Hello World! Welcome Friends! It is that time again… furniture shopping! You must be excited and thrilled to add some of your favorite furniture pieces to your space. As excited you are, you probably also know the project isn’t a cheap affair. The saddest bit about it is that you can go above and beyond your budget without really having to. That’s what we want to talk about today.
Unsurprisingly, retailers always entice customers to part with as much cash as possible in their stores. Some things never change. Typically, this wouldn’t have any impact if you own land on Mars but if you can do with saving a few coins here and there while shopping for furniture, you definitely want to know how to get value for your money. To help you, we have detailed 6 the unnecessary furniture store costs you should know.
1. Delivery Costs
Delivery is one of the hugely overrated costs when buying furniture. Sure, it is necessary but if you don’t tread carefully, you might blow your budget while at it. Before you decide on having your furniture delivered to your doorsteps, weigh all the alternatives at your disposal. Consider all the logistics of transporting bulky and heavy furniture to your home or office. Sometimes, hiring a truck or having your friend help you carry the items can be a real saver. This is especially true for smaller, less-delicate furniture items. Other times, however, paying an extra $100 delivery fee can be worth it.
2. Customization Costs
It is perfectly fine to want a personal touch when purchasing furniture. Sometimes the fabric on the sofa is right but its style doesn’t make you tick; or the other way round. Perhaps you want another arm design or extra pillows to come with the sofa. Certainly, the store would be more than willing to do these things for you but with an added cost.
Unknown to you, most of the furniture online stores give this service to really double or triple their profits. If you want to go this route, plan your finances accordingly. Anytime you ask for something different from what is being offered in the showroom, be sure to ask the salesperson about its cost. Some dealers such as Designer Marketplace Minneapolis will tell you this upfront while others will play hide and seek throwing you off-balance in the long run.
3. Protection Plans
You have probably come across stores that sell you furniture protection plans in the past. As you might have guessed, these plans are meant to take care of repair costs in case anything happens to your furniture before a certain time period elapses (usually the first five years). Furniture plans typically range between $100 and 6% of the cost of the item. This can be an unnecessary expense or one that’s worth your money depending on how you look at it and how financially-able you are.
A good number of consumer advocacy experts argue that this cost is downright unnecessary. Their argument is based on the fact that repairs are very infrequent especially within the first few years of purchase. Therefore, if a store’s protection plan covers only up to the first five years, you might utilize it once or twice after coughing out quite an amount.
On the same note, some furniture stores offer fabric protection plans to cover any fabric accidents. The principle is the same: if you have to take the insurance, don’t be coerced into taking it. Manufacturers often treat furniture fabric, so if you think you are better off without this kind of plan, don’t go for it. On the opposite side of the spectrum, if you have notorious kids who are constantly jumping up and down furniture, having a furniture protection plan might be worth it.
4. Assembly and disassembly fees
This is somewhat related to delivery where a furniture store would offer to help assemble your furniture at the point of arrival. Although this is ideal for city dwellers who live in apartments with no elevators, some stores offer this service to single-story homeowners as well. Before you grab this offer with open arms, take a step back and find out if you really need it and if you can afford it. You could enlist the help of your buddy to do the assembly and do away with the cost completely.
In the same breath, furniture stores sometimes offer to help disassemble your existing furniture at a cost. Again, don’t be quick to accept it just because the saleslady smiled at you. Unless you absolutely need it, friends and family can make for wonderful furniture disassembly experts!
5. Brand Name Costs
We completely understand why you would want to exercise the utmost care when shopping for furniture. A mistake can be quite costly. On the flip side, however, you can blow your bank account by sticking to one brand just because you can’t trust the rest. Lesser known brands don’t always mean poor quality. Experiment with a few more brands with respect to fit, quality (how it feels), and price. Chances are, the item is fantastic if you tick all three boxes.
6. Color Options
This might come as a shock to you but manufacturers sell neutrals more than colorful furniture pieces. The reason is simple: many home, commercial, and residential owners like to play safe with colors. What this means is that these colors (greys, blacks, whites, browns, etc.) are often sold at lower costs in most furniture stores. Once you move to bolder color patterns, expect the prices to go up considerably. If you want color in your space, try incorporating colorful décor pieces such as lamps, throw pillows, and rugs.
Purchasing furniture is already a complex affair. You have to think about what you want, shop around, deal with aggressive sales people, and battle many decisions before you finally make the purchase. Although you might not be able to do much about these factors, you can control how much you’ll spend in the project by knowing the unnecessary costs and how to avoid them.
Click the links below for any posts you may have missed!
How to Tone Down your Stress Level for your Next Move
Tips for Modernizing your Bathroom
Redecorate your Home on a Budget
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Toodles,
It is really important to check not only the products you’re buying but also the costs attached to it. It’s good be be meticulous with the things we’re buying. Thank you for sharing this.
Recognizing the importance of adjustable office chairs for employee health, we recommend that chairs should be easily adjustable without a tool.
Furniture is already so expensive! then add in some of this hidden costs that you have pointed out, yikes!