Reviews of STS Movers (Orange County, CA)

[Diane]

STS Movers is a small company headquartered in Orange County, CA.

The owner, Don is originally from New Jersey. He drove for Ethan Allen Furniture in Pennsylvania from 1990 to 2002, then moved to California for family reasons. He again worked for Ethan Allen in CA before buying two trucks and striking out on his own in August 2006. He still does quite a bit of commercial work in addition to moving household goods. With two partners, he operates a warehouse in San Bernardino under the name K.G.S. Logistics that is fully equipped for vaulted storage.

Several months ago I talked with one of Don's customers, Kyle B., who described him as "helpful, efficient, careful, and eager to grow his company." Having met him recently, I would agree with this judgment. He knows that he has a lot to learn about the paperwork aspect of the moving business but he has friends in the industry who are advising him. He is fully licensed and insured for both within-CA and interstate moves.

Don's enthusiastic reviews here and on www.uship.com show that he tries hard to make his customers happy, offering personalized service that often goes beyond what is legally required. As an outgoing and talkative person, he has developed many useful contacts over the years. For example, because of his work for Ethan Allen, he knows master refinishers who have repaired goods to a "better than new" condition on a couple of occasions where there was damage. Recently he was able to mobilize 50 or 60 workers on short notice to move furniture for a major bank.

Don tells me that he can do most Los Angeles-San Francisco shipments that are under 2000 pounds for around $1500 and deliver the same day or the next. He often goes to Las Vegas and Phoenix as well, and he goes to and from San Diego. He also does local moves within Orange, Los Angeles, and Riverside counties, charging by the hour and giving not-to-exceed estimates. So he is primarily a local and short-distance interstate mover. My impression is that his prices are very reasonable. He is a down-to-earth, plain-spoken individual and I feel confident about his honesty.

I am re-posting Don's listing from the Superlist below as a place-holder until more reviews come in.

:thumbsup: --STS Movers (independent) in Westminster, also dba Schwartz Transportation Services. [Legal name is Donald R. Schwartz.]
A VERY GOOD PERFORMER with at least 5 good reviews and no bad reviews on this website. This company with MC #527192 has the website www.stsmovers.com and the phone 714-791-5547. It is licensed to do interstate moves. The owner, Don Schwartz, posts on MovingScam as "donatsts" and has made some helpful comments here. He is listed on www.uship.com with the user ID "22mover" and as of 2/08 he had about 28 very positive comments there. He also accepts loading and unloading jobs from MovingStaffers (listed on the ABF U-Pack website.) He posted in 1/08 that he usually charges between $65 and $85/hour for two men and a truck, depending on the season - http://www.movingscam.com/forum/viewtop ... 034#102034
In 7/07 Carla McKinney moving from Lakewood, CA to Canada had STS load her ABF truck. As it turned out, her moving blankets, bubble wrap, and rope purchased through ABF didn't arrive in time so Don also supplied those (he had picked some supplies up from Pioneer Packing just in case). Carla posted that "he and his colleague are doing a wonderful job; they were prompt and extremely professional packing and moving my things and they have been very efficient (they have been here less than three ours and will be done in probably 30 minutes!)":
http://www.movingscam.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=14266 (loading help)
"Kyle" reported in 8/07 that Don had done both business-related moves and personal moves for him and he was very pleased with Don, describing him as "efficient and careful." Both types of moves included storage in the STS warehouse in San Bernardino:
http://www.movingscam.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=14502 (within-CA with storage)
There is another very good review posted by "aeest400" in 8/07 saying that Don moved him from Los Angeles to Monterey, CA, on very short notice for $2000 and did it in one day with three helpers:
http://www.movingscam.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=14544 (within-CA)
There are two good reviews of the company for local moves during the summer of 2007 on this website--one says that Don beat everyone else's price:
http://www.123movers.com/moving_service ... n_services (two local moves)
"duffs23" posted a rave review in 2/08 of a move from Los Angeles to San Francisco done by STS in one day at a fair price and with no damage:
http://www.movingscam.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=15583 (in-state)

