[mackstann]

I'm a long way out from actually moving, but out of curiosity I got a quote for a 20' shipping container and it was $7k+. The problem I have with this is that my valuable items are all of pretty small size (computer, bike), I don't own a car, and my furniture consists of second hand stuff that cost very little and I have pretty much zero attachment to.

So I figure it would be smartest to ship the reasonably-sized things via USPS or whatever, and get rid of the big bulky furniture that isn't worth much anyway, and then buy more cheap used furniture on the other side. But then I hear people talking about how that type of stuff is all way more expensive in NZ -- but I have no idea what level of quality people are talking about. I don't care about things being "nice." I just want cheap, used stuff. Is it around?

[lizzyplop]

Try this

www.trademe.co.nz

Hope this helps

Liz

[mackstann]

Is there anything like freecycle or craigslist?

[Brian]

Salvation Army in Wellington has plenty of beds, desks, couches, etc very cheap. It was $10 to get 5 pieces delivered the next day. Beds were $30 for singles, $60 for Queen including box spring. I got a very nice desk chair at Able Traders for $69.

There is a craigslist site for a few NZ cities but it gets very little traffic. Most of the Wellington site is confused people trying to post from Wellington, Florida.

My tastes tend toward cheap second hand as well and I haven't found things to be expensive at all. There just aren't as many choices and you have to wait for sales on a lot of things.

Excess baggage seems to be the cheapest way to get things over. I got some $25 plastic lockers at Fred Meyer and loaded each with 70 pounds of stuff, which is what Quantas allows. Some other airlines only allow 50 pounds, so be sure to check the guidelines before booking your flight.

[mackstann]

That sounds great, Brian. Exactly the kind of info I was looking for. So it looks like I'll try to take the most important stuff via excess baggage and the rest will have to come over via USPS. (apparently fedex and UPS don't ship to NZ (http://www.emigratenz.org/forum/showthread.php?t=17300))

edit: looks like weight is what really jacks up the price of USPS shipments. so it'd be cheapest to take the heavier stuff via excess baggage, although that conflicts with practicality because you'd probably want to bring clothing, bedding, etc, and leave the dishes and whatnot for a little later

[swissmissdesigner]

Is there anything like freecycle or craigslist?

try this : http://geo.craigslist.org/iso/nz

good luck:nice1

[mackstann]

try this : http://geo.craigslist.org/iso/nz

good luck:nice1
Have you actually gone there and looked around? It's completely empty. I was basically asking if there was any good place to find listings of free stuff.

[ljrobin]

Freecycle does exist in New Zealand. Just search for the area that you are going to live in. It's great. I haven't yet used it in NZ but have in the Seattle area.

[ljrobin]

The Salvation Army is also a good place to look, and some days they have specials!

[mackstann]

Freecycle does exist in New Zealand. Just search for the area that you are going to live in. It's great. I haven't yet used it in NZ but have in the Seattle area.

Oh thanks! I looked up "freecycle wellington" and ended up at the Wellington Florida group which discouraged me and made me think that one for Wellington NZ didn't exist. (not sure why I didn't look further...) I found it now though.

p.s. I'm in Portland. :)

[BkyMonster]

There is Salvation Army, St. Vincent De Paul and Trademe. I gather there is also a somewhat common practice of putting unwanted furniture and items out on the curb for neighbors to pick through and carry away.
If you need to buy stuff new Warehouse furniture is BiMart/Kmart/Target quality. (I kind of miss BiMart :p)Fairly cheapy as well. There is Kmart here and it seems more or less the same as far as I can tell. Maybe a bit more emphasis on towels and clothes than the US ones?
If you end up in one of the more populated cities you will have more selection off Trademe and freecycle of people wanting others to haul unwanted items away. ;)
I've also seen a few other stores selling cheap furniture that may or may not be second hand. You'd have to poke around wherever you end up.
Hope that helps.

[kanatakiwi]

Freecycle does exist in New Zealand. Just search for the area that you are going to live in. It's great. I haven't yet used it in NZ but have in the Seattle area.

Freecycle Auckland is nothing like the great freecycle sites that I knew in Canada. The one in auckland is growing but still you won't find much of value being given away. Eveyone here uses Trade me instead, so that's the place to check. There are also some used furniture stores, a few good ones in Onehunga.

[Kea]

Have you had a price for sending a small amount of stuff groupage instead of getting a whole container? We orignally shipped some boxes, not shipping 23 boxes, two big tables, a king bed, bike and other odds and ends for £1300. We'd planned on storing this stuff for our stay in NZ. But now have decided to stay longer and it made sense to ship instead. Otherwise we'd end up buying some stuff twice.

