This is for anyone in or around Catskill with a small move: a one-bedroom across town, a few rooms to a new place nearby, or a storage unit emptied into a house. It explains what the three-hour minimum is, how the clock counts toward it on a short job, and when a different way of pricing would serve you better.
What the three-hour minimum is
Our hourly rates are published: 2 movers at $200 an hour, 3 movers at $280, and 4 movers at $350. The rate is the same with or without a truck. Every hourly job carries a three-hour minimum. If the whole job takes less time than that, the bill is still three hours at the crew's rate.
The minimum exists because a crew booked for your move is a crew that is not on another job. Loading a truck, driving out, wrapping furniture and setting up at the other end take the same preparation whether the move is large or small. A short job still takes a crew and a truck off the board for part of the day, and the minimum covers that.
We would rather tell you this before you book than have it show up on the bill. It is the same rule on every hourly job, and it is written on our local moving page and the pricing panel on the homepage.
How the clock counts on a short Catskill move
The clock starts when the crew leaves our shop on Stony Brook Road in Palenville and stops when they get back. So the drive out to your place and the drive home at the end are both on the bill, along with the work in between. That is how licensed movers charge, and we explain it up front so the number makes sense.
For a move inside the Town of Catskill, that works in your favour. Palenville is a hamlet in the Town of Catskill, so the drive from our shop to a home in Catskill, Palenville or Leeds is a short one. Less of your bill goes to the road and more of it goes to the crew carrying your things.
The flip side is that a short drive and a small load can add up to less than three hours. When that happens, the minimum applies. The crew does not slow down to fill the time, and nothing extra is added. You simply pay for three hours, and the job is done when it is done.
What fills the time on a small job
A small move is rarely as quick as it looks on paper. The time goes to a few things that do not shrink much with the size of the load.
- Wrapping. Every piece is pad-wrapped and shrink-wrapped before it moves. A dresser or a sofa gets the same care on a small job as on a large one.
- Taking things apart. Bed frames, table legs and anything that will not fit through a door come apart and go back together at the other end.
- Stairs and access. A second-floor apartment, a narrow stair in an older house in the village, or a long walk from where the truck can park all add time.
- Loading properly. The truck is loaded so things ride safely, not just piled in, and unloaded into the rooms where they belong.
If most of your boxes are packed and labelled before the crew arrives, and the path from the door to the truck is clear, the job moves faster. That is the part you control.
When a different option serves you better
The three-hour minimum is fair for a real move. For some jobs, though, booking an hourly crew is not the cheapest way to get it done, and we would rather say so.
One heavy item. If what you need moved is a single piece, such as a piano, a gun safe or a large piece of furniture, it is priced on its own and not held to the three-hour minimum. Our specialty item moving page covers how that works.
You have the truck, you need the hands. If you have rented a truck or a storage container and only need help loading or unloading it, labor-only help may suit you better than a full move. The rate is the same with or without a truck, and you decide what goes where.
A flat rate. If you would rather know the number before the day, send a few photos of what is moving and we can quote a flat rate instead of the clock.
Crew size. A smaller crew costs less per hour. For a small apartment with no heavy pieces and easy access, 2 movers is often enough. A bigger crew earns its rate when there is heavy furniture, stairs or a lot to carry. We size the crew to the job, not the other way round.
What to tell us for a short move
A few details let us plan the crew and the time properly:
- The address at each end, or the towns if you are not ready to share the address.
- How many rooms, and what the biggest pieces are.
- Whether there are stairs at either end, and how many flights.
- Anything heavy, like a safe, a piano or a hot tub.
- How close the truck can park to the door.
- Whether you are packing yourself or want help with packing.
Photos of the biggest pieces and of any stairs say more than a long description. With those, we can tell you which crew size makes sense and whether a single-item price or labor-only help would be the better fit.
If you want to see how a short move in Catskill comes out on the clock, the estimator gives a planning range in about a minute.