Donation Center Locations in Philadelphia

Posted on January 8, 2013 by Brian Shreckengast

Where to donate your extra stuff in Philadelphia

When trying to decide whether or not to rent a storage unit, it’s always important to go through each and every item and ask yourself: is keeping this object worth the monthly rental fee, or am I better off getting rid of it? Only items that you plan on using again in the future should qualify for the first, while anything that there’s a good chance you won’t use again should fall into that second category. But instead of tossing unneeded items into a dumpster out back, consider donating the goods to an organization that can see that they’ll end up in the hands of someone who does need them. In order to help you find such an organization in Philadelphia, we’ve put together this map of donation centers, with addresses and phone numbers listed below:

Location	Address	Phone
Easter Seals	3975 Conshohocken Avenue	(215) 879-1000
Philadelphia Car Donation	1229 Chestnut Street	(888) 423-1072
Circle Thrift	1125 South Broad Street	(215) 468-0645
The Community Thrift Shop	6157 Ridge Avenue	(267) 335-3764
Cars For Breast Cancer Car Donation	5135 Bleigh Avenue #1	(215) 914-5464
Make-A-Wish Car Donation	1800 JFK Blvd., Suite 300 PMB #2450	(855) 344-9474
Help For Elders	215 Parker Avenue	(215) 621-7808
Goodwill	2601 South Front Street	(215) 463-5054
Goodwill	455 North 7th Street	(215) 922-6802
Goodwill	10101 Bustleton Avenue	(215) 961-2204
Goodwill	2601 South Front Street	(215) 463-5054
Goodwill	2835 New Jersey 73 #1	(856) 439-0174
Goodwill	5461 Marlton Pike	(856) 317-0640
Goodwill	7030 Colonial Highway	(856) 910-1305
Salvation Army	350 West Oxford Street	(215) 235-0451
Salvation Army	1340 Brown Street	(215) 787-2962 ‎
Salvation Army	3225 Reed Street	(215) 465-0300
Salvation Army	1920 East Allegheny Avenue	(215) 739-2365
Salvation Army	5522 Arch Street	(215) 471-0500
Salvation Army	701 North Broad Street	(215) 787-2800
Salvation Army	1320 Arch Street	(215) 568-5111
Salvation Army	6730 Ridge Avenue	(215) 483-4120
Salvation Army	6432 Rising Sun Avenue	(215) 728-9616
Salvation Army	3150 North Mascher Street #5	(215) 423-9300
Salvation Army	6479 Morris Park Road	(215) 473-7902
Salvation Army	4555 Pechin Street	(215) 483-3340
Salvation Army	5501 Market Street	(215) 474-1009
Salvation Army	5830 Rising Sun Avenue	(215) 722-5447
Salvation Army	5600 Ogontz Avenue	(267) 385-6482
Salvation Army	2140 Market Street	(215) 561-0718
Salvation Army	6427 Torresdale Avenue	(215) 624-9487

If you lack a vehicle or the means of transporting your items to the donation center, give your nearest location a call–many will be able to send a truck to pick everything up at a set time. Also, if pure charity isn’t enough of a reason to get you to go through the trouble, remember that donations to many of these organizations are tax-deductible–just don’t forget to ask for your receipt.

And if you’re living on a tight budget in Philly, keep in mind that most of these donation centers double as thrift stores, where you can purchase used clothing for cheap. Also, check out our living on the cheap in Philadelphia blog post.

Mapshot: Philadelphia Storage

Posted on August 11, 2012 by Brian Shreckengast

Larger, lighter circles represent higher prices, while smaller, darker points represent the best deals.

Behold: storage unit prices around the City of Brotherly love on the 25th of June, 2012. Today we’re focusing on medium 5×10 units, of which a whopping 42 Philadelphia storage facilities have on offer. If you need storage space, Philly’s got it.

But as we can see not all storage facilities are created equal. Philadelphia’s 5×10′s can go for as low as $29 a month to as high as $121, with everything in-between. It’s all about location, location, location.

The most noticeable trend in prices around Philadelphia is the same that we expect in most cities: the closer to the city’s core the more expensive the unit. Unlike other cities we’ve looked at no other trends are easily discernible–what we do have in Philadelphia is a few important exceptions to our rule. Most surprising is Simply Storage- Kensington’s price of $29 a month, the lowest of the day. It’s not simply the fact that Simply Storage- Kensington is a full $13.50 cheaper than the next-cheapest facility that makes it a rare find, but that Simply Storage- Kensington is one of the closest facilities to downtown Philadelphia, with some of its neighboring facilities charging as high as $109 a unit. Other good close-to-downtown deals that buck the trend can be found at Safeguard Self Storage- Frankford ($54/mo) and at the Safeguard Self Storage on Hunting Avenue ($69).

