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Moving season is almost over. But if you're one of the many people settling into a new home right now, you might feel like the furniture-buying season is just getting started. And that can get expensive.

After paying rent, a security deposit or mortgage down payment — plus all the costs associated with moving — furniture can come as an afterthought, leaving a less-than-ideal budget for the items that make your new place feel like home.

Even with lower-cost items from budget-friendly retailers like Amazon and Target, furnishing an entire space gets costly. And if you want higher-end items, a premium couch or bedroom set alone can run you several thousand dollars.

To save on furniture, try turning to your community and peer-to-peer resale platforms to find quality secondhand pieces, and also spacing out your purchases strategically.

A sale sign stands outside a home in Wyndmoor, Pa., Wednesday, June 22, 2022. If you’re settling into a new home, you might be looking to fill it with furniture. But after your rent or mortgage, security deposit and moving expenses, there might not be much left over for your dream couch or dining room set. AP Photo/Matt Rourke)(

Before you venture into the Ikea maze or go down a rabbit hole of online shopping, see what your local community has to offer. Ask people you know if there's anything they're getting rid of.

"Your friends and family may be moving, too," says Henna Noor, a full-time student at the University of California, Irvine. Noor recently moved into her first apartment with a furniture budget of under $700 and scored a free couch from her girlfriend's parents. "It might benefit them to get rid of an item without having to pay to move it or try to sell it before they go."

Don't be afraid to talk to your neighbors or make a request on social media; the people in your life are likely happy to help you navigate this exciting life change. Many neighborhoods also have "Buy Nothing" Facebook groups you can join to give and receive household items. However, you'll likely need to find a way to transport the items, possibly by renting or borrowing a truck, or getting a friend to help you.

Peer-to-peer resale platforms like OfferUp, Letgo and Facebook Marketplace feature thousands of secondhand items. You might be able to find some hidden gems sitting within a 5-mile radius of your new place.

"There are limited options at a store like Ikea," says Miranda Escobar, a marketing manager at a tech startup in New York City , who moved from Manhattan to Brooklyn in April. "A peer marketplace opens you up to different, unexpected furniture styles."

Escobar's go-to is Facebook Marketplace, where she searches a single keyword like "dresser" and then refines the results by color, material, price and location. For example, she might search for wood items under $50 within 2 miles of her new address.

However, some locales have more listings than others, and it can be time-consuming to sort through the results. Not all items are priced to sell, either; some sellers are more motivated by making a profit than getting rid of old items.

"It can take hours of digging to find the true steals," says Noor. Noor checked the OfferUp app daily for a week before her move, keeping an eye out for fresh listings from users who needed to get rid of items quickly.

If you're shopping at peer-to-peer marketplaces, garage sales or estate sales, take the opportunity to bargain. Note that the seller is often trying to get rid of the item, but also try to offer a price within a reasonable range — lowballing may not get you a response.

"I always compare with similar items on the market," Escobar says. If it's a name-brand or vintage piece, look up what it would cost to buy new or what other resellers are listing it for. Knowing the ballpark value of the item you want can help you negotiate more confidently with a seller and steer clear of listings with unreasonable prices.

"Of course, you want to get your new place feeling like home immediately," Escobar says. "But it's better to be patient and wait for pieces at the right prices that really fit the space."

Waiting on the lower-priority items can ensure you're ready to snag pieces at rock-bottom prices from users who are up against moving deadlines; they're likely to take the best offer available.

Patience is helpful when shopping retail, too: Out-of-season furniture is discounted in winter and summer to make room for new items arriving in the spring and fall, and most stores offer significant discounts around holidays like Black Friday and Labor Day. At thrift stores, furniture stock can change regularly, and waiting for the right deal on a secondhand piece could save you more than buying it new.

If you need something immediately, like a table for example, try finding an inexpensive placeholder piece to use for now, such as a low-cost folding table. You can always upgrade later when you have the funds.

When the COVID-19 pandemic struck and remote work became the new normal, many Americans seized the opportunity to relocate. But if you think all there is to moving house is packing up and hiring help, think again. To help make your moving experience as productive as possible, Extra Space Storage shared five common mistakes to avoid when planning your next move.

The majority of moves over the past five years have been local, with 84% of people moving within the same metro area, according to 2020 United States Postal Service and U.S. Census Bureau data analyzed by Bloomberg and Forbes. What the data also showed: 82% of movers were leaving urban centers in favor of suburban counties, and 91% of counties classified as suburban had more people moving in than out.

Delving further into U.S. migration trends over the last five years, the Census Bureau discovered nearly half of those who moved did so due to housing costs or home-related issues. Even though the number of people moving is decreasing, more than 27 million U.S. residents packed their belongings and resettled in 2021 alone.

This mass exodus has led to price hikes for houses and rental properties. According to a March 2022 report from Reuters, house prices rose by 17% in 2021—and they're forecasted to double in 2022, despite rising interest rates. Another kink in the moving pipeline: finding available — not to mention affordable — movers.

