Thursday, February 25, 2010

Owning Furniture Does Not Make You an Adult

New Furniture is a waste of money.

If you can answer any of these questions with "Yes" then don't buy new furniture.
-"Do I live in an apartment?"
-"Do I want to move in the next 2 - 5 years?"
-"Am I single?"
-"Do I define myself by things other than what I own?"
-"Do I have less than $25,000 in the bank?"
-"Do I enjoy traveling, drinking alcohol, or generally being fun?"

Get your furniture cheap and used. Until you own a house or own an apartment furniture is just a depreciating asset. Don't ever finance furniture. It's a depreciating asset. It offers you no return on your investment. I was able to get the majority of my furniture off of Craigslist for very little money. I've also been fortunate to have a roommate who owned furniture so I didn't have to go out and buy it. Furniture says nothing about you unless it is antique or you built it yourself. If you do have a chance to purchase furniture that will appreciate in value, this could be a long term, albeit boring, investment.