<p>Any suggestions for a relatively cheap way to ship bedroom furniture, kitchen table, sofa, etc. to my son? The only thing I can come up with is a moving company, but that expense may be more than the “early marriage” furniture is worth.</p>
<p>We were thinking about this, too, but ultimately decided that the cost was not worth it. Dd bought a bed to be delivered from an in-town company and found some great deals on Craigslist once she arrived.
You could drive and tow a trailer, if a trip is planned. With gas prices, that would still be more expensive than buying “new” old stuff where he lives.</p>
<p>Try a company like ABF . A container gets delivered to your house, you load it and they pick up and deliver to your son. He then unloads it. That was the cheapest way when my son moved cross country.</p>
<p>PODS is, I think, a similar type of company to what cbreeze is describing. We are about to look into it, re shipping a small amount of our own good stuff cross country.</p>
<p>Is it possible to “piggy back” on a load? I really have no idea, but I know these big moving trucks ideally want to be packed to the gills for a trip. I’m wondering if you can be a stand by, fill in or something if it’s a small load and you have a little flexibility in your schedule. Wait until a truck is going close to your destination - and then just make pick up arrangements on the other end? That might involve the short term rental of a U-Haul, but better a day job than a week? </p>
<p>But maybe the trucking companies won’t distinguish any cost margins. Does the “PODS” type system collect and distribute in groupings - or does each “household” go separately?</p>
<p>Just rambling thoughts from a parent who is probably only a year or so from needing to do a similar thing!</p>
<p>I buy furniture on Ebay. With gas the way it is, you can’t find cheap shipping. The cheapest method is Greyhound, particularly if you pick up at the station, instead of paying an upcharge for at home delivery. I get chairs this way all the time. Headboards also go this way.
For heirlooms, try Plycon…not cheap. For serious heirlooms…craters and freighters. Rent a minivan or moving van for 89 bucks a day and pay the gas and do it yourself. However, we have come to understand that the math equates into the realization that early marriage furniture is better sold in a yard sale, and replaced in son or daughter’s new locale with furniture bought in their own town on Craigslist.
there is a website where you can describe the dimensions of your load and get multiple carriers to compete for picking up your items on a truck that might be passing through…cant’ think of it though.</p>
<p>My S used Pods/ABF when he returned home after graduation. It was by far the most economical way to get things from Chapel Hill to Dallas that we found.</p>
<p>He was going to sell his big things like bed, mattress, desk, dresser etc and ship the rest back but the cost of moving and storing his things for 30 days was only a little more (maybe $200) than what replacing the two year old queen sized mattress and box spring would have cost us to replace. It was a no brainer when we put it all down on paper.</p>
<p>If you’re considering buying new items, take a look at Overstock(dot)com. Their shipping for the entire order (even multiple pieces of furniture) is $2.95 and they occasionally have $1.00 shipping specials. We bought a really nice dresser a few months back. The quality and price were excellent. It took a couple of hours to assemble, though, which might not work for a college student.</p>
<p>I think it would be so much easier and cheaper to use Craigslist. I have furnished an entire cottage for almost nothing, including a leather queen sofabed with ottoman ($100), two reading chairs ($50), antique oak dining table and four leather parson chairs ($200), three pine beds ($50), and a sisal rug ($20).</p>
<p>I have found that the best way is thru [Shop</a>, Sell, and Ship on Shippi.com](<a href=“http://www.shippi.com%5DShop”>http://www.shippi.com). Shipping for a sofa only costs around $120!</p>
<p>Our S has mostly purchased and sold on Craigslist, supplemented by IKEA. His employer paid moving expenses, so he did ship items from LA and HNL to DC/VA, using shipper employer recommended. Depending on the hassle of getting items to your kiddo and whatever you want him to do at the end of the year or when he graduated can help you calculate how worthwhile it is to move item(s).</p>
<p>Shipping for a sofa only costs around $120!</p>
<p>lol…that’s a lot for “early marriage” furniture. Their couch may not even be worth that. At that rate, by the time the couple shipped all their stuff, the cost would be a few thousand. </p>
<p>They’d be better off buying used once they arrive or use PODs/similar.</p>
<p>Another source for cheap furniture: locate a good rental furniture place (one that rents for corporate apts). They usually have a place on their websites where you can buy used furniture. </p>
<p>they often sell used “whole apt suites” …sofa, chair, coffee table, end table, lamps, dining room set, bedroom set, nightstands, dresser, mirror, lamps…for about $1200 including delivery and set up. I wouldn’t include used mattresses because of yuck and bedbugs.</p>
<p>Usually there is a choice of color schemes.</p>
<p>The used furniture is clean and decent enough for “early marriage”. This is furniture that has been used to furnish corporate apts for when people get transferred and they need temporary housing til they purchase a home. So, the stuff is usually “gently used.”</p>
<p>Usually, you can contact a Corporate Apt Complex and ask them for the name of the corporate furniture rental company they use.</p>
<p>Another 5 year old thread resurrected by a spammer with 0 posts.</p>