Local Moving Company in SoHo NYC
Our SoHo location is at 132 Crosby Street, inside the SoHo-Cast Iron Historic District, so we are not describing this neighborhood from across town. SoHo is 26 blocks and roughly 500 landmarked buildings, almost all of them nineteenth-century store and loft structures converted to residences, where the apartment usually starts on the second floor above a retail ground floor. Moishe's Moving Systems has worked these buildings since 1983, and we plan each SoHo move around the loft, the elevator and the block.
Why SoHo Moves Are Different
SoHo is Manhattan Community District 2, and the Landmarks Preservation Commission designated the SoHo-Cast Iron Historic District on 14 August 1973, covering 26 city blocks and about 500 buildings, with roughly 135 more properties added by the Extension in May 2010. Almost nothing here was built to be lived in. That is what makes the moves different.
Lofts Start on the Second Floor
A classic SoHo residence sits above a commercial ground floor, in a building put up as a store and loft for the wholesale and manufacturing trade. There is often no residential lobby and no doorman, and the only way up is a shared freight or service elevator, or a stair. The Landmarks Preservation Commission documents freight entryways, loading docks and elevator shafts building by building on Howard, Crosby, Lafayette and Broome. We measure the elevator and the entry before quoting, not on the day.
Open Column-and-Joist Floors
These buildings were designed for as much open interior space as possible, with interior cast-iron columns carrying the floor beams and joists bolted together floor to floor. The result is a loft with few interior walls and long uninterrupted carries once you are inside, and furniture that was bought to suit that scale. Long tables, oversized seating and large-format artwork are the norm here rather than the exception.
Belgian Block Streets and Hollow Sidewalk Vaults
Crosby, Mercer, Greene, Wooster, Prince, Spring and Grand were all surveyed as Belgian block roadbeds. NYC DOT, which calls the material granite block, flags it as an uneven surface that can be slippery when wet. Underneath the curb line, many buildings still have their original cellar vaults extending under the sidewalk. We plan the ramp position and the dolly route around both.
The Interior Streets Are Not Truck Routes
Crosby, Mercer, Greene, Wooster, Prince, Spring, Howard and Thompson appear on neither the through nor the local Manhattan truck route list. The designated routes are the edges: Broadway, Broome, Grand, Canal, Houston, West Broadway and Lafayette. A truck enters an interior SoHo street only to reach a destination on it, leaving the route at the nearest intersection and returning the same way. Our drivers plan that last leg before the truck leaves the yard.
From Broadway to West Broadway
The Broadway spine, between Houston and Canal, is the retail corridor and the hardest place in SoHo to hold a curb. Broadway is a designated local truck route, but the pedestrian volume is the constraint rather than the building, and the Broome Street intersection is the neighborhood's known gridlock point at peak hours. Loading here is scheduled around the retail day, not around the apartment.
The cast-iron core, along Greene, Mercer and Wooster between Canal and Houston, holds the densest concentration of cast-iron fronts in the district, on Belgian block roadbeds, on no truck route. Slow approach, restricted legal access, and a surface that decides whether we roll or carry.
Crosby and Howard on the eastern side are the two streets the Landmarks Preservation Commission itself calls narrow. West Crosby sits in the original 1973 district and east Crosby in the 2010 Extension, and Lafayette and Kenmare are through truck routes a block away, so the last legal leg is short. This is our own block.
West of West Broadway, the Thompson and Sullivan blocks between Spring and Houston sit inside a city Limited Truck Zone that runs 24 hours a day, seven days a week, which is a stricter rule than applies one block east. A move on that side of West Broadway is planned differently.
Moving Services We Handle in SoHo
Local Moves
In-house crews for moves within SoHo and across NYC, with freight elevator coordination, COI handling and loft-scale planning.
White-Glove and Fine Art
Custom crating, padded handling and protected placement for artwork, antiques and design furniture, which is standard work in a SoHo loft.
Storage With Free Pickup
Our own self-storage facilities in Long Island City and the South Bronx offer private, individually locked rooms for short and long term personal and commercial storage, with free pickup for qualifying rentals.
Commercial Moving
Office moves in the neighborhood's ground-floor and upper-floor commercial space, handled by the same in-house crews.
Long-Distance Relocations
Coordinated moves out of SoHo to anywhere in the country, with a single point of contact throughout.
