Here's the sit.: I'm moving from a one bedroom to another 1 bedroom; a few blocks away in Astoria. I have several big pieces of furniture - queen size bed, 3 cushion couch, standard stuff- and I will have boxes of books and other misc items. (I do plan on moving the smaller items myself so that will change the rates)
After contacting a bunch of people, here are my experiences so far:
1. Shea Moving- they do seem super nice, but a big concern is that they do NOT use plastic wrap for furniture. They reuse blankets for all moves. You can buy their "paper" wraps for $2.95 a sheet though. They say they fumigate their trucks on a regular basis. I'm just concerned with bed bugs here, people. They cannot reassemble couches, but recommended "New York Couch Doctors" 516-328-8234 (of course that would be an additional cost.) Don't have an estimate from them yet. A bonus is that they will actually come to my apartment pre-move to do an estimate. Apparently most moving companies should offer the option for an in house estimate, but for smaller jobs like mine it's not always necessary.
2.
moving748@hotmail.com / 718-569-2089
If you're on a budget, these guys seem to be the cheapest I've found. Very no frills, no nonsense. Flat rate $60/hour, two hour minimum, with two guys. They are not insured. They can disassemble and reassemble furniture if need be, and they also use plastic wraps.
3. Rabbit Moving was pricier than expected at $120/hour for 3 guys, plus a travel fee of $60. Considering the short distance of the move, that seemed a bit pricey. But they are insured, and they do use plastic wrap. They said it would be a 4-6 hour job (though I doubt it would be)
4. Based on all my considerations, my favorite so far is Schleppers.com. 212-223-4004 Spoke to a great guy named Art Garfink, totally upfront with me, no bs. They also offer 15% discounts on certain days. (check their website) All inclusive with travel time and for an estimated 3-3.5 hour job, using 3 guys, (Rabbit quoted this as a 4-6 hour job) they said $428 for the whole thing. They are insured as well. And he kept giving me tips to save time/money. They've been around since 1978.
5. Oz
http://www.ozmoving.com/ seemed like nice folks but they were not cheap. for a 4.5 hour job (plus one hour travel time) with 3 guys, they estimated $770 ($655 with discount) They are insured, but also seemed a bit pushy.
Everyone say "thanks Clarusha" for all the work I saved them. :-)