Jake's Moving & Storage

Cannot recommend them! After about an hour on the phone and even providing room/ house pictures to the estimator, I can only assume they intentionally underbid the move to get my business and then charged me way more (in my case double) on the day. They require cash or bank check the day of services but since they were totally wrong in their estimate, we did not have the cash so they also charged us a 5% service charge to pay by credit card. Interesting, as to the unpacking, we dismissed the guys earlier saying we would do the majority of the unpacking ourselves but there was no savings or discount as now it was a flat fee, not hourly for the unpacking, only the packing end. Several items were damaged in the move but the worse was that their packers thought it was ok to stack in one box artwork/pictures without anything in between - no protection as backs of frames sat rubbing on fronts of other pieces causing damage. When I brought this to management's attention, they were rude and were all to happy to inform me that their liability was capped at $50 and I should have gotten extra insurance (read their fine print). They have no incentive to use more and proper packing materials since that cuts into their profit and since they do not have to worry about much liability. I am very unhappy.

Very Unprofessional Management! if you do not feel like reading it all... SIX hour move turned into NINE hours. General Manager blamed me as he though I was expecting too much even though I was just going by the contract. I have never wrote a negative review before because I know everyone has a bad day. But this was ridiculous! I chose Jakes because of the excellent reviews. After getting a written quote from Tracy, who declined to have a site inspection done...twice, declined because she said she has been doing this for many years and knows based on what I said what kind of job it will be. Tracy said one truck, 4 guys, and 6 hours, and so did the contract she sent to me. She said my items would fill a truck and they may possibly have to go back to pick up a second load which would be an extra hour charge ($200 an hour) but still cheaper then sending two trucks. It was understood that this would be a six hour job. The only extra time Tracy and I ever talked about was the second trip. Come day of the move a truck and 4 guys showed up on time as promised. They all walked through the house and I pointed to everything they would be taking. I had already pack all the boxes and moved them into the garage. The main guy said his guys are fast so it wont be a problem but he may need to make two trips. I said lets see how fast you go and make a decision from there, however I have access to a small trailer so I told him I didn't want to take on an extra $200.00. Again "my guys work fast, don't worry". All they had to do was remove the furniture and load the boxes that were in the garage. I will admit my furniture was heavy and fragile, but this was explained to Tracy several times in plain English..."All my furniture is really heavy and when we moved last time, because of all the glass the movers had to crate it". Problem is it took them NINE hours, not six...NINE! It did fill their truck and I made multiple trips myself with several friends that I called over to help so we could speed things up. I asked him so many times during the move how I could help and what to take to speed things up. He said just keep doing what I was doing and take as much as I could but he though they actually fit everything, then he didn't, then he did, then he didn't. As I was loading things into my personal truck and my SUV my friends and I were being watched by a worker who never once offered to assist us in any way, even though he was just standing there waiting. He was brand new apparently so maybe he didn't know. When they were "done" the main guy said they could not fit everything and would have to make a second trip. We are at the 5 1/2 hour mark and I told them to leave and unpack and I would go get my trailer. When I went to see how much was left I realized they felt patio furniture, a 55 inch TV, 11 boxes and other items on the second floor...they didn't even bother to bring the rest down to help me out. My wife went to the new house to assist them. The movers asked my wife if we wanted them to reassemble furniture. We said yes as that was part of the contract. My wife had to tell them to protect the floors as we just has the carpet cleaned. The main guy told my wife they had another THREE hours to go. So the six hour job now became a nine hour job. I called the General Manager as I did not feel this was acceptable. That conversation did not go well as he chose the path of putting all the blame on me. Like...I was "expecting too much"; the contract states "no less then six hours, which means it will probably take longer"; "every moving company goes about 20% over" (note that they actually went 50% over); if I didn't see "his guys taking long breaks and standing around then they were working"; the guy standing in the garage watching us "was probably just catching his breath"; "common sense doesn't really exist anymore"; I "should have been specific and told the driver that I expected this to be done in six hours because you were on budget"; and my favorite was for all he knew I "was trying to take advantage of the situation"...that was only a few of the great comments but the last one sealed the deal for me. I will say he offered to take one hour off the bill but he had already insulted me to the point that I didn't want anything less then the contracted price as now I was being accused of trying to scam Jakes. Oh yeah...when I went to pay for the full nine hours I did not have enough cash anymore as it was $600 more the I was quoted so I had to use a credit card...of course, if I read the "fine print" I would have known there is a 5% fee for credit cards ($100.00). They also put a hole in the wall of my new home and broke two legs off my headboard and neglected to mention it to me. Anyway, I'm sure other moves will go great but I felt If using this company, which I don’t recommend, pay attention to “not to exceed” part of the contract. Things happen but what's important is how those things are handled. The General Manager from Jakes Moving and Storage in Maryland gets an "F".