[KellenR]

I would recommend STS Movers to anyone who is interested in a quality move at a competitive price. I used STS Movers for my last local move which was about 20 miles away. Don and his crew are professional and efficient. They showed up on-time and I was amazed of how quickly they were able to wrap up my goods and load the truck. They package and protect items very well and use care in stacking the truck well. Don is very honest and tells you exactly how it is...what he quotes you will be exactly what it costs. "My move" was by the hour and the crew didn't waste any time as they completed the move as fast as they possibly could. I will for sure be using STS Movers for any of my future moves and have already recommended them to a few friends. STS is a sure-fire safe company to go with at a fair cost.

[mcquaidla]

I just sent a long letter to the site detailing my move with STS. When I figure out where on the site it is, I'll refer to it. In the meantime, however, let me say that these guys were GREAT.

I think this is as good a moving experience as you will ever have. Don is a straight-shooter, his crew works hard and carefully, and he's a pleasure to do business with. I hope not to move again too soon (I hate moving) but when I do, STS is doing it.

[Diane]

Hi, and thanks for your good review of STS. If you posted your longer description of your move in the "Comments" section, it went to Tim Walker (administrator/owner of the website) and he should eventually forward it to one of the moderators for posting. Meanwhile, if you want to add any details such as where you moved from and to and the cost, please do so. (You can edit your post by clicking on the "edit" button in the upper right corner of your post.)

[Diane]

I just went on www.uship.com to look at Don's recent reviews and he now has 32, all positive - see http://www.uship.com/profile/22mover/

People considering using his company can click on the "View Listing" links on the above page and read the entire written dialogue between Don and the customers as he was negotiating with them. (Uship providers are not allowed to communicate with customers by phone until the deal is set; at that point, contact information is released.) In my opinion, the dialogue gives a good sense of Don's upbeat personality and "can do" attitude. I like the reviews on uship.com because, as on MovingScam.com, the movers can't edit them in any way, although they can comment on them if they want.

[codydog]

I created a topic about my positive meeting with Don of STS movers this morning. However, I have decided this is the proper place for it. After quotes from full movers and almost signing up with a company that was definately a scam(name not included), we decided to go with ABF Upack. Diane suggested we contact Don at STS movers and he might be willing to stop by and help us evaluate how many relocubes to get. We have givin most of our furniture away, but do have many boxes of varying shapes. It was so refreshing to talk with Don. He offered suggestions, shared his expertise in packing, and was not afraid to make suggestions that would save us money, while probably taking away from what he could get from us in the loading of our relocube/s. We were going to get help loading the cubes anyway, but after talking to Don, we want him to load our belongings in his truck and transport them to the Fontana storage facility for us and load the cubes there. It was sooo refreshing to talk to someone who was concerned with the customers needs and finances over and above trying to eek out any extra dollars he could from us. A great big thumbs up for a very reputable, customer service driven man and his company. Wish he did cross country moves. Well maybe in the future he will. I am not saying there are not reputable moving companies out there, but ohhhhh the pain of trying to find them. Thanks for listening. Pat

[Diane]

Thanks so much for posting, Pat. It helps to have a first-person account of how Don impresses people when he goes out to see their shipments. It isn't easy being in the moving business, having to deal with all types of customers with all types of agendas. I agree with you that Don has just about the perfect personality for it--part psychologist and part comedian, putting people at ease as well as being a highly capable and honest mover. I'm just glad that he's still willing to do these small loading and unloading jobs because I don't think there's much money in it for him, but I know that he views every interaction with customers as an opportunity to build good will for his business. Please do keep us posted on the outcome of your move.

[Diane]

This brief review just came in to the MovingScam "Comments" section from a person named Jung Lee and the owner of the website (Tim Walker) passed it on to me, so I'm posting it for him:

I used STS movers this past weekend for a local move in San Diego. They did a great job. Don, who is the owner of the company is a no nonsense guy, stands by his word and promise. I highly recommend them and I would use them again.

