Below are the questions we hear most from people booking a move in Chicago, Cook, DuPage, or Lake County, or planning a long-distance move out of Illinois. If your question isn’t covered here, send it through the quote form and Michelle will get you an answer.
How much does a local move with Checkmate Movers cost?
Local moves are billed hourly: $145/hr for a 2-mover crew, $185/hr for 3 movers, $225/hr for 4 movers, and $50/hr for each additional mover beyond that. Your walkthrough with Jamal will tell you which crew size actually fits the job — we don't upsell a bigger crew than a move needs.
What's the $175 deposit for, and is it refundable?
The deposit holds your move date on the crew calendar and is credited directly to your final invoice — it's not an extra fee. Cancel or reschedule with reasonable notice and it can typically be applied to a new date; specifics get spelled out when you book.
Is my stuff insured during the move?
Yes. Every job carries basic released-value protection at no cost. For more coverage on a specific item, full-value protection is available too — Jamal prices it out at your in-home estimate rather than adding it automatically.
Is Checkmate Movers actually licensed in Illinois?
Yes. We're licensed to operate as a household goods mover in Illinois through the Illinois Commerce Commission, and we carry US DOT and interstate MC authority on file for long-distance moves leaving the state.
Do you offer storage if my move dates don't line up?
Yes — short-term storage in our own West Fulton warehouse, not a unit we're subleasing across town. It's useful when a closing date slips or a new place isn't ready the same week the old one has to be empty.
Can you move a piano or a gun safe?
Yes. Pianos, uprights, grands, and heavy items like gun safes get moved with a piano board and real rigging straps, and the route through your home gets planned at the walkthrough before it moves an inch — stairs, doorframes, and turns included.
I need to move in the next few days — can you still fit me in?
Often, yes. We keep room for same-day and next-day moves when a timeline collapses; call the office and Michelle will tell you what's actually open on the crew calendar rather than making you wait on a standard two-week booking window.
What actually happens at the walkthrough, and why does it matter?
Jamal walks your rooms with you and works out furniture placement, load order, and building access — elevator windows, stairwell width, loading dock hours — before crew day. That planning is the difference between a load that goes once and one that gets carried up the same stairs twice, which is exactly the problem Desmond built this company to fix.
What areas do you actually cover?
Chicago and the surrounding Cook, DuPage, and Lake County suburbs — Oak Park, Evanston, Naperville, Schaumburg, Cicero, Berwyn, Skokie, Elmhurst, and the towns between them — plus long-distance moves leaving Illinois.
Do you handle long-distance and interstate moves, or just local?
Both. Long-distance moves out of Chicago run on our own trucks with one crew and one load plan for the whole route, not a broker handoff partway through. Common routes include Milwaukee, Indianapolis, St. Louis, Detroit, Minneapolis, Columbus, Cincinnati, Kansas City, Nashville, and Cleveland, though we run interstate jobs outside that list too.