HORRIBLE SCAM EXPERIENCE. This experience was horrible, resulting in 2 additional days of unauthorized charges, verbally abusive language from the manager, and scam behavior from company. Contracted for 6 hours/1 day (1-bed apartment of items, some bulk furniture to trash on-site). Loading dock scheduled 2pm, destination 5pm. Moving day=driver called apprx 1230 to request earlier destination load time due to being finished first job early, and not needing full time. Movers showed up around 2, continuously stated on-time throughout day. Approx. 5pm received destination notice loading dock closed at 7, movers could take additional time once in. Driver confirmed adequate time to arrive by 7 with all items, was told to prioritize moving stuff, not bulk trash, if necessary. Movers began moving slow, shuffling items around, moving different piles (I had back injury, but began moving items quickly down to elevator and truck, leaving items). Driver finished ¾ loading, barely made 7pm dock, stated would finish job (needing additional hour) that week. Writer confirmed second move date with driver (scheduled for 2pm on second day, NOT TOLD WOULD BE CHARGED), driver clearly notified destination dock closed at 7, and received assurance there was ample time, was only additional hour of work. Day 2-HORRIBLE. Received text from driver that move was scheduled, but additional paperwork required from main office (no contract, just confirmation of what they were finishing). Unable to reach manager throughout the day, getting panicked (received continuous texts from driver scheduled for 2). Took day off, moved items/trash with back injury, waited all day. Finally reached manager at 2pm, who was hostile and condescending. HOSTILE OR UNPROFFESSIONAL REMARKS= minimum charge of 4 hours per day, even if drivers only needed 1, Second date to finish a move was not guaranteed, manager does not have to do business if he doesn’t feel like it, and that no coordination between driver and this writer should have taken place without deferring to the manager for approval. Manager emphasized multiple times that he was in charge, didn’t appreciate being disrespected by having the movers coordinate without him, that he would require double the fee for the second move date (DISPUTED, DID NOT AGREE, CONTINUED TO STATE THEY WERE FINISHING ORIGINAL JOB WITH 1 ADDITIONAL HOUR). Emphasized he was clearly delaying and dragging out job, concerned items wouldn’t be moved. Manager stated he would send email confirming move, then comments like “you don’t have an iphone to check your email?” “You can’t figure out how to check email?”. Call was closed after manager stating he would send email and confirm with drivers. At 430pm, still no movers, unable to reach manager, very panicked. Manager finally answered while in store, yelling so loudly through phone I had to leave. COMMENTS FROM MANAGER= “don’t have to do business when being disrespected” “don’t have to do business with a woman who couldn’t even coordinate a loading dock time” “not required to do business with a woman who spoke in a disrespectful tone to him”. Manager hung up several times after stating he was in charge, did not have to do business with anyone being disrespectful to him, and that he wouldn’t be “talked over by a woman who couldn’t even set up a loading dock time”. Manager finally agreed to send drivers after multiple distressed calls, again…NO CONTRACT SIGNED OR VERBAL AGREEMENT OF MINIMUM CHARGE. Driver continuously texting they were arriving soon, ample time to finish. Texted driver, who indicated they were running late, but would be able to fully finish the job. Relayed interaction with manager to drivers, who stated he had multiple issues in past, doesn’t like being “disrespect” by people going over his head, and to ignore his yelling, they would get items out. They began moving in such inefficient and slow manner (despite constant prompts and my assistance (such as hauling small items one by one instead of loading carts of items). Mover stated they were running behind because manager hadn’t had paperwork prepared and they got late start. Contacted manager over concerns that truck STILL WASN’T LOADED at 6pm. Manager stated again “movers aren’t robots, they are tired, no guarantee of how fast they will move”, that the only way to ensure finishing in one day was to be the first move on the books, and that could also take two days if they were tired, and stated that given the 7pm loading dock time, a clear 3rd day with a minimum 4 hour charge would be required. Manager stated again he did not have to do business with anyone disrespecting him, they would keep items overnight for hourly charge. Finally agreeing this was ridiculous, and to delivery. 3rd day-equally insane. Attempted shuffling items to drag out time, I refused to sign contract or agree to additional work. Was charged for 3 days (1,440 over), additional lease dates at first location, and 3 days off work. HORRIBLE.

