Homebuying - When to order furniture?

kayfaz

I am in the process of buying a 2bed flat and plan to move instantly. Currently living with parents and rented my first property out with everything it had.

The new flat will only come with white goods including cooker, washer, dishwasher etc however no bed, sofa, curtains etc etc...

Currently waiting for searches to come (I was told it will take 4weeks! normal?) and a mortgage valuation/offer (I was told this should be done within 2-3weeks at most).

Went to DFS the other day to have a look at Sofa's, bed and was told delivery is around 10-12 weeks! Which brings me to my question, when shall I start ordering my furniture, after exchange?

Also is it ok to ask the EA for another viewing at this stage so that I could get some measurements etc?

arbrighton

Don't commit to purchasing anything until you have exchanged. Searches could throw up anything or the seller could pull out. Or your mortgage offer may not come through.

You can sleep on a camp bed or just a mattress if you need to. Or the floor, which we did here for the first few nights

theEnd

As above. You can pick stuff out but don't order anything till you've exchanged. If you avoid the big furniture shops, you can usually get a much quicker turn around on the order.

kayfaz

Is it normal to ask the EA for another viewing so that I could get measurements etc and have it all ready for when we exchange and then just put the order through?

HouseBuyer77

Consider if you really want new furniture as well. Buying second hand can save a lot of money (for a bed whilst you may want a brand new matress you can pick up a frame second hand).

When buying new read the fine-print on the delivery conditions. Some companies will be happy to let you return furniture for a full refund should it not fit (either it physically doesn't go in or just decide it doesn't work with the room once you get it in). Others will say it's entirely your fault if you get something that does not fit and leave you to deal with it (I suspect DFS does the latter).

Asking for a viewing to measure up is entirely reasonable, it may be the seller is happy to just let you in one saturday or after work without involving the EA. Remember to look at how large items will get from the front door to the room as well as if they'll fit in the room itself.

pinkteapot

Definitely not until after exchange of contracts. It's fine to ask for another viewing to measure up.

We had a long gap between exchange and completion, so the day after we moved in we'd arranged for four deliveries from different furniture companies.

Can recommend Furniture Barn (http://www.furniture-barn.co.uk/). Had loads of stuff from them. Cheapest we've found for the wooden range we like (it's a pain comparing wooden furniture sets as shops will all buy the same range and then give it different names) and they carry a lot in stock. Delivery time is noted on each product page.

Can also recommend Appliances Online for white goods. Had various things from them too. http://ao.com/

vuvuzela

We bought Ikea stuff when we started out. Perfectly fine and saves a hell of a lot of money over the likes of DFS. As above, all you need really is a mattress to start with, and a couple of chairs.

penguingirl

Camping chairs are your friend!

rosie383

And remember the advice of every consumer expert. If you are buying anything over £100 use a credit card, so that if anything goes wrong you have so much more protection. You don't have to get Into debt, you can pay it off the same day. We got a 0% interest for 19months cc to use for any purchases for our move.,