(Some people don't know how to post reviews so they submit their reviews to the Comments section.)

[rrasst]

I inquired STS movers from this website. I contacted Don and talked about my moving expectations. I was moving a garage into two different storage buildings and vise versa. Don quoted me a price and it was dead on at the end of the move. Don and his crew took very good care of all of my possesions. They also reorganized both storage units for me as well in a very quick manner. Also, Don and his crew were very polite, nice and very easy to work with. I would recommend STS Movers to anyone. I know I have put them in my address book and deleted all other movers from the past. If you need a job done big or small, STS Movers are the people to see in the Southern California area, they will treat you right.

Good Moving

[carolboo]

Don and his crew are terrific. They arrived at the agreed time and loaded everything with TLC. We even got help vacuuming the stairs! Everything was delivered at the agreed upon time as well. Not one thing was broken. It was the best move ever and moving is no fun. I would not hesitate to use STS Movers again and would highly recommend them to everyone!!!

There were no hidden fees. No extra charges. Fair pricing. I wish everybody did business this way. The world would be a better place.

Thanks so much for a painless move that was a great experience.

[rawrimamonster]

I've arranged to have a short notice out-of-state move from Los Angeles to Seattle done with STS, and am very enthusiastic about the move.

I was in a real rush to get my move arranged quickly at the same time as dealing with finding a new place and wrapping up the job I was leaving, and suddenly faced the extra burden of fielding tons of calls from suspect moving companies (I do believe I narrowly avoided several scammers using the internet to search for a mover). I stumbled across this site to check out some companies I'd heard from, but I called STS after seeing all the positive feedback here and on other sites, especially since he was local. I'm glad I decided to make the call!

Don spoke with me immediately and, based on some info I had received from other estimates, quickly gave me an idea of costs and talked to me about a plan for the move, but also requested an in-home visit. After seeing my place and what I was moving, his quote was right on track with what he'd said over the phone, and he was even willing to be flexible on the final cost. He calmed me down a lot about the stress of packing for the move, as well; I won't have to be as paranoid and extra-prepared about moving items like glass, heavy furniture, etc- as Don put it, if someone isn't able to pack/load these kinds of items correctly and safely then he'd never hire them to do one of his moves.

Don's move is going to be direct from here to Seattle without having to transfer vehicles or wait for other loads, so I know I'm not going to have any mixups or lost items, and I know when the move will arrive, since I won't have to wait for other loads to be headed in that direction. He even talked over the specifics of the schedule of the drive, estimating when the driver will be on the road and when they'll be sleeping to get the best idea of the earliest time the load might arrive.

Dealing with Don in setting up my move was a refreshing and terrific experience, and I'm very optimistic about how the pickup/loading, move, and dropoff will go!

Sincerely,
Dave
Los Angeles, CA (for a few more days)

[rawrimamonster]

Just a quick update now that I'm all settled and my internet is finally up and running:

The pickup went fantastically, Don's guys were incredibly thorough and careful, and Don arrived with the crew himself to help and oversee. It was a very personal and pleasant experience working together with them on organizing, safeguarding, and moving all my furniture and boxes, as well as getting my vehicle all prepped and carefully secured for the haul.

The driver kept in touch with me on their progress on the trip, and when it came time for the unload, the driver and helper arrived even earlier than I did at my new location, and got the car off the trailer and moved in while they waited for me to arrive and let them in to start the unloading. Everything went just as smoothly on the unload, nothing was missing or damaged, and as I unpack I haven't found a single damaged item amongst any of my boxes or furniture. Bill even made great creative efforts to get my couch safely up into my second-floor unit by way of the balcony when it wouldn't quite fit with a strangely-shaped entrance hallway.

All in all, I'm blown away with how seamlessly everything went and can recommend STS wholeheartedly. I've had some really bad moving experiences, and this move reminded me that the process of using a full-service mover does not have to be painful by nature. I've already passed on their info to friends back in LA who might need an upcoming local move, and I'd suggest others moving out of SoCal see if STS can make their move out of state as pleasant as mine was.

