Professional Packers Guide: All You Need To Know

Did you know that the success of your fast approaching household move depends on your ability to make the right decisions? That’s all there is to it, really: make the right moves and you’re (almost) guaranteed a smooth house move from start to finish; make the wrong calls and you’ll understand first-hand why moving house is considered to be one of life’s most stressful events.

Yes, there are so many decisions to be made during the process of transferring belongings between two homes that you’d better summon up your respectable decision-making skills before it’s too late. And, as you might suspect, one of the puzzles you’re expected to solve pretty early in your preparations is whether you will hire professional packers to protect your prized possessions for the risky journey ahead.

Will you choose professional packing services or will it be self-packing for you? Or maybe both packing scenarios at the same time?

Use the Professional Packers Guide below to clearly see the choices ahead of you.

Reasons to hire professional packers

The date of your house move is just around the corner and it’s time for important decisions. If you can afford to hire full-service movers to take care of each and every aspect of the upcoming relocation, then you should have little to worry about as the professional moving company you have selected will also offer you professional packing services.

Taking into account that the task of packing up an entire home is almost always considered the most demanding and time-consuming job in anyone’s relocation calendar, hiring professional packers is a luxury that you shouldn’t easily dismiss – unless you really can’t afford it, of course. Let’s take a look at the major reasons you should seriously consider using trained professionals who will pack up and protect all of your household items in the best possible way.

Lack of time. If you have two entire months to finish your house packing project, you will think twice before paying experts to do it for you. But with two weeks until your move-out day, packing up your home on your own seems nothing short of a miracle.
Lack of experience. If you’ve never had to move house before, you may be a bit worried that you don’t exactly know where to start packing for a move. Losing precious time until you decide what to do is never a good idea.
Too many items. If you own too many things and you do plan to move them all, then you will lose forever to pack them safely. Professional packers, on the other hand, are known for their speed-packing abilities without compromising any safety rules.
Specialty items. Your hope of packing your entire home by yourself can quickly evaporate if you happen to own specialty items such as antique furniture, a piano, a pool table, a hot tub, a heavy safe, and so on. The self-packing risk is just too great to be ignored.
Long distance move. If your new home is located hundreds or thousands of miles away, then your belongings will spend too much time on the road. And that is exactly why you’re advised to get the best possible protection for them – professional packers for moving.

Pros and cons of professional packing

You may find yourself in the slightly baffling situation of not knowing for sure whether you should pay a moving company to pack up your own things, or not. The reasons to hire professional packers mentioned above may not always be enough to help you reach an informed decision. In such cases, you should definitely consult the following list of the pros and cons of professional packing services:

The advantages of using professional packers for your upcoming move are:

Professional packers in action.

Quality packing materials. The cost of packing supplies and the time you will need to obtain those materials are two things that cannot be simply disregarded. You can always attempt to find moving boxes for free, but the success of that uneasy task will largely depend on how much time and efforts you will be willing to invest. Using professional packers and movers means they will arrive with all the quality packing supplies they will ever need, which also means one less move-related responsibility for you.
Packing speed. What to expect from professional packers? You know what they say – practice makes perfect. Your professional packers and movers may not be perfect in the true sense of the word, but the speed and efficiency with which they will wrap up your things and load them into the moving vehicle should be hard to match by non-professionals. Remember that time is often a crucial factor during a house move.
Safety. Safety when packing things for a move is of paramount importance. The top-rated full-service moving company you will send down trained and experienced packers who are fully aware of all the safety rules and efficient packing techniques that should protect any type of household item – from a pretty ordinary wooden chair to a pretty special antique china cabinet.
Insurance. Thanks to the fact that professional packers are insured in most of the cases, they will accept the liability for any items they pack. Phrased differently, the moving company should reimburse you with the monetary value of any broken and damaged belongings of yours as long as they have been packed by their moving experts.

The disadvantage of hiring professional packers for your residential move is:

Cost. Naturally, the major drawback of using professional packers is that you will have to pay for their service. Thus said, the cost of professional packing can vary greatly and will depend not only on how many things you have to be protected for the road, but also on what those items are and their overall packing complexity. Read on get a better idea of how much professional packers cost.

