What to do with unwanted furniture when moving

Moving to another home is a tough transitional period that will test your ability to make good decisions under pressure. Of course, some decisions will always be tougher than others and will have a direct impact on how you manage your time when organizing the move, how you pack your items for moving, and more importantly – how much money you’ll pay for the move in the end.

As a decision-maker, soon you’ll be wondering which furniture pieces to take with you to the new residence and which ones to just leave behind. And then, once you’ve solved that furniture-related puzzle, there’s another important question that you’ll need to answer fairly quickly: what to do with the furniture you’re not moving with you?

Luckily, you have plenty of good options when it comes to getting rid of used furniture when moving to a new home. So, here’s what you should do with the furniture you don’t want to take with you.

Should you move your large furniture at all?

One of the major problems that every home mover has to deal with during a house move is the furniture issue. Most furniture pieces are large and heavy, and it takes plenty of time, money and efforts to get them from the current place to the new home.

So, the big question that needs to be asked here is: is it really worth it?

As it turns out, moving large furniture across the country is seldom a good idea.

• Money to transport furniture. The moving cost will be based on the total shipment weight, so more items to move will automatically increase the final price. And most furniture pieces are rather heavy, so often the cost to move a furniture piece long distance will roughly equal or exceed the cost to purchase a new piece after the move. There are some exceptions to this, of course, for example, moving antique furniture.
• Time and money to disassemble furniture. Bigger furniture items will require partial disassembly to be able to pass through doorways and hallways, and to stay protected during the move itself. And furniture disassembly can take a lot of time. And money too, if you need to hire experts to do it for you.
• Time and money to pack furniture. Also, all furniture pieces should be properly packed too so that they can arrive in the new home with no damage whatsoever. Needless to say, packing furniture for a move will require extra time and additional packing supplies.
• Space to store furniture. Moving a huge dresser, a big couch or a long kitchen table across multiple states can easily turn out to be a mistake if you’re downsizing and there just isn’t enough room for any of those pieces in the new home. Or they may not match the new-home interior design at all.

Now, is it better to move your old furniture, or is it better to buy new furniture after the move? Click here to find out the right answer.

Read also: How to pack furniture for moving

What to do with your unwanted furniture when moving

By now it should be clear that you’re only moving a few select furniture pieces with you. Or maybe you’ve made up your mind not to move any big and heavy pieces at all. Either way, you’re going to have to decide what to do with the furniture you no longer want.

Getting rid of your large furniture will take some time, so don’t wait until the last moment to take care of that important task. The sooner you manage to sell, gift, donate or dispose of your unwanted furniture pieces, the more time you’ll have to concentrate on other equally if not more important aspects of your household move.

OPTION 1: Sell unwanted furniture for profit

It makes a lot of sense to try to sell your unwanted furniture pieces before moving out. After all, the chances are that you paid good money to purchase those items in the first place, now it’s only fair that you attempt to get back some of that money.

As long as your furniture items are in decent condition, you’ve got a number of good options to try to sell them prior to Moving day.

• CLEAN the furniture pieces you intend to sell to look presentable.
• RESEARCH how much used furniture pieces go for in your area, and then price accordingly.
• ORGANIZE a moving sale (garage sale) to try to sell all the household items you’re not moving with you, including the furniture pieces.
• SELL your furniture online – Craigslist seems like your best bet, but you can also use innovative mobile apps, such as OfferUp and Nextdoor to sell your furniture locally.

At first, you may feel like you’re losing money by offering your furniture pieces for less than you paid for them originally. However, all you need to do is factor in the cost to move those furniture pieces to realize that you’re doing yourself a favor by getting rid of your large furniture before moving.

Good to know: How to sell stuff online when moving

OPTION 2: OFFER unwanted furniture to friends

If you don’t think that selling your unwanted furniture when moving is worth the hassle, then you should seriously consider offering some of those pieces to friends. But before you do it, decide whether you’ll give your furniture to friends for free, or whether you’ll offer them your used furniture at a big friendly discount.

One factor that can help you make up your mind is just how close you are with those people. For example, it just makes sense to give some unwanted furniture items to your best friends without wanting any money in return. This way, you’ll make a nice gesture, showing your best pals that you do care about them and their friendship. Consider such gifts as farewell presents and never feel sorry that you couldn’t get any money out of it.

On the other hand, if you’re selling some of your unwanted furniture to friends’ friends or acquaintances, then you’d be better off offering them a steep discount from the price. After all, think about all the moving expenses you’re about to incur and how gifting decent furniture right and left, without any reasoning, would only make your move harder.

Good advice: How to say goodbye to friends when moving away

OPTION 3: DONATE used furniture to charitable organizations

As long as the furniture pieces you don’t want anymore are in good overall condition, there are a good number of non-profit organizations that will be willing to pick up your large furniture for you. Those non-profit organizations will either keep the furniture for their own use or sell it to other people and use the money for funding their own charitable programs and services.

Do a simple Google search to find charitable organizations in your area – charities that also offer a pickup service. Here are several charities that will gladly take your unwanted furniture before you move away:

• The National Furniture Bank Association (NFBA);
• Donation Town;
• The Salvation Army;
• Vietnam Veterans of America (VVA);
• Goodwill;
• The United Way.

When you donate your furniture pieces to charity, don’t forget to request a receipt for your donated furniture. This way, you’ll be able to claim the donation when the time comes to file your taxes.

Might come in handy: Where to donate things when moving house

OPTION 4: GIFT unwanted furniture to strangers

If you’ve had no luck selling your used furniture and none of your friends wants or needs any of the pieces you’ve offered them, then, as mentioned above, the next good option is to offer your furniture items to charitable organizations. However, that may not work well for you either as those arrangements require time and sometimes charities can be too picky about the condition of the furniture.

And if that happens, you’d better get rid of your unwanted furniture fast because you’re already made up your mind not to move it. Your best option? Gift it to complete strangers in the hope that you’re doing something good for the community.

• Freecycle. Offer your unwanted furniture on Freecycle.org – a free service where registered members exchange used items for free with the aim of keeping them off the city dump.
• Craigslist. Craigslist has a Free Stuff section and that’s possibly the quickest way to get rid of unwanted furniture when moving house.

See also: Will you need furniture movers?

OPTION 5: DISPOSE of your old furniture in an eco-friendly way

If none of the above options works for you, then you won’t have another choice but to get rid of your old furniture in an environmentally friendly way.

Don’t just put your used furniture on the side of the street as that may be where you live, thus risking a fine for improper furniture disposal. If you’re not sure what is allowed and what is not, ask your neighbors or contact the local waste management company to get more information. You may need to haul your old furniture to the local landfill or hire a furniture removal service.

Either way, it’s a good idea to first contact your furniture movers and ask them if they offer the service of free furniture removal.

See also: What to do with unwanted books when moving