I had a question about furniture that's slightly different than what I've read here, so I wanted to toss this up as my first post.

I am moving to London in September, where I will be a local employee for a company over there. Luckily, my relocation package includes "full reimbursement for transportation of personal items, including furniture." Seeing how they'll pay for door-to-door transit, I'm considering taking my furniture with me.

There's not a ton of furniture, it's all the basics, so I'm certain it can all fit in a small flat. The furniture also isn't of heirloom quality (read: IKEA), so I could pawn it off here, but if my company will pay for the move, I figure, why not bring it?

I realize that many (most?) London flats come furnished, so here are my questions:

1. Are furnished flat rentals generally more expensive than unfurnished ones? By taking my furniture with me, will I end up saving money in the long run?

2. Is it going to be much harder to find an unfurnished place? Am I limiting my choices by ruling out furnished flats?

3. Fully reimbursed moving expenses aside, am I insane to ship pressed particle board over to the UK?

Thanks in advance!