How to pick a junk hauler in Detroit

The short answer

Pick a hauler who gives you the price before booking, includes carrying from the basement or upstairs in that price, carries insurance and can send proof, and can tell you where the load goes. Our model checks those boxes: a published flat list (sofa $126, fridge $164, quarter truck $241), carry-out from any floor, vetted and insured local haulers, and a certificate of insurance emailed within 1 hour.

1. Is the price for my items, before booking?

A "starting at" number is not a price. Ask for the price for your actual items or your actual pile, in writing, before anyone arrives. Ask whether it can change on the day, and whether you have to approve the change.

In Metro Detroit you will see three ways of quoting. National franchises such as 1-800-GOT-JUNK and College HUNKS price most full-service jobs by truck volume, confirmed on site. National online services such as LoadUp publish starting prices and confirm by ZIP code. Flat-list services publish a price per item and per truck-fill tier. Any of them can work; what matters is that you know which one you are getting.

With us: an instant quote from a photo or by picking items online. It only changes if you approve it.

2. Is the basement included?

Detroit's median home was built in 1947, and most city ZIPs report 1939 or earlier. The things you want gone are usually in the basement, up a narrow flight to a bungalow bedroom, or in a detached garage off the alley. Ask directly: is carrying it out included, or is there a stairs or access charge?

With us: crews carry items out from anywhere in the home, any floor. No stairs fee.

3. Are you insured, and can you prove it?

A hauler carrying a dresser down 1920s stairs can damage the stairs, the walls or themselves. If they are not insured, that problem may become yours. Ask for proof. If you live in a managed building Downtown, in Midtown or at Lafayette Park, the building will ask for a certificate of insurance anyway.

With us: fully insured, vetted local haulers, and a COI emailed within 1 hour.

4. Where does the load go?

This is the question that matters most in Detroit. The city's dumping fines, per Outlier Media's 2022 reporting, start at $200 for a first offense under 5 cubic yards and reach $2,500 for repeat dumping of 10 cubic yards or more, and vehicles can be impounded. Michigan's MCL 324.8905a holds an employer liable when dumping is done at its direction or with its knowledge.

A cash hauler who will take anything for a low number and cannot say where it is going is a risk to you. A legitimate hauler pays to dispose of junk and builds that into the price. For a sense of scale, SOCRRA's Troy transfer station posts $75 per ton with a $50 minimum; every load that goes somewhere legal costs someone something.

With us: we recycle whatever we can, try to donate usable items when local charities accept them, and disposal is included in the flat price.

5. What will you not take?

Every hauler has limits. Ask about paint, tires, fluids and hazardous materials before you book. The City of Detroit's bulk pickup excludes tires, auto parts, fluids, concrete, brick, asphalt, shingles, metal poles and pipes, and tree trunks, so these are exactly the items people need a hauler for.

With us: paint is accepted, tires and concrete are on the price list, and hazardous waste is handled case by case, so ask.

6. When can you come?

Ask for an arrival window, not "sometime Tuesday." Ask about same-day. If you are in a building with an elevator reservation or a loading dock schedule, ask whether the hauler can hit a specific window.

With us: 7 days a week, 8am to midnight, same-day when you book by 4 PM, and you pick a 2-hour arrival window.

Red flags worth walking away from

• No business name, only a phone number on a flyer stapled to a pole on your block.
• Cash only, no receipt. If something goes wrong, there is no record you hired anyone.
• A price that drops sharply when you hesitate. Disposal has a real cost; a hauler who keeps cutting the number is cutting it somewhere.
• "We'll take care of it" with no answer on where. Ask again. If the answer is vague, the load may end up on a vacant lot on someone else's street.
• No proof of insurance when you are about to let them carry a freezer up your basement stairs.
• An open trailer and no tarp for a load going on I-94 or I-75. Things blow off.

7. What does a typical job cost?

A basement sofa and the washer next to it: $126 + $133 = $259. A garage with a set of tires and a quarter truck of boxes and lawn gear: $87 + $241 = $328. Order minimum $100. Get a photo quote, and see why insured haulers matter more than price.

Frequently asked questions