A long-distance move puts your belongings on the road for days rather than hours. That changes what matters when you choose a mover: proper interstate authority, an accurate estimate, careful loading, and someone who answers the phone while your shipment is in transit.
Johnnie T. Melia Moving & Storage has served the Houston area since 1969. The company is family-owned and staffed by trained full-time crews rather than day labor, and it applies that experience to interstate and cross-country relocations out of Houston and the surrounding communities.
As an agent for National Van Lines, we coordinate door-to-door moves anywhere in the United States. You work with one Houston moving company from the first survey through final placement, with organized service, careful handling, and clear communication along the way.
Our reputation has been built through experienced crews, accurate estimates, careful handling, dependable communication, and consistent service from the first survey through final delivery.
A long-distance move is harder to undo than a local one. Once the truck leaves Houston, the plan you agreed to is the plan you get, so it is worth checking who is actually doing the work and what your estimate really covers.
We have moved Houston households and businesses since 1969. Five decades of long-distance relocations means very little on the road is new to our crews.
TxDMV No. 0000005457. US DOT No. 436264. Agent for National Van Lines for interstate relocations, with cargo and liability coverage on every move. Any mover should give you these numbers on request.
Your shipment is loaded by trained full-time employees, not day labor. Loading a trailer for a 1,500 mile trip takes different technique than loading a truck for a cross-town move.
You receive an agreed delivery spread before load day, and a point of contact while the shipment is in transit. If anything shifts on the road, you hear it from us rather than finding out on delivery day.
Every relocation is planned around your inventory, origin and destination access, timeline, storage needs, and budget rather than a standard package.
Well-maintained equipment, furniture padding, shrink wrap, dollies, custom crating, and the materials needed to keep a shipment secure over long highway miles.
Every long-distance relocation is different. These are the moves we handle most often out of Houston, each planned around what the household or organization actually needs.
Moving a household across state lines involves closing dates, school calendars, and a delivery window you need to plan around. We handle packing, loading, transport, and placement at the destination so you can focus on the move itself.
Smaller shipments headed to or from a campus in another state. Dorm and apartment contents, furniture, electronics, and personal belongings are inventoried and handled the same way as a full household move.
Businesses use us for long-distance office moves, including workstations, IT equipment, files, and furniture, scheduled so the team can get back to work quickly at the new site.
Later-in-life moves often involve downsizing, sorting what stays, and coordinating with family in another state. Our crews work at a pace that suits the household and keep the process clear at every step.
Long-distance moves are not priced by the hour. Interstate pricing is based on the weight of your shipment, the distance it travels, and the services you add, which is why two households moving the same distance can receive very different quotes. The ranges below reflect typical interstate moves out of the Houston area. They are estimates for planning purposes, not a quote. Your price is set after a survey of what is actually moving.
| Home size | Approx. shipment weight | 500 to 1,000 miles | 1,500 to 2,500 miles |
|---|---|---|---|
| Studio or 1 bedroom | 2,000 to 3,500 lbs | $2,200 to $4,000 | $3,200 to $5,800 |
| 2 bedroom home or apartment | 3,500 to 5,000 lbs | $3,000 to $5,200 | $4,400 to $7,600 |
| 3 bedroom home | 5,000 to 9,000 lbs | $4,000 to $7,500 | $5,800 to $10,500 |
| 4 bedroom home | 9,000 to 12,000 lbs | $6,500 to $10,000 | $9,000 to $14,000 |
| 5+ bedroom or large home | 12,000 lbs and up | $7,500 to $12,000 | $10,500 to $17,000 |
Shipment weight is the largest single factor, followed by mileage. Beyond those, price moves with packing services, long carries when the truck cannot park close to the door, stair or elevator access, shuttle service at either end, storage in transit, and valuation coverage above the basic released rate. Specialty items such as pianos, safes, gun safes, fine art, and items needing custom crating are quoted separately.
A non-binding estimate can change if the actual weight or services differ from the survey, and federal rules limit what you pay at delivery to 110 percent of a non-binding estimate. A binding estimate fixes the price for the inventory and services listed on it, so adding items later changes the price. Ask which type you are being given before you sign, and get it in writing.
Every long-distance quote starts with a survey. We walk your home in person or by video, build an inventory, and put the weight, distance, services, and estimate type in writing before you commit. Call 713-683-8585 or request a free estimate to get started.
Tell us your origin and destination, your preferred load date, and roughly what is moving.
For interstate moves we then complete a survey in person or by video. That survey produces the inventory and estimated weight your price is built on, along with the services you want included and the estimate type.
Once the estimate is accepted, we lock in your load date and the agreed delivery window.
This is when packing, crating, specialty item handling, storage in transit, and valuation coverage are confirmed in writing, so there are no open questions on load day.
Our crew arrives with the equipment and materials for your shipment, pads and wraps your furniture, and loads to inventory.
Your shipment then travels to the destination, where items are unloaded and placed in the rooms you designate. You have a point of contact throughout the transit.
We load in the Houston metro and deliver door to door anywhere in the United States as an agent for National Van Lines.
Packing for a long-distance move is a different job than packing for a move across Houston. Cartons are handled more times, stacked in a trailer, and exposed to highway vibration and temperature swings for days at a time.
Our packing crews use double-wall cartons, dish packs, wardrobe boxes, and purpose-made cartons for mirrors, artwork, and televisions, with enough interior cushioning that contents do not shift in transit.
Every carton is labeled by room and listed on the inventory that travels with the shipment, which is what you check items against at delivery.
You can choose the level of help you need, from a full pack of the whole house down to fragile-only packing where we handle the kitchen, glassware, and artwork while you pack the rest.