Julie

[mackstann]

Have you had a price for sending a small amount of stuff groupage instead of getting a whole container? We orignally shipped some boxes, not shipping 23 boxes, two big tables, a king bed, bike and other odds and ends for £1300. We'd planned on storing this stuff for our stay in NZ. But now have decided to stay longer and it made sense to ship instead. Otherwise we'd end up buying some stuff twice.

Julie

I haven't looked much into that because I'm unfamiliar with the terminology and the companies that do it. I feel totally lost. The websites that I find are also totally unhelpful.

[BkyMonster]

Look for groupage or LCL (less than container load). So far I am having a good experience with UPAKWESHIP. I used them and went with Carotrans out of Portland. Maybe you can contact Carotrans directly? I paid about $900 for 2.2 cu meters which is ~90 cu feet and it weighed in at 796 lbs (they charge by volume not weight though). When I talked to UPAK they didn't have liftvans (200cuft crate) available in Portland but did in Seattle.
I was quoted ~1000 USD per 100 cu feet. Hope that helps.

[GreenMeansGo]

good info Becky, thanks!

mackstann- we are in the same situation, not a lot of things of value or attachment (I think, there's always more than you think it seems). I've been searching trademe and think we'll do reasonably well outfitting ourselves from there.

cheers from the FAR pacific NORTH west ;) (I've also lived in Portland and Eugene)

[canajanz]

May I suggest that you send the sentimental/valuable/personal must bring items as a part shipment?
It messes with your time line a bit as it CAN take weeks longer ... but it's heaps cheaper as you only pay for what you need.
Anyway .. you will be buying the essentials when you get here from all our wonderful thrift shops or off TradeMe ... right?

[canajanz]

edit: looks like weight is what really jacks up the price of USPS shipments. so it'd be cheapest to take the heavier stuff via excess baggage, although that conflicts with practicality because you'd probably want to bring clothing, bedding, etc, and leave the dishes and whatnot for a little later

If you pack over 100 lb (each) of clothing and important personal stuff into your luggage entitlement .. how much more would you have to ship?
And if the rest went as a part shipment , possibly ahead of you so it would be waiting ...
Would that help?

[tigerlily]

We bought lots of kitchen stuff very cheaply at the Salvation Army when we arrived (like 50 cents a glass), but pots and pans were not cheap/good quality. If you have some you like, do ship them. Might you be able to ask a relative coming for a visit to take a few sentimental things for you? I miss sea mail! It used to be very cheap to ship things from the US, not so anymore.

I've heard that the Trash Palace in Porirua is great, if you end up in Wellington.

[sweetpea]

Keep in mind that the availability of good stuff in thrift stores and secondhand stores can vary by location. If you're away from Auckland, Wellington or Christchurch, you may have less choice. And, as in the US, good thrift shopping takes time and patience - great finds can happen, but if you need a couch today because you're otherwise sitting on the living room floor, thrift shopping or Trade Me can be frustrating. I ended up buying two couches on clearance from Harvey Norman because there just weren't any decent (and my standards were low!) couches at local secondhand shops and I had nowhere to sit. Also, secondhand stuff here is not as much of a bargain as in the US, sellers generally expect to recoup more of their initial purchase price. Too, at least in Palmerston North, there is some really nasty stuff on sale, stuff that people in the US would have hauled to the curb years ago and would be embarrassed to ask money for. So caveat emptor.

That said, I recently found a late-model Breville bread machine at my local Salvation Army and have been happily baking homemade bread for weeks now :)

The other good thing is that the mid-century modern craze in interior design has not taken hold here, so you can find some really fun stuff if you're into it.

[dilanium]

mackstann- i would take everything as excess baggage except your electronics- if those are lost or damaged they will not be covered if you're flying Air NZ. When my husband and I came over, we had 12 checked bags and shipped two boxes via USPS for the TV, playstation, wii etc.

[bstlaurent]

not to be overly negative, but so far the thrift stores in wellington have been a big disappointment here compared to the ones we had back in Canada. A lot of what we found used at the Salvation Army wouldn't even have been accepted by the canadian equivalents. They had some pieces of furniture that looked like they had significant smoke damage...

The kitchen stuff (glasses, plates etc.) were cheap, but we ended up getting everything cheaper (!) at Briscoes one of the local chains here, because they were having a spring sale and most of it was 60% off. For example we got 4 settings (small plate, big plate and bowl) for 24$ whereas the Salvation Army wanted 1-2$ per piece for cheaper stuff.

Trademe however has been much more encouraging. I think what's happening to a certain extent here is that all the nice second hand furniture is being sold through there and cutting out the second hand store middle man.

We're currently bidding on a table, chairs and a really nice couch for a fraction of what it would cost new.

So all that to say, you can actually get good, cheap new stuff if you watch the ads and take advantage of the sales.