Moving/Furnishing an Apartment on the Cheap

I've mentioned before that my boyfriend C. and I are making plans to move in together this summer.  This life change is simultaneously thrilling and daunting for a number of reasons, but lately I've been worrying about how moving and setting up our first apartment together will impact us financially.

C. and I are in our early 30s and late 20s, respectively.  We've both been living like broke college students for so long that we're ready for a more "grown-up" place.  You know, a place with more than one pot and pan, matching dishes and furniture that doesn't necessarily match, but at least "goes" together?

Over the past few days, our expectations have been met with reality and I've received a good case of sticker shock ($40 for a stainless steel trashcan?).  But ultimately, it's lead to some good conversations about our priorities and our overall home furnishing budget.  And we've listed some ways to make our move and apartment furnishing more manageable and cost effective:

1) We've been saving money like fiends.  Even with my extra "erase debt" payments, my tutoring and babysitting side gigs have enabled me to save up a respectable chunk of money.  Also, one of my students gave me a piggy bank for Valentine's Day ( a sweet and unusual gift) which currently houses our loose change and leftover dollar bills.

2) We're definitely going to use an apartment locator service.  It is overwhelming trying to find an apartment in Austin without help.  With a locator service, we only see apartments with our wants (fireplace, patio, laundry facilities) in our price range and desired location.  Plus, the locator service can snag us deals on rent and security deposits AND we get a rebate for using their services.

3) Our monthly rent budget for a 2-bedroom apartment is no more than $900.  We could comfortably afford more, but we've made debt reduction and saving for the future our top priorities.  I am hopeful that if we find an apartment in North Austin (where we both work) we can find a nice apartment for well under our limit.

4) We're willing to spend time and leg work scouring the city and internet for the best home deals.  Austin has a variety of discount and consignment stores and flea markets.  Even the big box stores offer some really great deals (case in point--a brown and gold duvet cover was marked down to $17 at Target--we snatched it up immediately).  We comb the internet as well, searching Amazon, Overstock.com, Ebay and Craigslist for items on our list.

Moving and decorating an apartment is not going to be cheap by any means, but I'm confident that we can do it for a fraction of the cost.

Your Turn: How do you move/decorate on the cheap?  Any tips on how to cohabit successfully?

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