Best overall furniture rental for complete packages? (Houston, Center: credit card, houses)

[startover]

I'm looking for a complete package furniture rental in Houston. Basically compelete sets that include livng room, bedrooms and dining room. I've done some researches and it seems the major players are Rent-a-Center, Cort, Hoffer and Aaron's.

So in your opinion which company offers the best overall deal for this kind of rental? I'm not looking for anything "luxurious", but not something very cheap either. I guess "a little above average" best describes the quality I'm looking for.

[lanewidick]

For what its worth, this could be the absolute worst way to buy furniture. Sure, it may sound affordable for a time, but they charge outrageous fees and interest, plus most of these places have weekly payments.

If you're really in a pinch for furniture that's decent, you could go to a regular furniture store and get the gimmick that they have going on where you pay no interest for 4 or 5 years. Just be sure you make the payment each month and pay it off in that 4 or 5 years, or they will go back and smack you with interest for the first 4 or 5 years you didn't have to pay it.

I've known too many people that bought from a rent to own place, and by the time all was said and done, they paid more than triple what the stuff they purchased was worth.

[SmileyGal]

I’m going to tell ya up front that I work at Rent-A-Center, so I’m probably a little biased, but think I likely have a little info that can help, too. As far as quality, we carry brand name furniture like Ashley, Albany and Klaussner – and you can rent new or used, your choice. Some of the things you might want to know when comparison shopping for a place to rent furniture… it’s my understanding that delivery, service and setup is not included in many of our competitor’s prices, and I don’t think you can return an item at any time for no penalty, w/the pick-up being no extra charge and then, whenever you want the item back, just pick the payments up where you left off. I think you have start all over again from square one. With RAC, you can pay weekly, bimonthly or monthly and we have epay options, too so you don’t HAVE to go back to the store to pay. So, these are helpful things included in our prices that aren’t obvious at first glance. We’re clear about what your costs will be depending on when you want to pay something off (that’s not so easy to see with a credit card). And, just like with a credit card, it makes a difference if you pay off something sooner rather than later. You might consider calling a store and getting more info so you can make the decision that’s right for you.

[rhiamon]

I'd really recommend buying furniture instead, unless you don't plan to keep it. Many stores offering no interest and/or no payment options. You'll see a lot of this as Thanksgiving gets closer. As the poster above mentioned, make sure you pay it off before the allotted time runs out or else you will most likely have to pay all of the interest you would have accrued, even if you only owe $1 at the end of the interest-free period.

I haven't been there personally, but I hear that the Dump is great place to get furniture on the cheap. As I understand it, they buy clearanced-out items from other, more expensive stores and sell them for much less. I'm planning to visit them when I buy a dining room table.

[astrohip]

Originally Posted by startover

I'm looking for a complete package furniture rental in Houston. Basically compelete sets that include livng room, bedrooms and dining room. I've done some researches and it seems the major players are Rent-a-Center, Cort, Hoffer and Aaron's.

So in your opinion which company offers the best overall deal for this kind of rental? I'm not looking for anything "luxurious", but not something very cheap either. I guess "a little above average" best describes the quality I'm looking for.

First, the advice on buying versus renting is almost always true. Renting is more expensive in the long run. But that's your decision.

If you do rent (or even if you buy), I can't recommend Hoffer enough. I've furnished two houses from them over the years. Good stuff, reasonable prices. Locally owned by the Hoffer family (native Houstonians) ever since they opened.