We can talk all we want about purging items out of our home to lighten and freshen our spaces, but that doesn't mean it's exactly easy to do so. Living green often times means you've paired down your means of transportation and it's not especially easy to carry more than a few bags of clothes on your bike en route to the thrift store. Breathe a sigh of relief, as there are other options available!
1. Call The Donation Location: Often times thrift stores and charities will come to you — you just have to pick up the phone and call. They're more than willing to take the donations and will send a driver right to your doorstep. No more hauling, lugging, just simply hand it off and wave good-bye.
2. Try Craigslist: In a recessed economy many people are looking to make ends meet any way they can. If you check in the labor section of your local Craigslist, quite often there are those with trucks, or larger vehicles wanting work hauling your stuff. They'll even help you load it, so no more hanging onto that ugly sofa because you don't want to take it down a flight of stairs — help out a neighbor in need of some cash and let them take care of it for you.
3. Rental Vehicles: You can rent a car or truck for short delivery purposes or errands in many of the larger metropolitan cities and in those who don't have such a service available there's always a traditional rental system. Or... go buy something at Home Depot at the same time and rent their truck for super cheap. You'll haul home DIY supplies and get your donations dropped off at the same time. Handy dandy!
How do you handle your large donations? It might be a bulky piece of furniture or 12 bags of linens and clothes that you've finally decided to let go of. Tell us your tricks in the comments below!
(Image: Flickr member Pixeljones licensed for use by Creative Commons)
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totally off topic, but this was one of my favorite thrifts in Chicago. I used to find bags of Vera scarves there for pennies each, and they have a 2nd floor filled with furniture.
*sniff* I miss Chicago thrift stores!
Because of budget cutbacks where I live, the local Goodwill cannot always sent trucks to do pickups anymore. However, the manager did just tell me that they have a deal with Ryder or another truck rental, which gives customers a discounted rate if they are renting trucks to haul donations. There are probably similar deals in other cities.
Trish1980 - we're not tax professionals, but would assume that with accurate receipts with dated time of donation at the store and from the rental that you should be in the clear.