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If you’re looking for some different furniture or décor to freshen up your living space, you don’t have to pay a bundle. Think secondhand instead of new. A network of local shops and internet sites offer just what you need at a fraction of the original price, if you know where to look. Where you shop depends on your needs.
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While a number of web-based stores exist that sell high-quality secondhand stuff, you’ll probably want to look locally first. The first reason is delivery cost, which can exceed the price of the item you’re buying.
The second reason? Buying furniture is personal. If you shopped at a local furniture store for a new couch or recliner, you’d plop yourself down to check your comfort level. Does the chair have nice padded arms? Does it recline easily? Is the couch comfortable enough for you and your significant other to sit on during movie nights or for friends to sleep on when they visit? The experience of shopping for a secondhand couch or chair shouldn’t be any different.
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Chances are your community has a thrift store or two, or maybe a consignment shop, that will have gently used furniture. Goodwill, Habitat for Humanity ReStore and The Salvation Army are options, and many towns also have stores run by locally run charities. Shopping at those stores allows you to save money, divert items from the landfill and also try them on for size – something you can’t do if you go the internet route.
When you head to the store, go prepared with the measurements of the space you have to fill. After all, if the wall where you plan to put your couch is just 7 feet long, you can’t buy a 96-inch couch. Take the tape measurer with you to get the dimensions of your find, and if you see just what you want, be prepared to buy right away. Stores, especially in bigger areas, have constant turnover, and it might not be there tomorrow.
On the flip side, if you don’t see what you want, keep going back to the shop. On its website, Goodwill Industries says most of its stores put more than 2,000 new items out for sale each day.
Local estate sales and auctions also are a source for secondhand furniture, and …….