Late March was a shock to all of Massachusetts when Governor Charlie Baker in my opinion declared the only rational thing, all non essential businesses were to be shutdown until further notice. Living in Northampton, many of my friends work in restaurants and other service based businesses. What does this mean for them? Stimulus checks are supposed to be on the way, and business that have not laid off their employees may be granted loans pretty soon, but what about the people whom I know are living pay check to paycheck, and just paid every last penny that they had to rent April 1st?
When I started my moving business with my partner Mark, it was and still is our intention to ensure that people have access to top notch, affordable, moving services around the Northampton and Springfield Western, Ma area. The question that I ask myself now is, can anyone afford that down payment, or first, last, and security deposit? Don't even get me started on the brokers fees! Even if you can afford to move, is it really safe to hire movers, or even worse get into a U-haul truck and do it with friends & family. This brings me to a whole other blog post, DO NOT RENT A U-HAUL DURING QUARANTINE!
Depending on the situation with your lease, now would be a good time to ask your landlord for an extra month or two if the last month of your lease is right around the corner. We are finding that many places are finding it hard to replace tenants right away, so in theory it shouldn't hurt to guarantee 2 more months of a paying tenant. If you are purchasing a home and you hire a moving company, make sure you keep them up to date with your closing as we are seeing a lot of delays in this area. Most Moving companies are very lenient, make sure you read your contract before signing and make sure that their aren't any rescheduling fees, or check to see how much notice is needed.
The biggest fear about moving today is public safety and health. Who will be coming to your home? Have they been in quarantine? The list of questions and concerns go on. The best thing to do is hold off on your moving plans until things look better, or at least the state opens back up. If you must move, make sure that the company that you hire have a Covid-19 Policy in place. We at Haul of Fame Movers has worked thoughtfully on our Covid-19 policy which is listed bellow.
Covid 19 Procedures and policies.
Due to the current pandemic we at Haul of Fame Movers are in some cases taking extreme measures in order to insure the wellbeing and safety of our team, clients, and community. Our hopes are that we can set a great example for the moving industry as a whole, so that we can help dampen the spread of this virus. These Procedures and processes go into effect immediately on 4/1/2020. Moving Covid 19
Work Pods: The same crews of 2 or 3 will work together every job. For local moves everyone is required to take their own vehicle to each job (gas will be reimbursed). Jobs are not to exceed 3 team members in order for us to keep social distancing in effect. If there has been an instant where a team member has either been exposed to or had not been practicing social distancing outside of or at work, the team member needs to be quarantined for 2 weeks before returning to work.
PPE: All team members and clients need to use PPE the day of the move to ensure that proper safety measures are being taken.
Latex or Nitrile exam gloves
Work gloves
Mask
Social Distancing: Clients are to build an imaginary 6 foot barrier between them and the movers. There is to be no handshaking, high fives, or physical contact by anyone. Social distancing is to be practiced a minimum of 2 weeks prior to all jobs. If anyone has been in contact with an infected person or hasn’t been quarantined at home PLEASE DO NOT COME INTO WORK OR BE PRESENT THE DAY OF THE MOVE!
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