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Check my furniture budget


Guest Bronwyn

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Guest Bronwyn

I was still humming & haa-ing about the container issue until the weekend, when hubby sat me down and showed me his sums. Here goes a shopping list if you leave all your furniture behind:-

- Lounge Suite $1,900

- Dining Room suite $1,000

- Queen mattress (daughter) $300

- Bed for above $300

-King mattress (me & lang-gat) $300

-Bed for above $600

-2 x single beds for boys $600

-2 x mattresses for above $320

-Fridge $850

-Freezer $850 (absolute guess, couldn't find this in our brochure)

-Plasma $2,900 (go large or go home :ilikeit: - we can dream)

-W/Machine $850

-Dishwasher $500

-Vaccuum $400

-Microwave $200

-Printer $400 (Bringing own laptop in hand luggage)

-T/Dryer $350

-Coffee table(s) $300

-TV Unit $500

-Lawn mower $460

-Weedeater $160 (Pure speculation :ilikeit: )

-Desks for kids x 2 $700

-Towels/linen $1,000 (huge thumbsuck)

-Kitchenware $2,000 (even bigger thumbsuck)

GRAND TOTAL $17,740 at a rate of R5.71/AUD1 = R101,295

After this I realised we have no pictures or paintings, lamps or mirrors, and the kids have no chairs to sit at and do their homework at their desks. :huh: No garden chairs or deckchairs, tents and camping gear, no kist and rugs, no ornaments or extra clothes. No ironing board, iron or even a dustbin, washbasket...you get the picture. (It's like playing the Sims in real life, with no 'cheats' :ilikeit: )

So, even though we've been married 13 years and our stuff is mostly on it's way out, we decided once & for all to drag it along with us and spend the R36k on the container. As the stuff breaks down we'll trash it.

What do you say, forumites, is my budget anywhere near close? :)

Bronwyn

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Absolutely, on the button, Bronwyn. To crown it all, the family will have 'their' stuff to start with, you will be amazed at the difference this makes to settling in!

Bring the container - that's my vote!

Mara

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I have to agree. I gave a lot away, but the rest went into the container. It was like christmas when we unpacked 2 weeks ago. I feel "grounded" now. Obviously it is lovely to buy some new things for the new house but to replace an entire house is crazy! We left the fridge, freezer, washer and dryer behind - no defy here and plenty of years good service (I needed the excuse to get something bigger to make less work my myself)

I also only brought the spare room bed/mattress, we bought a new one for us and a car bed for our son. We had to buy an extra lounge suite (we only had one in sa) and the Perth rentals all had a seperate theatre room.

At least we could "camp in semi comfort" untill the container arrived. With that said, the bits add up quickly and before you know it you spend a whole lot of cash! I find the good quality furniture here is expensive. You are paying for the container - pack it to the rim!

My little one loved seeing his own toys again. He is only 3 and when it was all done and unpacked he came to sit on my lap and asked "are we home now?" That should say it al.

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Thanks for that ladies, hubby and I have the same concern, whether or not to bring a container. So it seems as though bringing one is perhaps the cheeper option and wiser. We've been married for 10yrs and have accumulated allot of stuff, some we need to throw out and others of sentimental value (wedding, bday gifts, mums old table clothes etc), as someone mentioned on one of the threads, we'll regret leaving that heirloom behind when we don't have anything to pass down to our kids. I said from the get go, that I want my kids rooms for the very least to remain the same, even teddy bears and duvets covers because they need something familiar to identify with, it's traumatic for them. So yes, thanks for that, I'v convinced.

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Hi Bronwyn,

I agree with the way you made the decision. Make the sums and compare apples with apples. I had a quick look at your budget though, and it looks a bit skimpy to me. You'll have to add a few dollars here and there, and this will make your end total even more top-heavy. You can buy furniture for those prices, but some of it is just not worth it. For instance, we bought a dishwasher for $399 and after two months we made the shop take it back. It was hopeless. We then shook out the $850 for a proper one. Good matresses (not great ones) could cost you anything from $450 upwards, and that is with cash discount. You could however save on the kids' desks as they are generally quite cheap. You can buy a self assembly desk for $69.

You are right when you mention the pictures, lamps etc. They cost you a fortune to replace, not even talking about all your kitchen gear. And ironingboards are ridiculously expensive here. The are not made of plywood, like in SA, but of steel, and cost between $20-$120. Once again, don't buy the $20 one, mine irritated the hell out of me, so I had to reeplace it eventually with an $80 one. This method of trial and error ended up costing us a lot. Just think, I could have bought myself a fancy $100 ironing board if I knew better! You get the picture?

Bring the stuff you know and trust. Just this morning I was reminiscing about my old kitchen stools. They were just right for standing on, and could even double up as little tables. We sold them and never got the money for it. I can go on about this for ever. :)

Good luck with the final stages!

Greetings,

Dreamy

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