Hi guys,
I'm hoping to get some ideas about saving money when moving to a new place.
I'm moving interstate for work for 1-2 years. My family will stay at my current place so I have to move into a new place.
I prefer not to share so basically need to start from scratch.
Buying furniture and white goods is going to cost be about 10k. So was keen to know if people have any suggestions on saving money. (i.e. ?renting furniture, second hand)
THanks
Gimli son of gloin
Gumtree. A lot of O/S students are moving back home and wanting to clear their stuff out.
^ Gumtree is awesome for getting furniture cheap if you don't mind it looking a bit dated (but often still in really good condition). Use Gumtree to find 2 men and a ute/truck ads too and get it delivered. Airtasker may also work depending on where you are.
first place that comes to mind is I-K-E-A!
milk crates
Gumtree, op shop & Ikea for furniture (probably in that order).
Kmart, Big W, Target, gumtree, op shop, garage sale for household items (not in any particular order).
Use the boxes/ containers/ suitcases that you move your stuff in for storage.
Most importantly, don't forget to check whether you've got any excess items at home (surely your family won't need all 6 dining sets that you've accumulated over the years), or ask your friends and family if they've any unwanted items that you might be able to have/ borrow for a year or 2.
Furnished house.
How big is this place you're moving into?
For only 1-2 years, you could almost get away with just the bare basics.
Keep in mind that when buying things for a rental home, there's things that may look nice for the place you're moving into, but may not look nice in another place. So there's no need to spend an arm and a leg on things like couches and beds that you may not want to keep later.
Rental apartments come with ovens, hotplates and some have dishwashers. The only white goods you might need to get is a fridge, microwave and washing machine. Maybe even a dryer if you prefer the convenience.
These can be had for less than $2000 for decent brands if you don't want to go too cheap or too expensive. When deciding on these items, think about what you might do with it after the 1-2 year period. If you're planning on moving back with your parents, chances are, they'll have these items already so if you spend too much now, you'll be trying to sell it at higher prices later to try recoup some costs. Higher priced items generally take longer to sell on the second hand market.
There is one more alternative and that is to rent a furnished apartment that has most of the items already. You'll be paying about 10% more and depending on how long you intend to stay there, there's a break-even point where the extra you're paying each week/month could have purchased those items. That's the disadvantage. But if you don't have the cash or just don't want to pay upfront to buy things, then a furnished place might be an option.
FInally, remember that when renting, it's only a matter of time before you have to move - the more you buy now, the more you'll have to packup and move later.
Find the local op shop and see what they have, usually stuff is incredibly cheap - particularly for kitchen plates, bowls, saucepans, etc.