For many, furniture buying is a long, drawn-out process. Some shoppers spend several years and many thousands of dollars to furnish a home. Others can knock out their furniture shopping in a matter of days and don’t break the bank.
Either way, furniture buying is often thought of as the only way to get the furnishings you want to fill your home. But there are other choices out there for your furniture needs that may not come to mind.
While consumers often don’t consider renting when on the hunt for home furnishings, there are a ton of advantages to renting your furniture. Thousands of customers over Furniture Options’ 35 year history have taken advantage of the benefits of furniture rental. From saving the environment to saving your money, here are 5 reasons why renting furniture could be the best option for you.
Whether your furniture search took a few days or a few months, once you’ve purchased your furniture, you’re locked into a long-term commitment. With the rising costs of furniture at premium retailers, you might even be forced to take out a long-term loan to pay for your furnishings.
This locks you in to your purchase for upwards of half a decade even if the furnishings go out of style or your tastes change.
For some, this may be an arrangement that works for them, but for others, it can be difficult to restrict yourself to one look for such a long time.
One study on furniture retailer returns tells us “most customers go through some sense of regret” after they make a significant purchase like buying furniture, and about 2% to 10% of furniture buyers go so far as to “return or exchange when there is absolutely nothing wrong with the furniture.”
Having the option to switch your style as you please is one of the greatest benefits of renting your furniture, rather than going through a lengthy return process that has no guarantee of working for you and could still cost you money.
Other customers may only need their furniture for a short time and want to avoid paying more money to fill their temporary needs or getting locked into a long-term contract. Whether you’re moving, working out of town or on an extended stay trip, there are tons of life changes that may require temporary furnishings.
Regardless of your situation, you may find yourself in need of temporary furniture, making furniture rental an excellent option to avoid costly long-term commitments.
Some shoppers may not be worried about the style of their furnishings falling out of trend, and for these consumers, purchasing furniture can be a fantastic option. If staying on trend is important to you and you want the freedom to upgrade whenever you like, rental furniture could be an option you’ll want to look into.
By renting your furniture, you could save thousands versus purchasing it all. Rental furniture companies offer a sizeable discount against buying your furniture.
Some furniture rental providers offer whole home furnishing packages for less than $190 per month. These come complete with living room, bedroom, and dining room furnishings to give you everything you need to make your home a livable environment.
They’ll even provide electronics, kitchen essentials, linens, and other items to make your accommodations truly feel like home for a small charge. For someone who needs furniture for just a few months, this can be an excellent option when compared to purchasing your furniture.
The cost of furnishing your home with purchased furniture can be very different depending on your needs.
Some savvy shoppers out there were able to furnish their 1-bedroom apartment right around $3,000 after shopping around and cutting their budget wherever they could.
That number shoots up to over $100,000 for high-end designer furnishings, but the average person stays on the lower end of the spectrum, spending just over $8,100 on furniture for their home.
Even the budget options for purchasing home furnishings can be a little overwhelming for some. Luckily, there are opportunities for shoppers to get their furniture without spending more than they have to.
Moving furniture can be a painful experience. Without the proper equipment, it can take hours just to get the pieces to your home let alone inside. And if you have a 2nd, 3rd, or higher floor apartment, you could be stuck figuring out how to haul that heavy piece of furniture up the stairs and into your home.
There are several options furniture shoppers have for transporting and delivering your furniture into your home. You could:
The last option is the most popular, as it gets your furniture delivered to your home without having to work with a separate company or bother your friends to help you move. Most furniture providers offer a furniture delivery service, but with rental furniture, delivery isn’t the only part of the home furnishing process that’s a breeze. Assembly is, too.
Rental companies will usually assemble and disassemble all your furniture at delivery and pick-up, where traditional furniture providers sometimes just drop off the furniture without assembling it.
When I bought my home furniture last year, it took nearly a month and a half for the furniture provider to ship my furnishings from the manufacturer to the distributor, from the distributor to the store, and finally from the store to my home.
The process also involved multiple phone calls to set up a delivery that was rescheduled a half-dozen times.
For consumers with more patience than I, the benefits of purchasing their furnishings versus renting (like owning the furniture or getting your exact style) can be enough to make it worth the wait.
For customers like me who want their furniture as soon as possible, though, next day delivery is one of the best benefits of renting furniture instead of buying it.
While there aren’t many furniture providers who make next day deliveries, finding a company who does makes the delivery process that much easier. You don’t even have to be home at the delivery time if you’re in an apartment or managed community. Just let the managing office know to let the delivery team in and you’ll come home to a fully furnished home.
When you order furnishings from a furniture rental company, you can rent everything you need to turn an empty house into your home in as little as 24-hours, including:
Rental furniture providers will bring you a fully furnished home when you need it and will haul it all away when you’re ready to move on to your next life stage, making it an easy option for finding everything you need for your home in one place.
After you’ve finished with your purchased furnishings, chances are you’ll either find your furniture a new home or take it to the dump if it’s at the end of its life. One way or another your old couch finds its way into a landfill.
Renting your furniture helps to reduce your environmental impact while giving you the high-quality furnishings that fit your needs.
Furniture rental companies keep their furnishings in top condition to maximize its lifespan and, after deep cleaning each piece, they rent out their furniture to new clients looking to take advantage of the benefits of rental furniture.
This process allows the furniture to continue its use longer than purchased furniture, reducing the environmental impact of the furniture.
If you’re tired of waiting months for your furniture to be delivered, don’t want to be tied up in a long-term commitment, or want to spread out the financial impact of receiving your furniture, renting furniture could be the right option for you.
By renting furniture to fill your home, you’re able to:
There are plenty of reasons why rental furniture can be a great choice for many consumers. Maybe you need furniture for a temporary stay or perhaps you’re just really into environmental conservation.
Whatever your reason, Furniture Options provides rental furniture that could be right for you. You can learn more about furniture rental and order your home furnishings here.