Furnishing your Airbnb on a budget

When you first decide to list an Airbnb property, you will either have to furnish your Airbnb from scratch or partly furnish it. In order for costs to not reach through the roof, here are a few ways to buy attractive, good-quality furniture that's also affordable. Because let’s face it, we could all do with saving a bit of money. So to start off let’s have a look at what you’re going to need to furnish your apartment.

Checklist

• Bed frames
• Matresses
• Linens, blankets, and pillows
• Couch
• Television
• Nightstands, and lamps
• Kitchen table 
• Kitchen appliances (microwaves, pans, a kettle)
• Towels
• Art

For more information on things that you may need (or want) to buy, check out this previous article on what amenities to provide guests.

Now, where can you buy the best furnishings for the best price?

Trade me/Craigslist:

You’re sure to snatch up some incredible deals on New Zealand’s largest auction site. Trade me is an amazing way to sift through the goldmine of furnishings and compare prices, to find something that fits your Airbnb property perfectly. However, make sure you do your research to find out the retail price of the item (if this is applicable). In this way, you will know if you’re getting a good deal or not, and can decide firmly on what your top bid for this item will be. To get in on this Trade me action you’ll have to register and create a login, you can do so here. 

Thrift stores

There’s a reason Macklemore wrote a song about it, you can find some pretty amazing stuff in Thrift stores. Some of Auckland’s best thrift stores include:

•  Junk & Disorderly
•  Vitrine - The Antique Store
•  Salvation Army
• Mr Bigglesworthy
•  Aunty Mavis
•  MIXT
• Wellesley Traders

Seasonal sales/clearances

If you would prefer to buy an item from a store, but at a reasonable price, make sure to wait for seasonal sales or clearances. Yearly sales always occur around Christmas, boxing day, New Years, Waitangi Day weekend, Easter, and Black Friday. Some stores also regularly have sales, or have a clearance section on their website, such as Stevens or Briscoes, who can provide you with some great kitchen and homeware deals.

Facebook 

Facebook is a fantastic platform for a number of reasons, and one of them is that you can buy and swap items such as furniture. You can do this by searching in Auckland/buy/sell in the search bar. This will lead you to groups you can join, such as Buy & sell Auckland, and Auckland buy, sell, swap. You can also click on Facebook market place to look up specific items and even select a minimum and maximum buy price! You will be able to find much cheaper, and even free, furnishings on these platforms.

Factory furniture stores

Another great option to get those dollars off is to visit local factory furniture stores in your areas. These stores are cheap as they manufacture their furniture on-site, don’t have tremendous showroom overheads, and some furniture may be slightly damaged (hanging threads or scratched) which hardly matters considering you will be able to get hundreds of dollars off. Some notable Auckland factory furniture stores include ifurniture, Big Save Furniture, and Danske Mobler.

The Warehouse/ K-mart

It’s in their catchphrase- where everybody gets a bargain. The Warehouse and K-mart have come a long way in terms of quality, but their prices are still very low. With such a great selection, and with average/good quality furnishings, The Warehouse and Kmart are worth a look. Even if you would prefer to buy furniture elsewhere, The Warehouse and Kmart still have a good selection of bathroom towels, sheets, pillows, rugs, and lamps.

Conclusion

In conclusion, it is possible to furnish an Airbnb property on a budget, without sacrificing on style or quality, so make sure you shop around and search online to get the best deals. With such great options available, your Airbnb guest will never even notice the difference, but your wallet sure will!

Written by Lauren