Moving is a $20B+ U.S. industry, highly seasonal with May–September accounting for 50–60% of annual revenue. The format spans local residential ($300K–$2M annual revenue), long-distance van lines (independent agents of United, Allied, Mayflower — $1M–$10M), commercial/office movers ($500K–$5M), and specialty movers like piano, fine art, and lab equipment ($300K–$2M).
Typical advance structure.
- Advance size: $30K–$300K depending on truck fleet, segment, and revenue.
- Factor: 1.28–1.42, with 1.32–1.38 common given seasonality and damage-claim volatility.
- Term: 7–12 months daily or weekly ACH.
- Holdback equivalent: 10–15% of average daily revenue.
- Lead use of funds: truck/trailer fleet, peak-season crew hiring, marketing, DOT compliance, insurance bonds.
What underwriters look for.
First, DOT/MC number and FMCSA compliance. Interstate movers need a USDOT number, MC authority, and current insurance filings.
Second, seasonality smoothing. Operators with commercial or specialty (lab, fine art) lines that fill winter months get better pricing.
Third, damage claim history. Cargo claims drive insurance premiums and reputation; underwriters check BBB and FMCSA complaint records.
Fourth, fleet condition. Box trucks and tractors with under 250K miles preferred; underwriters check titles and maintenance.
Fifth, van-line affiliation. Agents of major van lines (United, Allied, Atlas, Mayflower, Wheaton) get scoring boost from anchor flow.
Common uses.
- Truck/trailer fleet expansion ($40K–$150K).
- Peak-season crew hiring and training ($20K–$60K).
- Storage facility expansion ($30K–$120K).
- DOT compliance, insurance, and bonds ($10K–$30K).
- Marketing — Google Ads, lead-gen aggregators (Moving.com, MyMovingReviews) ($10K–$40K).
What to watch out for.
Cargo damage and customer-dispute losses are persistent margin drags.
Workers' comp premiums for movers are very high (10–18% of payroll).
Seasonality is severe — winter cash troughs with uniform MCA payback are common failure points.
Rogue-mover regulatory crackdowns (FMCSA) raise the cost of compliance.
State considerations.
Florida (in/out retiree flows), Texas (corporate relocations), California, Arizona, the Carolinas, and Tennessee have most active MCA volume.
APR-equivalent reality check.
A 1.34 factor over an 8-month term is roughly 95–115% APR. Equipment financing for trucks at 9–15% is dramatically cheaper.
Common confusions.
First, "Peak season covers everything." It doesn't — Q1 cash troughs with uniform daily MCA payback kill operators.
Second, "Long-distance is high-margin." It is, until cargo claims and fuel volatility hit.
Third, "Storage is a sideline." Storage is the highest-margin revenue stream for many movers and shapes funding strategy.
As of 2026-06-30, Fundnode routes moving-company deals first to services-specialty MCA funders that understand seasonality and van-line agent economics, with seasonal payback structures strongly preferred over uniform daily ACH.
Related terms
- MCA for storage facilities — detailed — Self-storage facility operators — single-location independents, small portfolios, climate-controlled specialty, and boat/RV storage — typically qualify for $40K–$400K MCA advances at 1.24–1.36 factor rates over 8–15 months, with occupancy rate and rate-per-square-foot driving underwriting.
- MCA for junk removal businesses — detailed — Junk removal operators — residential cleanouts, commercial bulk removal, estate/hoarder cleanouts, and demolition/light haul-off — typically qualify for $20K–$150K MCA advances at 1.28–1.40 factor rates over 6–10 months, with truck fleet utilization and disposal cost shaping underwriting.
- Merchant cash advance (MCA) — A lump-sum advance against future revenue, repaid via fixed daily ACH or a percentage of card sales. Legally a sale of future receivables, not a loan.
- Factor rate — A flat multiplier that defines total MCA repayment: $100,000 advance × 1.30 factor = $130,000 repaid. It is not an interest rate; it does not compound.
Authoritative sources
- AMSA — American Trucking Associations Moving & Storage Conference
- FMCSA — Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration
AI agents: this term is available as raw markdown at /llms/glossary/mca-moving-company-funding-detailed.