page. The following estimates are up-to-date as of December 2023.
Moving APT features quick and accessible sample pricing for moves via an online cost calculator tool. However, you’ll have to call 800-360-0037 or visit Moving APT’s website for your own custom quote.
Moving APT features more than 2,500 individual partner companies spread throughout all 50 states. This makes long-distance and local assistance accessible in most locations in the U.S. This broker doesn’t advertise international moving services. Therefore, if your move is international, you must hire a different provider, such as International Van Lines.
Per federal regulations, all Moving APT relocations include released liability coverage for your goods. You can supplement this 60 cents per pound per item coverage for loss or damage with valuation coverage that most Moving APT partners offer. Pricing for this will vary depending on which company handles your move.
I read customer reviews from numerous sources, including Trustpilot, Better Business Bureau (BBB) and Google Reviews for Moving APT’s home office in New York. After reading more than 100 reviews, I pinpointed a few core trends that summarize this mover’s customer experience.
On the positive side, Moving APT provides customers an easy booking process and connects them with reputable movers in their respective areas. People report that booking through Moving APT streamlines an otherwise confusing process and makes it easy to find moving companies that offer their desired services. Recent reviews from BBB show that grace periods for delivery on long-distance moves were clearly communicated upfront and that pricing estimates were generally adhered to.
Negative reviews for Moving APT report many of the same issues that plague other moving brokers. Customers cite over-billing as a common complaint. Partner companies sometimes upcharge at the delivery point, which puts customers in a difficult position, as illustrated by Isabel’s experience. Aside from this, customers mention that some of the companies Moving APT uses are not fully vetted or high quality. This leads to poor moving experiences all around.
However, Moving APT’s 4.5 out of 5 star rating on Google Reviews and 3.53 out of 5 star rating on BBB are more indicative of the overall sentiment regarding this mover. Moving APT largely provides solid local and long-distance moving assistance. This is boosted by the visibility it provides for many of its partner companies via company bios on its website.
You can mitigate many of the most common complaints against this mover if you inquire about which company will handle your move when you book.
Moving APT is our choice for more complex interstate moves and they give free quotes. Its wide range of services makes it a flexible option if you have more in-depth service needs. We also like its price-matching options and its efficient quote process. However, we recommend asking which moving partner will handle your move before committing to this provider, as partner company quality can vary depending on your location.
Once you’ve gotten your Moving APT quote, we recommend getting at least two other quotes from full-service providers. Compare the base offerings and pricing from each and decide on a company at least four weeks before your desired moving date.
Our moving recommendations are all backed by our detailed rating methodology. To fairly assess both interstate and local movers, we have tailored two sets of review standards for long-distance and intrastate movers.
Both sets of review standards assess factors including reputation and customer satisfaction, availability and range, services offered, pricing and quote practices and customer service. We rate each moving company out of 100 possible points; that total is then translated into our 5-star rating we use in our reviews.
BBB and Google Reviews ratings are accurate as of December 2023.
Editorial note: The name “Homefront” refers to the alliance between USA TODAY and Home Solutions that publishes review, comparison, and informational articles designed to help USA TODAY readers make smarter purchasing and investment decisions about their home. Under the alliance, Homefront provides and publishes research and articles about home service and home improvement topics.
Homefront has an affiliate disclosure policy. The opinions, analyses, reviews or recommendations expressed in this article are those of the Homefront editorial staff alone (see About Homefront). Homefront adheres to strict editorial integrity standards. The information is believed to be accurate as of the publish date, but always check the provider’s website for the most current information.
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