Thanks, Don!

Sincerely,
Dave
Bellevue, WA

[tforster]

STS just moved my household goods from L.A. to Las Vegas. These guys are the BEST! Their binding bid was cheaper than their competitors, and they were extremely gracious on my weight limit. On the day of the move, a team of 7 men carefully wrapped and loaded my possessions in just over an hour (I did my own packing). They drove the truck to my Vegas home that same day ... sending 3 guys with them to unload. ALL of my items arrived on time, in perfect shape and within a couple hours, I was completely moved in. Every STS mover was extremely professional, courteous, trusting, respectful and nice. I am recommending STS to anyone and everyone I know who is in need of a mover. This company is awesome and Don is one of the most professional business owners I have ever had the pleasure of dealing with.

[noypi007]

First, I would like to express my gratitude to the folks who created and continue to maintain this site. And to those who take the time to answer questions, post recommendations and reviews, my sincerest thanks. The information this site provides is an invaluable resource.

On May 19th, I read an article by the NY Times online referencing movingscam.com. After a week of getting bids from local movers, whose prices were so far apart I could not tell which one was legitimate, it was like finding an oasis in the desert. Based on the recommendations and feedback on uship.com, I decided to send an email to Don Schwartz of STS Movers.

It was very late in the evening and with my target move date looming, Memorial day weekend, I didn't really expect to get a response. Imagine my surprise when 15 minutes after I pressed the send button, 11:03 PM to be exact, I get a response back from Don. He informed me that he can accommodate my short notice move and we ironed out the details the next day.

Every bid I received was for a 2-person crew, since it was for a 2-bedroom apartment, but Don recommended a 3-person crew because he believed that it would be more efficient. At first glance, it seemed to be one person too many but I agreed with his assessment even though the cost (per-hour) would be higher.

STS Movers is a remarkable company. The crew was fast and efficient. Not once did I see a person make a trip to the truck empty handed. They were polite, professional and treated my property with care. In the end, it took them less time than any other bid and total cost ended up lower than I estimated.

STS Movers is simply amazing! This is the moving service company to use in SoCal and I have no qualms about recommending them to everyone I know. I'm not planning to move any time soon, but I will definitely call them again when the need arises.

To Don and Crew, thank you.

Sincerely,
Kit G.
Santa Clarita, CA

[bmceachen]

Don Schwartz and his crew are Top Notch!

I made a very sudden move from Phoenix, AZ, to San Diego, CA. I looked to www.movingscam.com for assistance in my decision of a moving company and I could not be more pleased.

Don Schwartz, STS Movers (aka Schwartz Transportation Services), and their entire crew came through to provide a 5-star level of service.

I was in a situation where I needed to quickly (within a week and a half) move to the San Diego area from Chandler, AZ. I was relocating for a job and wasn't familiar with the area and didn't know exactly within San Diego county where I was going to move. As a result I needed STS Movers to store my possessions for an undefined amount of time.

I think the most satisfying part of the entire move was how comfortable I was with STS keeping and transporting my possessions once I had met the crew. They cared for all of my furniture, art, brand new 60" HD TV, and high-end elliptical trainer (yes Don, I'm using it) with extreme care. There was absolutely no cut corners in the preparation and packaging of my posessions for the move.

I think the second most satisfying aspect of the move was the value I received for the service. Don coordinated the pickup of my stuff to align with another pickup in Tucson, AZ. Initially, I was concerned that he was trying to pack too much into one trip. Fortunately I listened to his advice because not only did everything make it to its destination but I was able to save significant money by sharing the resources with another move.

Don stored my things in his warehouse for nearly two months and was able to deliver my things with just a few days of notice... in perfect condition.

I cannot thank him and his crew enough for making the biggest part of a very hectic moment in my life so extremly smooth.

Ben M.