The short answer
Two ways to price an apartment, and you get the lower one.
- Item by item if you can list what is going. Sofa $126, Mattress, Queen $103, Dresser (Standard) $126, Desk (Standard) $83, Dining Table (2-4 Seat) $103.
- By truck fill if it is a whole unit: 1/4 $241, 3/8 $338, 1/2 $431, 5/8 $513, 3/4 $587, 7/8 $661, full $732.
A stripped studio on the grid is often a $241 quarter truck or less. A fully furnished two-bedroom in Natomas or La Riviera is normally a half or three-quarter load. The minimum per visit is $75.
Sacramento apartments are not all the same shape
Four distinct buildings, four different jobs:
- Grid units. Converted Victorians and flats above storefronts on J Street and around Capitol Avenue. Interior staircases, no elevator, no loading zone, and the truck usually works out of the alley.
- Garden complexes. Arden-Arcade, Watt Avenue, Howe Avenue, La Riviera, Natomas. Exterior stairs, breezeways, carports, and a long carry across the lot to where the truck can actually sit.
- Student blocks. The apartments ringing Sac State off Folsom Boulevard, and the older complexes in Tahoe Park. Furnished, shared, and emptied in a 72-hour window in May.
- Downtown and Midtown newer builds. Elevators, a service entrance, a loading dock and a building manager who wants a certificate of insurance on file before anybody touches a gurney.
What each size usually costs
| Unit | Typical load | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Studio, mostly empty | Item by item | $75 minimum up to $241 |
| Studio, furnished | 1/4 truck | $241 |
| One-bedroom, furnished | 3/8 to 1/2 truck | $338 to $431 |
| Two-bedroom, furnished | 1/2 to 3/4 truck | $431 to $587 |
| Two-bedroom plus a packed storage closet | 7/8 to full | $661 to $732 |
A stripped studio spans from the $75 minimum up to the $241 quarter truck because it depends entirely what is in it, and that is exactly the point of item pricing. Nothing is estimated on your doormat.
A real one-bedroom, priced out
Midtown one-bedroom above a shop, tenant leaving everything:
Sofa $126 + Coffee Table $67 + Mattress and Box Spring Set $143 + Bed Frame (Standard) $68 + Dresser (Standard) $126 + Desk (Standard) $83 + Office Chair $61 + Bookshelf $72 = $746.
That is above the full-truck rate of $732, so the job books at $732. If the sofa and dresser were already sold, the same unit is $746 minus $126 minus $126 = $494, which sits above the 1/2 truck rate of $431, so it books at $431.
That is how the two pricing methods interact. You do not have to work it out. You just do not get charged the higher one.
The May problem
Late May is the single busiest two weeks in this metro. Sac State lets out, the Davis leases turn over, and every complex from La Riviera to Natomas has a queue of units to flip in the same week. Dumpsters at those complexes fill on the 28th and stay full.
If you are a tenant, book before the last week of the month. If you are a property manager flipping several units, book them as one visit at one address block rather than one at a time, because a truck that only has to park once gets more done.
Access details that actually matter here
- Which door. On the grid, say whether the crew works the street or the alley. Half the Midtown addresses are practically alley properties.
- Elevator reservation. Newer downtown buildings often require it, and a Saturday slot goes early.
- Certificate of insurance. Managed buildings usually want one before the date. Ask for it when you book, not on the morning.
- Carport vs lot. In the garden complexes, the nearest legal truck position can be a hundred feet from the unit door. Flag it so the crew brings the right gear, not because it changes the price, because it does not.
- Gate codes. Obvious, endlessly forgotten.
Eviction and abandoned-property cleanouts
Different job, same pricing. Usually a volume load because nobody sorted anything, and usually urgent because the unit is losing rent every day it sits.
Two things worth doing: photograph the unit before anything moves, and separate anything that has to be stored under your obligations rather than hauled. Tell the crew what stays. Everything else prices off the truck-fill ladder like any other load.
Booking it
Photos of each room beat a description every time. You get the total before a truck leaves, and it covers carry-out from any floor, loading, hauling and disposal. There is no stair fee and no elevator fee.
Frequently asked questions
Do you charge extra for a third-floor unit with no elevator?
No. Stairs are free. A furnished one-bedroom on the third floor of a garden complex off Howe Avenue prices identically to a ground-floor unit.
Can you provide a certificate of insurance for my building?
Yes. Request it when you book so the management office has it on file before the date.
Do I have to be there?
No, if you can arrange access. Plenty of landlords and out-of-town tenants hand over a code and get photos when the unit is clear.
What is the cheapest an apartment cleanout can be?
$75, the per-visit minimum, for a unit that is down to a couple of small items. Most furnished units land between $241 and $431.
Can you do several units at one complex on the same day?
Yes, and it is the efficient way to do it, especially in the last week of May when every complex in the metro is flipping at once.