Make sure they come out to the location and evaluate the size of the move.

Jake's Moving and Storage came highly recommended, and they were indeed very professional. I applaud them for that. However, their estimate was off by $1200. I've moved many times, and I've never had an estimate be so inaccurate. We made a similar move in this neighborhood a year ago with a company called Suburban Solutions. They did it more quickly and for half the cost while even having to climb up an extra set of stairs! Again, these guys were very nice, but they actually are meticulous to the point of being counterproductive. They wasted time on things like emptying my chest of drawers and wrapping my neckties instead of simply wrapping up the furniture and moving on. They took off the handles of some of the drawers and screwed them on the INSIDE of the furniture so as not to lose them. Weird. And don't even get my girlfriend started on the person items they went through and wrapped individually. It took a total of 17 hours to pack and move a one bedroom/one bath and small storage. And keep in mind that they charge the same for packing as they do for moving... $150 an hour. We called Jake's to complain, and they were very kind in understanding. But (of course), they only gave us a small refund after my girlfriend explained to them her concerns. TL;DL: Professional guys, but you can definitely find a cheaper alternative.

unknown

This was the second time I used Jake's Moving & Storage. Considering how "questionable" and unreliable moving companies can be in this country, it was a pleasure to use this smaller family owned and operated moving company again, moving my things from storage to a new townhouse in Potomac. They gave me their price per hour at the beginning, which included EVERYTHING and were very professional at all times. There were no surprises at the end like charges for wrapping, bubble, paper, etc. In the past, I NEVER had a moving company that actually charged what they initially quoted. I would highly recommend them for your moving needs.

The move took 15 1/2 hours. Three men did packing and moving and they were beyond exceptional. You would not believe how hard they worked, for all that time with only a short break for pizza. These movers were punctual arriving at my home, they wrapped everything beautifully down to the half burnt candles in my kitchen. They tirelessly carried the heavy boxes and furniture all the while being courteous and polite to all of us. They listened as we directed and sometimes misdirected and the had to change paths. They effectively and carefully packed and moved a very cramped, overstuffed three story townhouse with true finesse. They performed their jobs as if they were moving royalty! I can't speak highly enough about the quality of these individuals and the great job they did for us!

i was happy with the rate that was included upfront to me and the rate did not exceed from the original quote .

The service was excellent; the movers were professional and courteous; all furniture and items arrived safely with no scratches or dents; six men were sent to our home and they worked the entire time with the exception of a brief 10 minute lunch break. I highly recommend this company for your moving needs.

Well, did not take long to complete. Very polite.