Buying a New Home, I Have No Furniture. What's The OZB Way to Furnish It from Scratch?

Lpeekabooo on 17/07/2018 - 10:32
Last edited 17/07/2018 - 18:32

It's a 2 bedroom town house. It will be empty and I don't own anything.

I need to buy everything. What would you do? Also what are the things I will need?

Edit: Adding more details:

It has got a electric oven and a cooktop, air conditioning,fans, built in robes.

I will possibly need: TV, refrigerator, Washing Machine, BBQ, Lounge, Two bedroom suites, Dining table and chairs, Kitchen wares, Vaccum Cleaner other stuff which I overlooked.

I have got 5K to buy everything.

Expecting suggestions like the brands to trust, what are the stuff which I should buy new and what not? etc

Location: Adelaide

Home & Garden Appliance Cookware Furnishing Moving

Comments

      • peekabooo on 19/07/2018 - 12:05

        Thanks. Much appreciated.

  • freefall101 on 18/07/2018 - 18:38
    +2

    Recently fitted out an apartment, hunted around the usual chains until I found a store in Dandenong that had a lot of floor stock. Paid less than $1500 for a couch, coffee table, hutch, two bedside tables, wine rack/cabinet thing and a few other bits and bobs - $600 of that was the couch. They had some <$100 kitchen tables that were floor stock. All solid wood furniture (although made in Vietnam) and budget wasn't actually a problem - I went with some of the more expensive stuff - but the quality is fine. But basically my advice is try some furniture stores that don't have much of an online presence but have a huge warehouse somewhere. Because they'll have cheap stuff just laying around.

    At the same time, I'm trying to sell my fridge on gumtree for $300 and no one will bite (4 years old, about a grand new). Perfectly fine, just won't fit in the fridge slot at my new place so I had to buy a new one. Lots of competition at that price too. So white goods definitely go gumtree, just make sure it turns on and works before you walk out with it. Also no free delivery, so factor in the cost of a truck.

    Freecycle.org is a good option too to start with, bit more hipstery/trendy so there's often good stuff on there from people who are just too lazy to deal with selling stuff. Get a free bedframe, buy a new mattress.

    • peekabooo on 19/07/2018 - 12:06

      Thank you! I'll look around!

  • TurkishDelight on 18/07/2018 - 19:06
    +1

    Kerb lol

  • keithality on 18/07/2018 - 19:50
    +1

    +1 for Gumtree, I've also found Facebook Marketplace is becoming popular, got a nice table on there for cheaper than anything similar on gummo.

  • djmm on 18/07/2018 - 20:43

    Ute, drive to Westfield food court.

  • Wallyt99 on 18/07/2018 - 20:58
    +1

    If you want new, the % discounts on eBay at goodguys and appliance online etc are great for whitegoods

  • konazz on 18/07/2018 - 22:24
    +3

    $5k isn’t much. I remember when we moved out of home and bought a new house. Here’s what I can roughly remember from about 8 years ago:

    Furniture - 2nd hand, freebies. Don’t spend much. If you buy cheap new stuff now, it’ll date and you’ll throw it out in 18 months. Also you won’t know what layout works. Then when you are ready for, say a new couch, wait for a sale.
    - lounge ($200-$300) although an ikea one for $300 isn’t too bad
    - tv stand and coffee table - look for cheap or free. You don’t need a coffee table straight away
    - kitchen crockery - IKEA is handy but so is Vinnies or Smitty’s. I bought a bunch of cutlery for a few dollars. Kmart is also your friend here. But if you can, buy 1 good fry pan.
    - get a cheap dining table and 4 chairs.
    - wait till summer for a bbq, no point now and no sales.
    - window coverings killed us. Being in a cold climate with no curtains was expensive. Budget $60 per window or $100 for block outs. IKEA has cheap blinds but average quality. The $100 pair block outs we bought were sold with our last house 5 years later so better to spend a bit upfront
    - cleaning products. You wouldn’t believe how much chemicals, brushes for toilet, vacuum can add up to. Then add pegs, drying racks etc for laundry.
    - get the carpets cleaned before moving in - last chance for an easy thorough clean
    - we picked up a solid timber queen bed frame for $50. Wasn’t the best and took a bit to put it back together, but lasted 3 months till our king bed arrived. Out on the fire it went, but would’ve lasted years. Our previous $20 queen bed frame lasted 5 years.
    - fridge id get new if you’re owning and living as you don’t want to move that again and want to maximise the space out. Washing machines are fine second hand.