Throughout Philadelphia’s suburbs and into New Jersey our rule generally holds true: the farther out we travel the lower the prices, with some particularly-good rates in the southern Garden State. Head out into Cherry Hill on Marlton Pike East to find a string of deals starting at United Storage Cherry Hill ($51.75), followed by CubeSmart Self Storage ($42.50), and finishing with Self Storage Hampshire- Cherry Hill ($55).

Head north along I-95 to find Safeguard Self Storage on Keystone St ($49) or take a left on Levick Street and a right down Frankford Ave to find Mr. Storage- Mayfair ($49). More deals can be found north of town: seek out Simply Storage- Germantown ($57) just a few blocks north of Germantown Ave or Mr. Storage- Olney ($49) north of Roosevelt Blvd.

The deals are out there. Go get em.

Brian Shreckengast is a writer at Self Storage Deals.

Deep Deals: Philadelphia Storage

Posted on August 9, 2012 by Brian Shreckengast

Deep Deals is back this week to find the best bargain for you on Philadelphia storage. Our focus was on 5×5 units that don’t necessarily offer the lowest monthly prices but do feature excellent special deals for renters seeking a space for more than just a month. So while their price tags might not be as eye-catching as others, the two facilities featured this week offer unbeatable bargains that reward those who plan ahead.

The first deal we’ll be examining comes from Haddon Storage, just five miles outside Philadelphia across the Delaware in West Collingswood Heights, New Jersey. Haddon Storage’s 5×5 storage units are selling for $40.00, with the second month thrown in for nothing at all. That’s right: two months of storage for just $40.

But Haddon Storage is not the only facility tossing out excellent offers for those hoping to rent a space for more than just one month. Drive a little further outside of town to find United Storage Cherry Hill. At $42.00 monthly costs might be a bit higher here than at Haddon Storage, but United Storage sweetens the deal with the first three months half-off. Three months of storage for $21 a month sounds even better than $20 a month at Haddon Storage.

But in reality neither offer is essentially better than the other. It all depends on each renter’s individual situation, most specifically how the renter’s calendar matches up with these time-based special offers. So which deal is best for you?

Click on the graph to view a larger version.

As we can see, these time-based specials work differently depending on how long you’re hoping to keep your 5×5 unit. If you only need your space for a month then go with United Storage Cherry Hill, where you’ll only have to shell out $21 compared to Haddon Storage’s first-month fee of $40. But a renter seeking a unit for two months will save $2 with Haddon Storage’s free month versus United Storage’s cumulative two-month price of $42.

Renters seeking to keep a unit for three months should once again look at United Storage, where the three-month 50%-off deal will bring total costs to $63, saving you $17 versus Haddon Storage’s three-month total of $80. This holds true for the fourth month, when United Storage will cost a total $105 as opposed to Haddon Storage’s $120, and the fifth month, where United Storage wins again with $147 total to Haddon’s $160.

At six months we reach yet another turning point: both specials have been out of effect for three months now and so Haddon Storage’s lower monthly costs are now catching up to the lead that United Storage took with its three-month special. After six months Haddon Storage will cost $180 versus United Storage’s $184. After seven months the difference will be $220 to $226. As (I hope) you can tell, Haddon Storage will continue to pull away from United Storage, saving you $2 every month.

So there we have it: those seeking a storage unit for either one, three, four or five months would do well by choosing United Self Storage, whose three-month deals really pay off in this period. Those who plan on renting a 5×5 unit for two or six or more months would find the best bargain at Haddon Storage, whose low monthly price and free second month create excellent savings.

So get out your calendar and plan ahead before you venture out into the Philadelphia storage world.

Brian Shreckengast is a writer at Self Storage Deals.

Living on the Cheap in Philadelphia

Posted on August 8, 2012 by Brian Shreckengast

Philadelphia is on the move. A decade ago the City of Brotherly Love was anything but, with one of the highest crime rates in the world and a rotting, neglected core. But today Philadelphia is staging its own revival, seemingly intent upon reclaiming its former glory. This rebound creates an interesting conundrum for Philadelphians: while the city remains affordable compared to its nearby New England cousins, its rediscovered energy comes with a price tag that might leave those living on a budget baffled.

