Full-Service Moving

A full-service move inside Israel means one plan covers everything between your old front door and your new one: pricing, packing, taking furniture apart, loading, the drive, carrying, rebuilding furniture and unpacking. With MovingIL you deal with one contact, in English, on WhatsApp, and you receive one closed price before anything is booked. MovingIL plans and coordinates the move. The packing, carrying and driving are done by independent moving companies we work with.

Many moving quotes are written around a truck and a few carriers. That is enough when you have packed every box, emptied the wardrobes and kept the screwdriver within reach. It leaves a lot open when you have not: who wraps the sofa, who unscrews the bed, who rebuilds the wardrobe at the other end, who deals with forty flattened cartons. Full service takes those questions off your plate and puts each of them on one written list with one price.

Here is how it runs. You send the basics: where you are moving from and to, the floor and the elevator situation at each end, roughly what you own and the date you need. Photos and short voice notes help more than a long description. In the same conversation we come back with a closed price based on that list. Once you agree, the move is booked with a moving company that has confirmed the date and the route. If packing is part of it, the packers usually come the day before or early on moving day. On the day the movers take apart what has to come apart, wrap the furniture, load, drive and carry. At the new home they place the furniture where you point, rebuild what was dismantled and, if you chose it, open the boxes and put things away.

Full service does not have to be all or nothing. Some families hand over everything, from the kitchen cupboards to the books. Others ask the packers to do only the kitchen and the fragile items and pack clothes and toys themselves. Some pack everything and want only the furniture dismantled and rebuilt, plus unpacking at the other end. The pieces are packing, unpacking and home setup, furniture assembly and disassembly, moving crates and storage between homes, and for special cases office moves, senior moves, house moves and long-distance moves. You can combine them in one booking and one price. Which options are available for your route and dates is confirmed in our first reply.

The price follows the access more than the number of boxes, so we ask about access first. Tell us the floor at both ends, whether there is an elevator and how big it is, and how far the truck has to park from the entrance. Mention anything large or awkward: a sofa that arrived through the balcony, a wardrobe built into the wall, an oversized refrigerator, a heavy desk. Also mention the storage room in the basement or parking level (the machsan) if it holds anything, and the safe room (the mamad) if it doubles as a spare room or a store room.

Israeli buildings have their own surprises. Many older apartment buildings have no elevator and narrow stairwells with tight turns, and even a building with an elevator may have one that fits people better than furniture. Large American-style refrigerators and deep sectional sofas are the usual culprits, because they can be too wide for an older doorway or kitchen. A short measuring session before moving day, or photos of the stairwell and your largest items, saves an awkward conversation on the landing. If something will not fit, we want to know before the price is agreed.

Parking and the building matter too. A moving truck needs somewhere to stop close to the entrance, and in many cities that means arranging a reserved space ahead of time. The rules and the process differ between municipalities, so check with yours (many run a 106 line) and we will build the timing around it. Buildings often have their own rules as well, such as elevator hours, protective covering for the stairwell or notice to the building committee (vaad bayit). The building's WhatsApp group is often the fastest place to find out.

Timing needs more thought than people expect. Summer is the busiest season, because many leases and school terms change over then, and the last days of a month fill up first. Fridays and the eves of Jewish holidays are short working days, and moving companies generally do not work on Shabbat, so a move that has to be finished before Shabbat needs an early start and some slack.

A closed price means the number is agreed in writing before the move and is tied to the list behind it: what moves, between which floors, with which services. If the list changes, for example because a second storage room turns up or the elevator is out of service, the price is confirmed with you again before the work continues, so nobody negotiates on the stairs. The price depends on volume, floors, distance, how much packing and assembly is involved and the date. We do not publish numbers, because a number without your list behind it is a guess.

The week before the move is where full service pays off. Confirm the elevator and the parking. Empty and defrost the refrigerator and freezer the day before. Disconnect the washing machine and let it dry. Set aside the things that travel with you: documents and passports, jewelry, cash, medication, laptops and chargers. Pack a first-night box with a kettle, mugs, bedding, towels, toiletries and a phone charger. Everything else belongs on the list the movers are working from.

What full service does not include. MovingIL coordinates moves between two places inside Israel. We do not ship from abroad, clear a container at the port or handle customs. We do not clean the old home, and we do not install air conditioners, connect gas or water appliances or fit lighting, which are jobs for qualified technicians. If you need one of these, say so and the quote will state clearly what is and is not covered.

Who is on the phone and who is at the door. You talk to us in English from the first question to the last box. The people carrying your belongings come from the independent moving company we book, and they may speak mostly Hebrew. We brief them in advance and use simple room names on the boxes. You can ask for English speakers, and we tell you straight whether that is possible for your date.

A managed move suits people who would rather have one plan than assemble one themselves: families moving with children, newcomers still learning how things work here, people moving while working full time, and relatives arranging a move from abroad. If you only have a room's worth of belongings to move, a small move may be all you need, and we say so when your list points that way.

To start, use the form on the home page or write to us on WhatsApp with the details above. You will get questions rather than a form letter, and a closed price once the list is clear.