Some items should not simply be boxed and loaded for a cross-country trip.
Flat-screen televisions, computers, audio equipment, and other electronics travel best in purpose-built cartons with foam cushioning. Where original packaging is gone, we can crate them.
Mirrors, glass tabletops, marble, stone, chandeliers, artwork, and antiques can be measured and built custom wooden crates for the trip. Pianos, safes, and gun safes are handled with the right equipment and quoted as specialty items.
Tell us about high-value and fragile items during the survey. Items above a certain value usually need to be listed on a high-value inventory form, and that affects both how they are packed and how they are covered.
Long-distance moves rarely line up perfectly on both ends. You may need to be out of the Houston property before the new one is available.
Storage in transit holds your shipment in our warehouse between load day and delivery, so you are not paying to keep a trailer waiting or making two separate moves out of one.
Your goods stay in the same vaults they were loaded into, inventoried and sealed, and go back on the truck when you are ready.
Storage in transit is often useful when:
* Your closing date on the new home moves or falls through.
* You are leaving a Houston lease before the destination home is ready.
* The household is arriving in stages and only some belongings are needed right away.
* You are relocating for work ahead of the rest of the family.
* The new home needs renovation or repairs before furniture goes in.
* You are downsizing and still deciding what stays.
Our Houston facility also offers longer-term climate-controlled storage if you need to keep belongings beyond the move itself.
Our reputation has been built through more than five decades of moving Houston families and businesses. Whether a move goes across town or across the country, the goal is the same: professional service, careful handling, dependable communication, and a moving experience our customers feel confident recommending.
An interstate move runs on different rules than a move across Houston. Our guides cover how long-distance pricing works, how to spot a mover you should walk away from, and how to keep the timeline under control.
How hourly local pricing differs from weight-and-distance interstate pricing, and which one your move falls under.
Read the Local vs Long-Distance Guide →The warning signs of a long-distance moving scam, from lowball phone quotes to brokers who will not give you a US DOT number.
Read the Moving Scams Guide →A week-by-week checklist for keeping a move organized, from the first survey through delivery day.
See the Moving Checklist →Long-distance moves come with rules and paperwork that local moves do not. Weight, delivery windows, estimate types, and valuation coverage are all governed by federal regulations, and they are where most of the confusion happens.
Here are answers to the questions Houston customers ask most often when booking an interstate move.
Interstate moves are priced on the weight of your shipment and the distance it travels, plus any services you add such as packing, crating, shuttle service, storage in transit, or extra valuation coverage.
This is different from a local move, which is normally billed by the hour and by crew size. It is also why an accurate survey matters: the inventory taken at the survey is what your estimated weight and your price are built on.
A binding estimate fixes your price for the inventory and services written on it. If nothing changes, that is what you pay, even if the shipment weighs more than expected. Adding items or services later changes the price.
A non-binding estimate is the mover’s best assessment of what the move will cost, and the final charge is based on actual weight and services. Federal rules cap what you have to pay at delivery on a non-binding estimate at 110 percent of the estimated amount, with the balance billed later.
Ask which type you are being given, and make sure it is in writing before you sign.
Six to eight weeks ahead is a reasonable target for an interstate move, and that gives time for a proper survey before you commit.
Summer, month-end, and the last weeks of the school year are the busiest periods for long-distance moving, so book earlier if your dates fall in those windows. Shorter notice is often workable, but you will have fewer date options.
Delivery is quoted as a spread of days rather than a single date, because interstate shipments travel with scheduled stops and driver hours-of-service limits.
As a general guide, a move of a few hundred miles is often a few days, while a cross-country move typically falls in a one to two week spread. Your agreed delivery window is confirmed in writing before load day, and we give you a point of contact to check status while the shipment is in transit.
Standard interstate service uses a delivery spread rather than a fixed date, because a trailer is usually carrying more than one shipment.
If you need a firm date, ask about expedited or exclusive-use service during the survey. It costs more, and it needs to be arranged at booking rather than after the truck is loaded.
Yes. Interstate moving requires federal operating authority, and ours is US DOT No. 436264. We also hold TxDMV No. 0000005457 for moves within Texas, and we operate as an agent for National Van Lines on interstate relocations.
You can look up any interstate mover’s US DOT number on the FMCSA website to confirm their authority and insurance are active. If a company will not give you that number, treat it as a warning.
Interstate moves include basic released value protection at no extra charge, which covers 60 cents per pound per item. On a heavy item of low value that may be adequate; on a 10 pound laptop it is not.
Full value protection is the alternative, where the mover is liable to repair, replace, or settle for the item’s current value. It costs extra and the amount depends on the declared value of your shipment.
We walk through both options during the survey so you can choose before load day rather than at the door.
Yes, or you need to name someone in writing who can act for you. Someone has to walk the property with the crew, sign the bill of lading at origin, and check items against the inventory at delivery.
If you cannot be at both ends, tell us during booking and we will document the authorized person on the paperwork.
Yes. Storage in transit holds your shipment in our Houston warehouse between load day and delivery, which covers delayed closings, staggered arrivals, and renovations at the destination.
Your goods stay in sealed, inventoried vaults and go back on the truck when you are ready. Tell us at the survey roughly how long you expect to need it so we can build it into the estimate.
Hazardous materials cannot travel on a moving van. That includes propane tanks, gasoline, paint and solvents, aerosols, pool chemicals, fireworks, ammunition, and charcoal or lighter fluid.
Perishable food, live plants, and pets are also excluded on interstate moves. We recommend you personally carry jewelry, cash, important documents, medication, and small irreplaceable items rather than loading them.
We will give you the full list before load day so nothing has to be dealt with at the door.