Read on to learn some of the most common oversights people make when moving.

Again, timing is key here. Don't put off scheduling a mover, especially during peak moving season—April through October—when demand is high. Two ways to save on costs: schedule a weekday move and slate your move for mid-month.

Delay scheduling, and you may need to arrange interim move options, like temporarily placing items in storage. In instances where there's no wiggle room on the scheduling front, hiring a truck and making the move on your own is always an option. Some folks with fewer items may even opt to ship their boxes via shipping services, bus companies, or train lines.

If you hire movers, assess the costs and options for local versus long-distance moves.

A local move differs significantly in price from those that are long-distance. Local move estimates are generally based on the hours it takes to complete a move, including drive time. Time minimums can be enforced and include doubling drive time charges. Large items such as appliances and furniture may also carry an extra cost not factored into an initial estimate.

For long-distance moves, there are myriad options, including a shared load truck that delivers loads to multiple households. Ask if the mover charges by mileage, weight, space used in the truck, fuel, or all of the above. Look for hidden fees in the contract's fine print. The first quote given over the phone is often not what the ultimate fee will be, and sticker shock can result when the actual total surfaces.

Whether you buy boxes, get them for free from stores that are getting rid of them anyway, or snag them from people giving them away locally via social media, you'll need a variety of cardboard cubes for your move. If you opt for plastic bins, bear in mind you may be required to tape them all around to prevent the lid from unlatching—forgetting to do so could cause delays on moving day.

Breakable items should be bubble wrapped or covered with paper or newspaper. With extremely fragile objects, Styrofoam peanuts might also be helpful. Be sure to check if your moving company transports glass objects, like glass tabletops, in advance. If not, you may want to opt for stowing these items in the back of a personal vehicle or ditching them altogether.

Something else most movers won't transport: liquids. If you have a well-stocked bar, bottles of alcohol will need to make the move another way, as will items like cooking oils. ​​However they're transported, special packing applications should be taken to ensure liquids don't spill or break.

It's helpful to mark boxes clearly by designated rooms, both for yourself and your movers. Denoting what's inside is also helpful for the person unpacking. This makes keeping a master list of all of your boxes and their contents incredibly beneficial.

One last packing tip: If you opt to have a moving company pack for you, take whatever you don't want packed out of the house on packing day. Leaving "Don't Pack" notes on certain items doesn't mean they won't get packed anyway. So save yourself the headache of rummaging through every single box for little necessities like remotes, power cords, and small devices by sorting those items yourself.

While missing kitchen items might sound like an excellent excuse to eat out at restaurants, dining options may be limited, or merely meh. Not to mention, dining out can rack up quickly—especially if you're feeding for more than just yourself—and that adds yet another expense to your moving costs.

Spending the extra time sorting and packing kitchen cutlery, appliances (big and small), and the assortment of pantry items is a proactive way of getting ahead of the curve when it comes time to prepare your first home-cooked meal at your new place. Plan a menu for your move, including items you'll need before, in transit, and upon arrival—especially if you're moving cross-country, as fresh food may not be readily available along the route.

Of course, not all food items are made equally. So if you must ditch any perishables before hitting the road, check local food banks or soup kitchens to see if any are accepting donations.

Establishing a new address is imperative for many reasons, including being able to prove residency for registering a vehicle, obtaining a new driver's license, and updating voter registration. When changing an address, however, it's essential to know the postal service will only forward mail for free up to a certain amount of time, depending on the type of mail. There is an option to pay for extended forwarding via the U.S. Postal Service.

Additional resources that offer information on the ins and outs of changing your address include USPS, USA.gov/moving, and, MyMove, an authorized affiliate of the USPS that offers great discounts for movers—from Amazon deals to discounts at hardware stores.

When moving, it's necessary to shut down existing accounts for utilities while setting up accounts for a new residence. A list could include water, electricity/power, cable, internet/phone, and garbage pick-up. Ongoing newspaper delivery should also be canceled.

Timing is everything — don't have existing utilities halted until you're out of the former abode. On the flip side, make sure utilities at your new residence are ready and waiting for your arrival. Orchestrating the off and on of utilities will avoid double payment of bills. It's easy to forget to cancel autopay set up through providers or your bank. Rent and mortgage payments also fall into this category.

Some money-saving tips: Ask new service providers if they offer specials to new customers and if they'll waive installation and activation fees.

This story originally appeared on Extra Space Storage and was produced and distributed in partnership with Stacker Studio.

This column was provided to The Associated Press by the personal finance website NerdWallet. Dalia Ramirez is a writer at NerdWallet. Email: dramirez@nerdwallet.com.

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A sale sign stands outside a home in Wyndmoor, Pa., Wednesday, June 22, 2022. If you’re settling into a new home, you might be looking to fill it with furniture. But after your rent or mortgage, security deposit and moving expenses, there might not be much left over for your dream couch or dining room set. AP Photo/Matt Rourke)(

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