  • Whyutrippingfam on 18/07/2018 - 22:58
    +2

    Double size Bed: $149
    https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/NEW-King-Queen-Double-KS-Single-…

    Double size mattress: https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Giselle-Bedding-Mattress-QUEEN-K…

    Rest of the stuff: Gumtree

  • Freitag on 19/07/2018 - 08:05
    +3

    if you have 5K try to buy used and only buy what you need, then buy more as you can afford
    So start with Bed, Fridge and washing machine.
    Then later as you get money buy a sofa, TV, dining room table etc.

    Don't feel like you need to fill your house with stuff just because thats what people do, only buy what you need.

    • ladybug1 on 20/07/2018 - 01:48

      I agree-wait for the washing machine too and use a laundromat. Just buy a mattress first and pick up a frame when you can.

  • 1d0ntkn0w on 19/07/2018 - 08:24

    5k for a 5k TV! Deal?

  • morebunnings on 19/07/2018 - 08:45
    +1

    For your Fridge/Freezer, ring around a few repair men and ask if they sell second hand ones.

    I found a guy that buys broken fridges and combines them to make them work. Went round and he had a shed with about 100 fridge/freezers, 20 of which were working/for sale. Got a huge 2 door stainless fridge freezer for $350 with a 1 year warranty from him. Hes a great guy.

    I'm in QLD but you should be able to find someone in Adelaide doing similar.

    • peekabooo on 19/07/2018 - 12:08

      I should start this business. I'm good with electricals and electronics!

  • [Deactivated] on 19/07/2018 - 09:00
    +1

    sell your house to gather more money for furniture.

  • Duram on 19/07/2018 - 09:08
    +5

    Hello sir, you don't only have 5K, you only have 5K right now. It took us like two years before we were 'fully' furnished, take your time, look for bargains and furnish it slowly, don't go into debt.

  • darkchoc on 19/07/2018 - 09:09

    Second hand (Gumtree):

    Lounge, dining, wooden bedframe, desk. Look in affluent suburbs or sometimes search for keywords like urgent or moving overseas. Look at pics and soak to the person to see if they seem genuine.

    eBay for new mattress (avoid ewww) with good reviews:
    https://m.ebay.com.au/itm/Queen-Double-King-Single-Mattress-…

    White goods: start with second hand and ask if they can be delivered. But there are always sales on. New has gotten cheap.

    Tv: so many good deals on really good second hand, new ALDI, new Hisense.

    • darkchoc on 19/07/2018 - 09:10

      We bought mostly second hand with a view to upgrade when finds were good. 6ish years later, we're still happy with the second hand! Just be discerning!

  • Quen on 19/07/2018 - 09:12

    Ex-display home furniture.. sometimes you can pick up really good quality pieces.

  • [Deactivated] on 19/07/2018 - 09:42

    Apply for a credit card. Max it out. No regrets.

  • pformag on 19/07/2018 - 10:06

    Kmart for small items, Ikea for larger items (new)

    Gumtree (2nd hand)

  • lench on 19/07/2018 - 10:15

    Gumtree for furniture, got some really nice stuff for cheap that way
    you could get appliances there too if you had plans on replacing them

    put a shoutout to your friends on facebook and see if they're willing to offload stuff (you'd be surprised what people might offer!)

    Kmart actually has some alright stuff, the newer stores are almost like a mini (cheaper) Ikea.
    for major stuff, try to buy new. you get a warranty that way

  • fozzie on 19/07/2018 - 11:32

    Facebook sale groups and marketplace. Many bargains there

  • Real Bill Pullman on 19/07/2018 - 12:35
    +1

    Gumtree. I was in the same situation - moved across the country and could have fit everything I'd brought in a couple of boxes. I spent a week checking things out, then organised to pick up on the weekend. Saturday morning I rented a ute and spent two days criss-crossing the city collecting things.

    Most of what I got was only supposed to fill in until we found better gear, but more than five years later there's still heaps I'm using, including a TV cabinet I only got because it was in the same house as some bench stools I'd come to inspect.

    Probably spent $3-4k all up for a couch, stainless steel fridge, two beds, bedroom set, tv cabinet, rugs, kitchen table/chairs, desk, washing machine, bookshelves, and god knows what else I've forgotten.

  • OG Puppy Banana on 19/07/2018 - 13:29
    +1

    Had a $10k budget, wanted to buy only new things. Used this strategy to reasonably good effect, though no doubt more fierce tactics and deception could be used to get a better deal.

    1. Research, research, research!

    2. Pick what you really want and research price matches and walk away alternatives

    3. Find a single store that sells all, so that you can bargain on volume.

    4. Attend said store at 4:45 on Sunday afternoon

    5. Give them itemised list including all price matches then ask them to make a best and final that reflects the volume of purchase.

    6. Demand a further discount (based on what's reasonable) or advise that you'll go to a different franchise or store. In my case, I told them they had to come down on whitegoods by a further 10% and AV by 15%. Maybe I could have gone further, but I was happy with these discounts, given some goods were already heavily marked down/price matched.

