Heidi Newman is the business development manager of Golan’s Moving & Storage.

Every week, we ask a real estate professional for their Short List, a collection of tips and recommendations on an essential topic in real estate. This week, we talked with Heidi Newman, the business development manager of Golan’s Moving & Storage, on how agents can choose a great mover for their clients.

6. Ask your network of friends and colleagues for good referrals. A person’s good experience is the best recommendation for a good mover. Remember to listen only to people whose opinions you trust, and to get as many details as possible about their experience.

5. Make sure your client only uses a licensed mover. It may be tempting to go with a smaller, seemingly “less expensive” mover, but unlicensed movers operate outside the law, and your client will not be protected.

4. Because moving is a human experience, damages and/or loss can not always be avoided. Ask the potential company what percentage of their moves end up in the claims process. The industry standard is about 20 percent. Compare that to the movers you are researching.

3. Make sure your client understands the way costs are calculated. For example, while Mover A may have lower hourly rates, if they are not as experienced and talented as Mover B, they will most likely take longer and then the total will be higher because of the greater number of hours.

2. In your client’s conversations with relocation consultants, make sure they are honest when providing information on the amount of their possessions. It is easy for all of us to want to underestimate amounts and/or sizes of our things, thinking that will cost less, but the more accurate your client is with their descriptions, the more accurate the estimate can be. Because it is just an estimate, if they are specific, they can get a good idea of the cost range over the phone. If they want a more precise estimate, they can insist upon receiving the free on-site estimate for which they are entitled.

1. Finally, have your client go with their gut. They should feel free to ask their relocation consultant every question that they have. They deserve to feel comfortable and attended to at every step of the way in this process.

Heidi Newman is the business development manager at Golan’s Moving & Storage, which involves building Golan’s Brand, networking with industry related professionals and educating the public about the high-end services that Golan’s offers. Heidi also helped to create the Concierge Department, which acts as a liaison between Golan’s and other industry related services. For any questions or concerns about the moving process, feel free to contact Heidi at heidin@golansmoving.com.