How much do professional packers charge?

Arguably the most important thing you should keep in mind is that the professional packing prices will vary from company to company, so it’s wise to never accept the first price estimate that comes your way. The wisest thing under the circumstances is to get a few offers from different movers and compare those packing quotes carefully. Feel free to fill our cost estimator to establish that initial contact with professional packers near you.

If your large furniture pieces need to be disassembled for safer packing, then be ready to pay an extra furniture disassembly fee.

How much does professional packing cost? Ultimately, the packing price will be formed on the basis of the volume and weight of the items to be wrapped up, the total time required for the completion of the job, and the presence of specialty items that demand special handling.

Local moves. As a rule of thumb, local moving companies will charge you for the packing service on an hourly rate. If you do your homework right, you should be able to find professional packing services for about $40-$50 per hour per packer. Add up that approximate packing rate for each additional worker. Most local movers will also charge you a travel fee that amounts to one hour of standard packing labor. Make sure you know in advance if the cost of the packing supplies will be included in your final bill or not.
Cross country moves. Cross country movers that offer the complete range of moving services will quote you a price that will include the additional service of packing. The price of the packing job alone will be estimated on the volume and weight of your items – usually on the size of your home. Use the quote form at the top of the page to request packing estimates from licensed, insured and accredited moving companies with respectable online reputation.

Packing is an extra service offered by professional moving companies, but there are a number of special services within the packing task as well. For example, furniture disassembly, and possible re-assembly at the destination home, is an accessorial service that will increase the professional packers costs. Also, if you own special items that need to be placed in custom wood crates for maximum protection, the on-site custom crating will cost you more.

Essential info: What are the average moving costs?

How to prepare for professional packers

Although the team of professional packers will do what you have hired them to do – prepare all of your valuable household items for quick and safe transportation, you still need to be ready for your packing crew. What to do before movers come to pack?

Get rid of any items you don’t need to reduce the total weight of your shipment, and from there – to bring down the moving cost. Why should you pay for the transportation of useless things? It doesn’t make any sense, does it?
Your packers will refuse to pack any items that are considered dangerous – anything that is corrosive, explosive or flammable. Foods of any kind are also not allowed to be packed, so you’ll have to dispose of such hazardous materials prior to the arrival of your packing team.
Make a complete inventory of your possessions before your professional packers and movers knock on your door. The detailed itemized checklist will help you check your items the moment they are delivered to your new home.
How to prepare your home for professional packers? One of the things you should do is establish a no-pack zone – a room, preferably, where you can keep the things you will move on your own – the essentials boxes, for example.
Prepare a few essentials boxes with items that you will definitely need until you get access to your regular belongings once again. Such essentials may include prescription medicine, plastic utensils, non-perishable food, spare clothes, set of hand tools, toiletries, etc.
Pre-pack some of the smaller items to save time and to have greater control over more sensitive stuff, such as collector’s items, for example.
What to do when packers arrive? As a rule of thumb, you should leave the professionals do their job but you can still stick around in case they have any questions. Also, don’t forget to show what a good and considerate host you are by offering them snacks (sandwiches, cookies) and beverages (bottled water, coffee, tea).

Looks like you have visitors in your home. Who might those dear guests be?

Find out more info: 10 things to do before professional packers arrive

Professional packers near me

Find the best movers near you and you will also find the best packers in your area. In fact, getting in touch with reputable moving companies that offer packing as part of their professional moving services has never been easier. There are no more than 3 simple steps to securing the best professional packers in the city you live in:

Step 1: Use the cost estimation tool at the very top of this page to have licensed and insured full service movers contact you.
Step 2: Ask the companies for in-home price estimation, followed by accurate cost estimates. Show the experts all the items you need to be professionally packed.
Step 3: Compare the received quotes, browse through genuine customer reviews of the companies you’re reviewing to check their reputation, and ask your friends if anyone has used any of the movers before. Base your final decision on all the information you have gathered until that moment.

Important info: Find, compare and hire the best movers around you