Is it still possible to enjoy this re-energized city without sapping out the vital forces of one’s own wallet? Of course: Philadelphia’s still got a lot of of love for the budget brother. You just gotta be in the know, bro.

DO.

Philadelphia offers up its own unique mix of high- and not-so-highbrow pleasures. During the day you can expand your mind at one of the city’s world-renowned museums or sink yourself into America’s primordial past at a colonial site straight out of your eighth grade history textbook, then at night find yourself caught in the irreverent joviality in this city that does public drunkenness like few others. The trick is to do it all on a budget.

On Sundays make like Rocky up the steps of the Philadelphia Museum of Art for pay-what-you-want admission (but please, don’t actually mount the staircase and dance about in imitation of the Italian Stallion–such cliches are for tourists and steroid-addled actors only). You read that right: one of the largest, grandest, most-esteemed art museums in the Western hemisphere–227,000 pieces of art–for, like, however much you want to give them. The nearby Rodin Museum (also owned by the Philadelphia Museum of Art) is free every day, though a $5 donation is strongly encouraged. But hey, five bucks is a pittance for the photo-op the ground’s gardens grant you: put fist to chin next to the world’s most famous statue–The Thinker–for a far classier cliche than pumping your arms like Rocky.

Art of the now variety is on display at First Fridays, where on the first Friday of every month from around 5 to 9pm forty art galleries fill the streets from First to Third and Market to Vine. Mingling and people-watching are as essential to the event as the art itself.

If you’ve had your fill of art, get yourself to Fairmount Park. One of the oldest and largest urban parks in the nation, Fairmount Park offers loads more than open, rolling fields and wooded trails. Wander through colonial homes and boathouses, take the trolley, and tour the Fairmount Water Works. And of course its all free.

If tranquility isn’t exactly your thing, more action-packed wandering can be found at Penn’s Landing, where the historic waterfront walk along the Delaware River has found new life as a bustling entertainment district. You probably can’t afford to eat around here, but there are an amazing number of free concerts, festivals, movies, and fireworks shows every week. Of particular note is Wawa’s Welcome America festival, a week-long party featuring concerts, art, and food, all culminating in a spectacular July 4th finale (this was the city where the Declaration was signed, after all). Oh, yeah, and it’s pretty much all FREE.

For cheap entertainment visit the Ritz Theater on Wednesdays, where tickets are $6 all day and night. Another excellent Wednesday deal can be found at Helium Comedy Club: buy a drink before 7pm and get a free ticket to that night’s show.

Finally, if you feel compelled to do your patriotic duty, visit the Liberty Bell Center and Independence Hall. Entrance to both is free, as are their tours (though Independence Hall recommends you reserve tickets ahead of time, for a fee of $1.50). But don’t go inside–lines are typically long on weekends and in the summer, and the bell can be seen from the outside through a big glass window on Market St. Waiting in line is one of those free activities we’ll leave for the tourists; those of us on a budget know that time is money.

EAT.

Make for the markets. Eating out on the cheap in Philly is all about wandering through and around the two excellent, old-style markets. Amish meets Italian at the Reading Terminal Market, where some of the most uniquely-American food you might never have tasted is on offer at reasonable prices. Enormous stacks of pancakes will fill your belly for hours on only a few dollars at the Dutch Eating Place. But don’t think Reading Terminal is limited to traditional Pennsylvanian food–everything from cheap Chinese, Middle Eastern, Cajun, Thai, and sushi are on offer.

The 9th Street Italian Market is the oldest outdoor market in America and remains the best and cheapest place to find Italian food in Philadelphia (if not the entire country). Pick up a hoagie, a stromboli, or an iconic cheesesteak.

Speaking of which, Pat’s King of Steaks invented the cheesesteak and at $7 for a massive, whiz-covered sandwich remains one of the most affordable places to stuff your face. Just make sure you learn how to order like a local.

DRINK.

Oscar’s Tavern is dingy and dirty but you can score a massive 23oz domestic for just $3.25 or $6.25 for a lager and a cheesesteak. Also a great place to pick a fight.

$2 PBRs, $3 Tecates, and $5 ‘City-Wides’ (that’s a shot of whiskey in a can of Pabst Blue Ribbon, something of a Philly cheapo specialty) make the Barbary one of the cheapest places to shake it in all of Philadelphia.

For the ultimate happy hour hit up Lucy’s Hat Shop, where on Fridays and Saturdays Miller High Lifes go for $1, Twisted Teas $2.50, Sailor Jerry’s $3, and Tuaca shots $4. On Thursdays you can snag a High Life for $0.75 (can you buy anything for three quarters anymore?).

