The citywide lease flip is Boston's single biggest junk-removal day — and the calendar for that week fills first. Whole-apartment clears from a flat $325, mattresses from $111 (Massachusetts bans them from the trash), landlord turnover blocks on one invoice. Same flat prices as any other week — no September surcharge — but book by August 25 to lock a Sept 1-week window.
One photo of what's going — flat price back in seconds
Upload a Photo & Get Quote →Most Boston apartment leases end August 31 and begin September 1 — a legacy of the student calendar that now moves much of the city on a single day. The week around it is a machine with too much in it: moving trucks double-parked on every block from Allston to the South End, freight elevators in Seaport towers booked out days ahead, and the curbs slowly filling with everything that didn't make the cut — the phenomenon locals call "Allston Christmas," when the student neighborhoods' sidewalks become a furniture flea market for 72 hours.
For anyone actually moving, the math is simple: everything you're not taking has to be out before the walkthrough, every disposal option jams at once, and the buildings enforce clean handovers with deposit deductions. That's the problem this page solves — the pickup that shows up during the crunch, at the same flat price as a quiet week in February.
Book by August 25 and you choose your window. Book later and the calendar chooses for you. The Aug 29–Sept 2 slots are the most requested of the year and they fill in order — first the Saturday, then the 31st, then the 1st itself. We add crews for the rush, but by the final weekend what's left is genuinely what's left: early-morning and evening windows, and same-day only when a cancellation opens one. The price never changes — there is no September surcharge — the only thing you're competing for is the slot.
Everything you're not moving, out before the walkthrough — a quarter truck at $325 covers most studios and 1-beds, half truck $580, full truck $985. Apartment cleanout →
Massachusetts bans mattresses from the trash — the curb is not an option. Twin $111, full $126, queen $139, king $154, box spring $124, routed to recycling. Mattress removal →
The roommate who ghosted, the tenant who left the sofa — cleared with a receipt before it becomes a deposit deduction. Abandoned furniture →
The BU/BC/Northeastern belt turns over in one week — flat-priced unit clears the group chat can split. Student cleanouts →
Left-behinds cleared unit by unit between the Aug 31 out and Sept 1 in — one invoice, photos of every empty unit. Landlord turnovers →
Mover left a pile? Walkthrough at 4? When a window's open we can be there the same day — even Sept 1. Same-day →
| What's going | Flat price |
|---|---|
| Studio / 1-bed clear — quarter truck | $325 |
| Bigger unit — three-eighths truck | $455 |
| 1-bed, fully furnished — half truck | $580 |
| 2–3 bed furnished — full truck | $985 |
| Twin mattress / queen mattress | $111 / $139 |
| Box spring | $124 |
| Sofa / futon | $170 / $139 |
| Dresser / desk / bookshelf | $169 / $112 / $97 |
| Mini fridge | $155 |
| Bagged load — 10 bags / 20 bags | $178 / $348 |
| Box lot (per box) | $42 |
$75 minimum. The three-flight triple-decker carry, the COI for managed buildings, donation routing and disposal are all included — and the price on September 1 is the price in February.
| Option | Cost | Speed | The catch in September |
|---|---|---|---|
| Leave it for the landlord | Your deposit | Zero effort | Billed back at their hauler's rate plus admin — routinely more than the clear itself |
| The curb ("Allston Christmas") | "Free" | Instant | Mattresses and CRTs are banned from the trash statewide; rain ruins the rest; enforcement is heaviest this exact week |
| City curbside bulk pickup | Free (limited) | Your trash day | A few items per pickup, scheduled — useless for a whole unit on a deadline, and it won't enter the building |
| Haul it yourself | Truck + transfer-station fee + your day | Slow | Good luck renting a truck the last week of August in Boston |
| JunkRabbit | Flat, photo-quoted, $75 min | Your booked window | Only the calendar — book by Aug 25 |
The flip is citywide, but the student belt takes the brunt. Allston and Brighton are the epicenter — the highest turnover streets in the city, triple-deckers emptying all at once, the original "Allston Christmas" curbs. Cambridge runs its own version around Harvard and MIT, with Central and Inman Square walk-ups turning over alongside the September grad-student wave. Somerville — Davis, Porter, Union — is triple-decker country top to bottom, where every unit clear involves stairs. And the Fenway/Mission Hill corridor turns over with the BU and Northeastern calendars. We stage crews in all of them for the last week of August — same flat price, no matter which curb you're on.
Shoot the room or the pile. Flat price back in seconds — per item or by truck fraction.
Lock the slot that fits your move — before the walkthrough, after the movers, between tenants. By Aug 25, ideally.
Carried down the triple-decker stairs, donation sorted at the truck, receipt in your email for the deposit file.
September's volume is mostly reusable, and the tragedy of the curb pile is that rain gets it before anyone else does. We sort at the truck: furniture and housewares route to donation with receipts available, mattresses go to recycling (the Massachusetts ban means they can't legally go in the trash anyway), metal bed frames to scrap recovery, electronics to certified e-waste processors — CRTs are banned from disposal statewide — and only the genuine remainder is landfilled.
"Booked August 22nd for the 31st. Crew showed up in the middle of the street chaos, cleared our 1-bed in an hour, and we made the walkthrough with time to spare."
"I manage nine units that all turn over Sept 1. One block booking, one invoice, photos of every empty apartment by the 2nd. This used to take me a week."
"Our mover wouldn't take the old mattress and the trash wouldn't either — Massachusetts rules. These guys grabbed it same-day on the 1st. Lifesaver."
Why does everyone move on September 1?
Most Boston leases end Aug 31 and start Sept 1 — a student-calendar legacy that now moves much of the city at once.
Why book by August 25?
The Aug 29–Sept 2 windows are the year's most requested and fill in order. By the 25th you pick your slot; after that you take what's open.
Is there a surge price?
No. Flat prices are identical during the rush — $325 quarter truck, $170 sofa, $139 queen mattress. Only the calendar is scarce.
Can't I just curb it?
Mattresses and CRTs are banned from Massachusetts trash, rain ruins the donatable pieces, and landlords bill left-behinds against deposits. The receipt beats the deduction.
Do you work September 1 itself?
All day — it's our biggest day of the year. Same-day slots exist only as cancellations, so booked-ahead windows win.
Do you handle landlord blocks?
Yes — multiple units scheduled as one block between the out and the in, one invoice, per-unit photos.