A Trusted Partner for SoHo Residents
SoHo housing is unusual by design. The city amended the zoning in 1971 to let artists move into the manufacturing buildings while the remaining businesses stayed, and the resulting Joint Living-Work Quarters sit at the second story or above in buildings erected before December 1961. Alongside them are loft buildings covered by the State Loft Law and later conversions approved individually. Roughly 8,000 people live across SoHo and NoHo today, most of them in one of those three categories.
What that means for us is that no two SoHo addresses have the same building rules. One is a certified artist loft with a shared freight elevator and no doorman, the next is a fully legalized conversion with management and a formal COI process. We confirm which one we are dealing with at the estimate, because the paperwork and the access plan follow from it. The constant across all of them is the same: high-value contents, long interior carries and a landmarked exterior that gets protected.
The Moishe's Process: How a SoHo Move Works
A SoHo move is decided by three measurements taken in advance: the elevator, the entry, and the distance from the nearest street a truck can legally use.
Assessment and Pricing
Every move starts with an in-home or virtual estimate focused on what defines this neighborhood: freight or service elevator dimensions, the entry and stair from the street, the scale of loft furniture and artwork, and the crating those pieces need. You choose between a flat-rate quote and an hourly structure, with full cost transparency from the start.
Access and Building Coordination
We confirm the building's access rules, prepare the COI where management requires it, reserve the elevator and the move window, and plan the approach from the nearest designated truck route.
Move Day with In-House Crews
Trained Moishe's crews handle the move start to finish, with custom crating for artwork, protection through service entries and corridors, and a dolly route planned around the Belgian block and the sidewalk vaults.
Storage When You Need It
If your move is phased or your new home is under renovation, your belongings go into our own facility, including climate-controlled space, and come back when you are ready.
SoHo Moving Reviews
Real feedback from customers we have moved across NYC.
Frequently Asked Questions About Moving in SoHo
How much does it cost to hire movers in SoHo, NYC?
The cost of hiring movers in SoHo depends on the size of your apartment, the amount of items, and whether you need packing services. A typical 1-bedroom SoHo move runs $400 to $900 for a local move. Lofts with large furniture or long carry distances may cost more. Call us at 800-266-8387 for a free estimate, or fill out the form above.
Do movers need a Certificate of Insurance (COI) to enter SoHo buildings?
Yes. Most SoHo co-ops, condos and managed loft buildings require movers to provide a COI naming the building as an additional insured. Moishe's carries full liability and workers' compensation insurance and can provide COI documents tailored to your building's requirements. Request your COI when you book.
Can a moving truck park on my SoHo street?
The interior streets, Crosby, Mercer, Greene, Wooster, Prince, Spring and Howard, are not designated truck routes. The designated routes are the edges: Broadway, Broome, Grand, Canal, Houston, West Broadway and Lafayette. A truck leaves the nearest route at the intersection closest to your address, comes straight in, and returns the same way. That is normal work here, it just has to be planned. Our drivers scout the block in advance and identify the closest workable loading point.
What is the best time of year to move in SoHo?
September through November and February through April tend to be the least congested periods for SoHo moves. Summer, June through August, is peak moving season and availability can be limited, so book at least two to three weeks in advance.
Does Moishe's offer storage for SoHo moves?
Yes. Our own self-storage facilities are in Long Island City and the South Bronx, with private, individually locked rooms and climate-controlled options, for short and long term personal and commercial storage. Pickup is free for qualifying rentals, so your belongings can go straight from your SoHo loft into storage.
My loft is on the third floor with a shared freight elevator. Can you handle that?
Yes, that is the standard SoHo job. These buildings were built for manufacturing and the residential floors sit above a commercial ground floor, usually reached by a shared freight or service elevator rather than a passenger lobby. We measure the elevator and the entry during the estimate, reserve the window with building management, and plan an alternative route in advance for anything that will not fit the cab.
Moving in or out of SoHo?
Request a free estimate based on your building and dates. We handle freight elevator coordination, loft-scale furniture and fine art crating, COIs, and storage in our own facilities.
Moishe's Moving New York City
132 Crosby St
New York, NY 10012
View Map
Call Moishe's
Your Trusted NYC Local Movers at:
At Moishe's, we're not just moving your furniture; we're moving your life. As your trusted local NYC movers, we combine decades of experience with a commitment to care, ensuring your move is smooth, efficient, and stress-free from start to finish.