GO.

Bus, trolley, and subway fares on SEPTA, Philly’s public transportation system, start at $2 a trip. Buy tokens in packs of two, five, and ten for a discount (a full $4.50–or almost 25%– in savings if you go with the ten pack). Day passes will cost you $7 for eight rides or $11 for unlimited trips, so studying the map and planning ahead to limit yourself to eight rides can save you an easy $4 every day. If you’ll be depending heavily on SEPTA go with the TransPass, which guarantees unlimited rides for $22 weekly or $83 monthly. The TrailPass includes rides on the outlying rail lines, with prices varying upon the zone (the system offers wide coverage of the Philadelphia-Camden metro) with prices starting at $91 for Zone 1.

MORE.

To keep up to date on budget deals around Philadelphia, add Philly on the Cheap and Geekadelphia to your favorites list.

Picture by Kevin Burkett via Flickr

Storage Spotlight: Philadelphia

Posted on August 7, 2012 by Brian Shreckengast

Philadelphia is one of the best major cities in the United States for renting storage space–and perhaps most surprisingly one of the best in Pennsylvania. With twenty-six facilities Philadelphia has far-and-away the most storage units of any city in Pennsylvania, fifteen more than the average of 11 per city. But more astounding is the fact that Philadelphia is one of the cheapest places to rent a storage space in the entire state. With monthly rental costs averaging $141.03 Philadelphia is $32.56 cheaper than the state average of $173.59 and a full $106.97 cheaper than the Pittsburgh average of $247.

Darker bars represent a higher proportion of storage facilities.

This is quite different from what we’ve come to expect from major metropolitan areas. Philadelphia’s average prices aren’t quite as low as smaller cities in the central part of the state, but they aren’t as high as we might expect based on comparably-large cities. As you can see in the map below, they aren’t nearly as high as Philadelphia’s mirror-opposite on the western end of the state: Pittsburgh and its surrounding suburbs can be nearly twice the price.

Larger circles represent a higher proportion of facilities; darker colors represent higher prices.

On the national scale Philadelphia has fourteen more storage facilities than the national average of twelve. Philly is $12.03 more expensive than the national average of $129, but among large cities it is easily on the cheaper end, with lower prices than cities including Boston, Baltimore, Minneapolis, Chicago and Portland.

Storage Spotlight: USA

Posted on July 9, 2012 by Brian Shreckengast

Ever wonder which state has the largest number of storage facilities? Or which city requires the most storage?

Larger circles represent a higher proportion of facilities in that city. Zoom in or out with the toolbar in the upper-right hand corner. Hover over any circle to see the number of facilities in that city.

Today’s map is the first in our Storage Spotlight series, a weekly feature in which we’ll examine the self storage market in individual cities across the USA. Our maps, graphs, and insights will be specifically geared to both help customers find the best bargains in their area and assist facility managers in gauging their position against both local and national competitors. Our goal is to not be yet another national storage service tossing out generic advice, but to dig deep into the intricacies and idiosyncrasies of your local market. You’re not searching for storage across the whole USA–you’re looking for storage facilities in your own neighborhood, and we’re here to help you.

Our map is made up of data from an incredible 751 cities across the United States. We found each city has an average of 12 storage facilities, with an average monthly price of $128.93–if that seems high or low to you, remember that it includes all sizes of units, from tiny 5×5′s to those larger than some houses. The average lowest price in each city is $27.50 a month, while the average highest price is $842.27.

We’ll be spotlighting cities like Austin, Chicago, Boston, Philadelphia and Los Angeles in the coming weeks, and soon your city as well. Also, don’t feel snubbed that we’re only focusing on big cities and not your small town: each episode will compare major cities with the whole rest of their state, so no matter where you live we’ll be sure to cover you.

Be a part of building our blog: let us know what you like about us and what we need to change. Send us any advice or insider knowledge on your neighborhood storage scene and we’ll try to share it for everyone’s benefit. Request that we cover your city or state. Also, we’ll always looking for guest blog posts, so if you have something great to share with the storage world–particularly something specific to your location–then get in touch with us. Whatever it is, leave us some love in the box below.

Also, don’t forget to ‘Like’ us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter so that you’ll be notified whenever we release new content.

Is there anything about the US storage map that surprises you?

Brian Shreckengast is a writer at Self Storage Deals.

Last updated by Brian Shreckengast at August 1, 2012.