Relocation allowance and expenses

Drew&Michelle

So my fiance' and I were talking about getting furniture for our home when we get married in December. We will be relocated the following May. He does not want  to spend too much on anything, I don't either. He wants second hand things, I will not get anything with upholstery second hand. His thing is that he doesn't want to worry about our move six months after we get married. He thinks we will have to leave a lot of things or they will get ruined. I know they wont but I can't find anything online stating how much money we will get to move and what they will help with. Anyone that has been through a move? How hard would it be to move a few pieces or furniture and the necessities of two people?

kyrgyzstan

Google DITY, and Partial DITY. That will help you figure stuff out better. Is the move your move or a PCS? 

Beachy730

What branch is your FI in?  I'm just wondering from your location and when you're talking about moving if he is stationed with my H.  PM me if you want instead.

Your move definitely depends on if you are doing a DITY move or through the military, and whether or not it's a PCS.  If it's a PCS and you are having the military move you then it doesn't matter how much you have.  Well it does, but you get I think 11,000 pounds married.  When H and I moved our entired townhouse here from our last station we didn't even hit 7,000 pounds.  

Are you living in the Seattle area now?  There is a place in Renton that has used furniture that is in good shape.  Our apartment complex actually gave us a furniture credit there when we moved in, and we got a leather love seat that is in like new condiition, and they had a lot of other great couches.  If you want to buy new, the NEX on Whidbey Island has a great furniture store, and that's where we bought our futon for H's "man zone."  

Drew&Michelle

Thanks gals, I will bring this up to him. I think he just really doesn't know what they will help us with. We wont move for a another year but he was just worried about buying new furniture and not being able to take it.
Beach- I will check out the place in Renton, I live like forty minutes from there. By the way is your H back home yet?

Beachy730

He comes home tomorrow!!!!!!!!  (Not an OPSEC violation, this has been officially announced and the time and date are all over the news and internet).  

The place in Renton is called Abota Furniture.  They furnish corporate apartments for Microsoft, then sell the used stuff in this store after.  Some of it is in great shape and looks like it was never used.  Then they have some pieces that are complete crap too.  They get new stuff in all the time too so it always changes.  The only thing is that they don't deliver, but they have the name of someone who will deliver for you for a fee, which wasn't too bad, and it came later that day.  

If you do the move through the military they will move your entire house.  The only thing they won't move is cars, chemicals, pets, and plants.  They come in and take the pictures off your wall even and pack up your entire house for you, then move it all.  All we had to do was unplug the electronics, like H's video game systems and the surround sound and stuff.  So buy whatever you want because they will move it.  

The only thing you might want to consider is that stuff can take almost 3 weeks sometimes to be delivered.  We waited to buy a few things, like a small kitchen table for an eat in kitchen, and the love seat, and a futon, until we got here, and we had those few things to use before our stuff got here.  It definitely worked out because we would have been without any furniture for almost 2 weeks if not.  

Drew&Michelle

Oh I am so excited for you! My F was talking about how they weren't coming home on time because of the weather. We have a few friends on that ship.

Thanks for the advice. I was going to keep our old bed and leave it here (sell or give it away) when we move and get a new one when we get to wherever we go. The nice thing is that we can stay with family or friends before we go so our stuff will be there when we get there. Will they move it at anytime, as long as we have the orders?

ctgal1083

Honestly, second hand things are the best. I know for our base, and I'm sure alot if not all other have, is an Airman's Attic... might be a different name for different branches. It's a place on base that gives you second hand, third hand items. It's not the best, but it works until you can buy your own. When you're done with it, if it's still in good condition, you can bring it back so the next people can use it. This way when you DO move, you can simply return the items and not worry about packing up much (Ideally it's only meant for short term). Then when you're set in your next location, borrow again from the (Airman's Attic) until you're able to invest in your furniture. It's meant to help out couples that are just starting out, or individuals that don't have items because they PCS before the rest of their family.