    When they were refusing to budge, I started advising that I'll only buy X, y and z and am no longer interested in giving all sales to one person. Then they went back to the deal as they quickly realised a smaller piece of bigger pie always wins.

    I also give a nod to JB Home. Also good to time this with EOFY sales.

  • Piranha2004 on 19/07/2018 - 13:51

    We started with simple things from IKEA (like TV shelf, coffee table). Most of the stuff is still around but have been stacked away elsewhere once we've got the proper furniture.

  • sbot on 19/07/2018 - 14:44

    My couches, shelving, christmas tree, tv and outdoor dining set are all from gumtree. Outdoor dining set was free. People are giving stuff away for free, get on it!

    If you've got the ability to drive around and pick up stuff, gumtree is the bet.

    Whitegoods get as factory seconds, that's what I did with my fridge. Was missing some of the external cardboard padding when shipped, and had a dent in the side (out of view!) $300 off. That was from Home Clearance.

  • lltravel on 19/07/2018 - 16:25

    lol so you bought a new home but dont have enough money to furnish? Sounds like you will have issues repaying the loan as well.

    Typical, people living beyond their needs.

    • peekabooo on 22/07/2018 - 16:48

      I can repay. It's the savings that I don't have due to an impulse motorcycle purchase and the rest going to deposit.

      • brotherfranciz on 30/08/2018 - 03:26

        Firstly, congratulations! Pretty darn exciting isn't it? Have fun going on the bargain hunt. :)

        Don't worry, $5K spending money is plenty for a property that is worth $280K (I had around $7K spending money for my $435K-valued first home and had spending money leftover). You're doing the right thing asking on Ozbargain to get the best value out of your spending money. :)

        It's also better financially in the long term to put as much of your money into the house deposit as possible (because your loan will be smaller, and don't forget that you will have an income that will supplement your $5K spending money).

        Like others have said, be patient and don't feel like you have to buy everything all at once e.g. essential items first and then do research and wait for sales to get the cool luxury items i.e. no more impulse purchases for the next few months!

        Good luck buddy and happy hunting!

  • josho9 on 19/07/2018 - 18:19

    Instead of going second hand, in $5k you can get the essentials brand new, and they will be more reliable, come with warranties and nicer. $500 on each of a washing machine, fridge and sofa (wait for Ikea sales) should be enough, maybe more on a TV.

  • vitb1 on 19/07/2018 - 19:55

    • TV - not necessary (watch on phone or tablet, which means you need to get interweb, otherwise book or radio :D)

    • Refrigerator definite must - appliances online, seconds world, grays online… don't know about getting gumtree fridges.

    • Washing machine - if finance permits, see above, otherwise laundromat.. inconvenient yes, but imagine how many washes you can do for the same amount you would pay for a washing machine.

    • BBQ - not necessary if you have working kitchen and pots and pans, but if you really need one, there are always lots of BBQs during kerbside pick up. Alternatively, a friend of mine has half a drum on the floor, wedged in place with bricks filled with charcoal.. just make sure no kids and animals you DON'T intend to cook

    • Bedroom suites, dining sets - Gumtree often have decent stuff. In Perth, there's Pine Discount Furniture, where a whole brand new suite can be quite cheap, and I personally think better quality than Ikea. Maybe there's something similar in Adelaide? Often big discounts when you buy a whole set, otherwise ask if floor stock is for sale.

    • Kitchen wares - huge debate in my house about buying decent kitchen wares.. buy an expensive one that lasts, or buy a dirt cheap one that is easily replaced if broken..

    • Vacuum cleaner - I use dust mop (e.g. Sabco) for all my hard floors. Vacuum cleaner I personally find only useful for carpets. I find up-right vacuum cleaners do a better job for carpets, but that's a personal thing. I have the original dyson ball that has served me well for over 10 years and is still running strong.

    Good luck and congrats on your new home OP :)

  • supervigilante on 20/07/2018 - 07:55

    Unethical LPT : Join Buy Swap Sell groups on FB and tell them you're a recently-divorced single mum. You might/should/could/would get furnitures for free. =)

    • peekabooo on 20/07/2018 - 16:20

      Haha. Good idea!

  • H_J on 20/07/2018 - 08:33

    partner first, to avoid buying everything again.

  • od810 on 20/07/2018 - 09:13
    +1

    I furnished my 2 bed apartment last year with 5k:

    • washer + fridge + microwave + tv + vacumn cleaner from tgg all up about $2.6k (you can cut back because we spent on decent brands with the exception of the tv. We got bosch series 8, miele vac and westinghouse fridge)
    • dinning set + sofa + 2 beds + coffee table from gumtree: 650 (all the stuff i got were in very good conditions, i probably can sell back at the same price now)
    • 2 mattresses: 900 (1 good one for us and one shitty one for guest)
    • about few hundreds for other stuff

    Good luck

  • [Deactivated] on 20/07/2018 - 09:50
    +2

    Please!! OzB's have it all wrong.

