kilted_highlander78
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Post by kilted_highlander78 on Oct 11, 2012 11:15:32 GMT
o guys,
Now that we cleared our contingencies, and ready to move end of this month..I just wanted to ask about the renting tariffs and charges @ Aramco.... If any one can chime on this, I would be grateful.
We were thinking that maybe we will rent the washer and dryer...and buy the rest.... Advise us experts....
KH78
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Post by divenpuff on Oct 11, 2012 17:50:07 GMT
No...buy good quality stuff in US (at Best Buy, Conns, Sears, etc) in standard US 110v for washer and standard US 220v for dryer. Worth the up-front expendature IMHO.
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kilted_highlander78
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Post by kilted_highlander78 on Oct 12, 2012 4:39:46 GMT
I will probably rent the washer and dryer from Aramco for 6 months or so.... Then will look for good one locally. I opted for the cash in lieu...so shipping stuff is not an option for me. I read somewhere in the relo guide that renting washer and dryer is something like 35$ a month or so...
Aaas, we will see....
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Post by leemike11 on Nov 12, 2012 6:08:48 GMT
Now that we cleared our contingencies, and ready to move end of this month..I just wanted to ask about the renting tariffs and charges @ Aramco.... If any one can chime on this, I would be grateful.
We were thinking that maybe we will rent the washer and dryer...and buy the rest.... Advise us experts....
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Post by CanPeng on Nov 16, 2012 3:03:35 GMT
We are also trying to figure out wheather to start selling off our old furnature and either rent Aramco furnature for and extended period of time when we arrive, OR to keep some old and buy mostly new from Canada to ship to Saudi.
What would really help us is seeing websites that show prices of furnature and other items in Saudi, then we can compare to sears, the Brick, best buy etc., do the Saudi equivalent stores show online pricing? Thanks
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kilted_highlander78
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Post by kilted_highlander78 on Nov 16, 2012 4:18:19 GMT
o all... Here is our experience (I am also from Canada): We opted for the cash in lieu (which is 50% of the shipping allowance). With Aramco, there are two kinds of furniture:(1) what you will have rent free forever such as stove range, fridge (18 cubic feet) and dishwasher and that's it (2) what you will have free for 4 months and can rent later. And this includes living room furniture, dining, bedrooms (all these don't qualify to be basic and they are extremely very uncomfortable) and washing machine and dryer (brand new in an excellent condition..not to mention HUGE). My wife and I decided that we will rent the washer and dryer (53SR each..total of 106 SR per month.... approx. 35$ because they are way better than what is available in the market). Moreover, the fridge is relatively small; and we opted to rent another one from Aramco for 50SR per month. Renting these appliances from Aramco is better than buying your own because should something happen, ARAMCO will fix for free; whereas your stuff..your responsibility. However, we wish we brought a toaster, coffee maker, microwave, iron and these small appliances. The reason being that all 110V appliances in SA are Chinese of low, low quality. We went shopping yesterday..so we visited IKEA near Dhahran Mall. I have to say that they have very nice stuff with reasonable prices (e.g. a very spacious super comfy sectional for almost 5000SR...carpets for 300-700SR...light fixtures for less than 100SR)...and after that went to ABYAT a very high-end furniture store near IKEA... Abyat has very nice stuff..relatively more expensive than Ikea, but they are very very durable. In addition to that we visited Saco (for patio furniture and stuff like that, and it is also cheap). Finally, we went to Home Centre and this one has very cute furniture for the kids, and for us as well. So we selected all we want, and going to buy it, paint the house and get them delivered. IF your stuff are new and still have some life expectancy, by all means bring them (but them you have to worry about the space and whether you furniture fit in the rooms or not)...but if your furniture is like mine back home (at least 5 year-old) by all means...toss it and buy from SA. At least you do not have to deal with the horrors of movers, delivery, and assembly. if you guys need more info...please email me at ( mustafa.rami@gmail.com). I guess I can arrange for some pics to be sent to you. Salam y'all |
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Post by CanPeng on Nov 17, 2012 3:52:57 GMT
Many thanks Kilted Highlander for the very useful post, there is a third option that I don't see addressed clearly. If your furnature back home is not all that great, does it make sence to buy new stuff and ship it. I'm not sure still how much chipping will cost, 20ft container is $6,000 maybe, I'm still looking into it.
If you live in a north American city with a population of several million people, the stores will have much more options and I suspect for much better prices.
How about buying all the bedrooms furnature, living room, dining room, TV set, everything you need for the kitchen including small appliances, carpets, etc and shipping it to saudi, you get nicer stuff for less, does this make sense or is this crazy?
When you ship a container you can include all those boxes you intended to ship separately anyway (your books, clothes, all the stuff that you wont leave behind.. This stuff needs shipping any way) the more I think about it shipping a container seems to be the way to go...unless I'm missing something
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Post by Hadia on Nov 17, 2012 7:05:39 GMT
CanPeng, I think you bring up an excellent point. Personally, I would encoue new hires to take the sea shipment option so you can bring all of the things you'll want to make your new home feel like home -- especially if you have kids who may be feeling apprehensive about relocating to the unknown. If you're planning to buy furniture anyway, why not buy new stuff in your hometown, where you will certainly find deals and a greater style and quality selection? I think that's a great idea.
When we shipped our stuff last year, we had a combination of old and new, and we left behind many things, planning to buy new in KSA. For instance, I'm glad we bought our kids all new mattresses and shipped them in original plastic, especially since the frame and mattresses sizes here are different than in the US. However, we should have thought of all the rooms when we were buying new stuff. We've spent a lot of money here getting our rooms set up, and I'm convinced we could have done better in terms of price, quality and style if we'd bought more and shipped it over. Also, as new arrivals, we found it extremely challenging to get to the stores when they were open on the weekends, plus figure out transportation and delivery of items. We find the choice in styles here to be fairly out of sync with our taste, and it can be challenging to find items that fit into the compact rooms of our new home. As a result, we have a lot more IKEA in our home than I would like, but that's just how it will have to be.
Another option -- you can also have pieces custom made for your new home after you arrive and figure out what you want. When you visit neighbors and colleagues, you'll see some of these pieces, and they can refer you to their carpenters. Stuff like that is word of mouth, but worth looking into if you want something special.
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Post by CanPeng on Nov 17, 2012 14:20:58 GMT
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Post by FromCalgary2 on Jan 17, 2013 14:43:29 GMT
o CanPeng. I wonder what you have decided about the furniture after all the research done. We have just started thinking of it. Thanks everyone for your invaluable posts.
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