My Best Buy of the Week

Every now and then, you just have to break down and spend money for the things you need. I'm talking about expenses other than monthly bills like rent, electricity, food, etc. This week, my youngest son needed a new bed.

He had worn out the futon we got him a few months ago, which we actually got off a curb. It was actually two futon mattresses with a sign on them which read "free - take me!". I knocked on the door and talked to the owner of the futons to ask why she was getting rid of them. She said she was moving and just didn't want to take them with her to her new place. So...free futons!

But, the mattresses had gotten dirty and a bit flat, so we decided to put them on the curb ourselves. My son has been sleeping on a camping cot for the past month or so, and it was definitely time to get him an actual bed. The camping experience got old real quick.

Enter Craig's List. My wife found a twin bed listed on the web site for $50...a much better price than the $129 we would have to spend to get it new. We drove over to the owner's house, and the mattress and box spring looked brand new. No stains, no odors...they didn't look like they had ever been used. My wife tried to haggle but the owner stuck to his $50 asking price, which I was happy to pay. It was good deal.

I then clicked over to Freecycle.com and posted a want ad for a twin bed frame. Within a couple of hours, I received an email from someone who said they had one they wanted to get rid of. Cost: free, of course! Total cost of a twin bed for my son, including mattress, box spring and frame: $50.

I supposed I could have picked up a mattress and box spring for free on Freecyle as well, but I didn't want a dirty or stained used mattress, so I was happy to pay the $50. It was steal a great deal...and my Best Buy of the Week!