Relocation agents
 

Hello,

Our move to NY is increasingly looking likely.

My husband is in the negotiating stage and a relocation agent has come up as part of his package.

Not having done anything like this before I’m curious as to what they do for their fee and could we manage without. Am I being crazy ambitious thinking I can do this part myself?

Re: Relocation agents
 

It's certainly possible yourself, many people on this board moved without a relocation agent -Myself included, i moved for work with no agent. But - It was just me, i basically upped and moved with 2 suitcases and nothing else which made it fairly easier.

However - if i would of had a relocation package offered to me, I'd have bit their hand off and accepted.

They'll arrange things like apartments/houses for your initial move, they can advise and help on cars, bank accounts, area's to live in, shipping your property etc.

My advice would be if it's being offered to you as part of the job offer - take it. It'll make your life so much more stress free and you'll have enough on your plate in getting yourselves prepped and ready for the move as it is. :)

Re: Relocation agents
 

If it's being offered as part of the package there's no reason not to take it up as far as I can see.

Re: Relocation agents
 

I had a relocation agent as part of my expat move during my week "recce" visit. He was very helpful in finding me somewhere to live, getting me a bank account, SSN, etc. It didn't cost me anything as it was paid for my the firm. Still, i felt he went beyond what was expected so when i finally came over i brought him a bottle of Scotch.

Re: Relocation agents
 

Depends what you mean by "relocation agent" - should be more than just a realtor. My first US employer provided the services of a realtor to help us find a house to rent - everything else was up to us. After seeing several undesirable houses we realized the realtor was basically wasting our time by showing us houses that he obviously had trouble renting out. In the end, my wife went looking herself while I was at work and found us a great rental house in a great area.

Re: Relocation agents
 

Ditto. The realtors we used were sickeningly gushing...wanted to be our new best friends...called us family etc. We found our own apartment to rent...then house to buy without using realtors. They all seem to be all the same. Don’t know if US relo consultants are like that.

Don’t you love the pic realtors have on their biz cards? Always looks like their high school graduation photo. :lol:

Re: Relocation agents
 

Pulaski gave me the heads up on this thread. It's what I do here in Austin.

Honestly, it makes life so much easier for you in ways that you won't even begin to realise until afterwards. Ihave been on the receiving end of this service a few times and it is so nice just to have someone tell you what to do and when. Especially critical if renting can be tricky and expensive - like NY!
So yes, if offered, bite their hand off!

Re: Relocation agents
 

Thank you everyone, much appreciate your replies.

It’s good to know what they will help with (bank account etc).

It looks like our move will be next year, early on for Dh and I’ll be following a few months later, have to wait for dd to finish her exams first.

Re: Relocation agents
 

Relocation agents offer a wide range of services - from home finding to school search, settling in assistance (phones, bank accounts, car purchase / rental, local registrations, finding clubs/gyms etc), to short term accommodation, orientation tours, airport meet and greet, sometimes even visa and immigration if this isn't provided separately.... there is loads they can do to help, they are a friendly voice to help you through it all too.

Of course you can do all this yourself, but in my opinion what a lot of our customers find beneficial is the experience and knowledge they have of the local area, the different processes and systems in the US compared to the UK (for example how you go about getting a school place) and how to get the best out of everything. It also saves you the time and stress of doing all of these activities yourself, leaving you to focus on everything else you'll have going on right now.

If it's included in your package, like others have said, i'd snatch their hand off!

Re: Relocation agents
 

Just to add to this...
some packages are more generous than others.

Homefinding = 2 days of property research, viewings, lease process,utility set up and move in inventory.
Settling in = 2 days bank account, ssn, driver's license area orientation
School search = 1 day of school search, visiting, document check and registering.

Some relocation people will help a bit with lists/advice etc if you aren't given the full
package. If you have kids definitely ask for the 4/5 days.

Re: Relocation agents
 

We’d need home finding and settling in. I’ll add the extras to my list to double check they will be included.

Don’t need schools. My dd is 18yo and how this affects her is still up in the air but we want her to apply for the visa with us so at least she can decide when the time comes.

Thanks again

Re: Relocation agents
 

So much depends on the person you get. If you are lucky you get someone like pf who has a passion and wants to help.

My own experience was very poor, it just wasted our time and provided no value, in retrospect I blame this on the individual and not the relocation company. Things like the house search was useless, involving a buddy of hers that was obnoxious, and we had to do that ourselves, also for the SSN she just got in the way made appointments at awkward times and gave poor information so we also ended up doing that by ourselves - and the list goes on. At every stage the advice was poor and we had to take more time to get the task done properly.

On the other hand for my more recent domestic relocation I was provided a wonderful realtor who not only got me into my dream house, he would also help me with any question I had relating to the relocation.

So if it is provided, then take it. If you get someone good then it really makes the whole process easier. If you don't like the person you can ignore them.

Re: Relocation agents
 

Thank you!
I also had a terrible relocation person when we moved to France. And that was when we really needed help since it was all in french. We did our first visit where we were supposed to choose a house and a school. Waste of time. We complained and were given another visit with a much better person.

Here is what to look for:
ask for a list of properties to be sent to you beforehand that they think might be suitable. Are they in the right area? Budget? rooms? facilities? If not, ask what the problem is. Might be that your budget really is too low for what you want.

Your commute time should be checked on google maps. On the webapp you can put in departure time and it gives a pretty good estimate.

Honestly, some people just want you to do everything for them, others want more of a say and to be kept a bit more in the loop.

Even if you're getting just 2 day home search, I would ask for email assistance with the other stuff. I don't mind sending out an email telling people where to go, what documents they need and the best time to go .

Re: Relocation agents
 

Thanks, that’s very helpful.

PF, are you anywhere near Long Island ;)

When Dh did his move to London I organised estate agents, one was brilliant and got what we wanted spot on the other one was way off and wasted our time. I’ll be having two recce trips (hopefully) but I don’t want to waste time so sussing out how good the agent is by asking for info before our trip will help me.

Re: Relocation agents
 

just come on BE and ask for help!

My tool of the month is google maps - I create maps for my people showing properties and all the details - and distance relevant to work or school. You can put on points of interest shops bars anything really. Like this one
https://drive.google.com/open?id=1kA...Vw&usp=sharing