    1. DATE someone who has a rep for cheating
    2. MOVE them into your new place
    3. CATCH them cheating and throw them out. You keep their furniture as resituition for breaking your heart.

    OR

    1. MOVE some foreign student into your house.
    2. KEEP their furnishings when they leave.
    • peekabooo on 20/07/2018 - 16:19

      Don't want no bitches in my house! :D

      • No ONE on 20/07/2018 - 18:52

        Two negatives make positive, so bitches ah!

  • ozzpete on 20/07/2018 - 11:12

    Sit on the boxes that arrive each day from the random crap you purchase because its a bargain.
    Similarly, for bedding, use the bubble wrap for same random crap ordered online :)

  • [Deactivated] on 20/07/2018 - 11:31

    Try Ziiltch

    https://au.ziilch.com/

    Where 'good' stuff goes free!

  • lainey13 on 20/07/2018 - 12:52
    +1

    Op shop for crockery and kitchen stuff they are overflowing in plates and mugs etc. Or your work kitchen ;)

  • Spootage on 20/07/2018 - 14:07

    I have a couch for free and a double bed on gumtree for sale. I'm in the northern suburbs. Let me know if interested.

  • BanannaMan on 20/07/2018 - 14:57
    +1

    I did the same thing 2 years ago - literally no furniture

    We bought everything from gumtree, didnt spend over $1,000 on the whole house
    Full leather furniture and all

    • peekabooo on 20/07/2018 - 16:15

      How long it took you to source all that? I'm not in hurry.

  • jonathonsunshine on 20/07/2018 - 15:58

    Buy a couch cause it's a bed at the same time. If you try to deck your whole.house out at the same tome, you'll endup with a house of crap

    • peekabooo on 20/07/2018 - 16:16

      yeah.. I don't want stuff I don't need. I will go slow about it. Thank you

  • No ONE on 20/07/2018 - 18:50

    Get the essentials first: Fridge, microwave, washing machine , kitchenware and vaccum machine, at later buy the second essentials like table, tv chairs etc.

  • T1OOO on 20/07/2018 - 20:21

    I got a nice 400lt upside down type fried I wona get ride off.

    Msg me if interested. Perfect condition.

  • Lucky13 on 20/07/2018 - 21:16

    Gumtree & Ebay. Gumtree has giveaway/free listings too

  • pomchu on 20/07/2018 - 23:57

    Garage sales and Op shops can have good stuff, so can friends and family.

  • wako on 21/07/2018 - 04:17

    Salvos.
    Save the children (like salvos)
    Theres some 2nd hand electrical places on port road hindmarsh

    Gumtree

  • elgrande on 21/07/2018 - 07:33
    +1

    Kmart $80 upright vaccume. I've put my Dyson collection into semi retirement since purchasing this item.

  • AlienC on 22/07/2018 - 17:03
    +1

    Office parks are great for this, especially if they look like they are closing down or liquidating. Just ask reception or ring around if they have any stuff they don't want hanging around or don't mind letting go.

    Usually the employees get the good stuff but sometimes no one wants it and it is just for trash or on the Gumtree Facebook marketplaces list.

    Search up big removalist jobs for businesses or office parks with closing down or expiring leases or just rock up to a place and ask if you desperate.

    There is always some crap that nobody wants or needs somewhere or might just be surplus because it used to belong to an ex employee or they recently sized down.

    It is kind of not the most honorable, ethical or morally sound solution or way but it is definitely an option.

    Gumtree would be my favorite way then Facebook then eBay.

  • Seedy seed on 22/07/2018 - 17:36

    Ok, get 10 milk crates, local milk bar / takeaway might give you some free. Can be chairs, shelves, benches. Basicly anything you need. Go to op shop, local lifeline is 10c plates, cups, mugs cuttlery and so on.

    Haggle on scumtree for furniture, worst they can say is no.

    If you like to cook go to the local kitchen supply guys (ask butcher/resturants if unsure) and buy a cheap commercial knife like a guisser messer ect for $20 buy a accusharp style knife sharpener $10-20 buy a mundial ect steel aka. hone or dickaron. $15-20. Buy cheap $4-6 victorinox paring knife.

    If you want buy a cheap bread knife though i never actually need one as a sharp chef knife xan do it.

  • hhbb555 on 25/07/2018 - 16:59
    +1

    homeclearance.com.au for white goods, sometimes you could get good price items
    But realistically you'd want to sort which items that are most important to be bought first, as $5k is not much to get everything in the list, especially if you want to get good quality items

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