Furnishing your home or apartment is an exciting part of moving into a new place, but it can also be time consuming. Going from one store to the next to find the perfect furniture isn’t always possible, particularly if you’re in the middle of a move.
A great alternative is to rent furniture online. This option not only saves you the large cash layout of a major purchase, but it also keeps you from blowing your nights and weekends on comparing new couches and chairs.
How to Shop for Furniture Online
Of course, you don’t get to see or touch the furniture before ordering it when you shop online, but that shouldn’t be a problem if you do some research on each piece of furniture you’re considering. Some of the things to double-check when renting online include:
Types of Materials Used
Read written descriptions carefully to make sure you know what you’re getting. Is it a solid wood table, or is it wood veneer? Real leather or vinyl? Don’t assume you can get all the information you need from a photo. If you’re looking for specific materials, like wood or metal, use those keywords as part of your search.
Color
There is a tremendous variance in colors for furniture. All reds are not created equal — and neither are browns, greens, blues, or pretty much any other color. You can’t completely trust computer monitors, unfortunately, so read descriptions carefully to visualize colors.
Size and Scale
If you’re looking at a furnished room online, it’s going to look perfect — but how will it look in your space? Is it going to be so big that it overpowers the room or too small to fill it up? This is an important part of the decision-making process. Avoid making mistakes by taking the measurements for each piece of furniture you’re considering and marking those measurements off on the floor using tape. This will help you imagine the right size when choosing furniture.
Renting vs. Buying
Rental furniture shares many of the benefits of purchased items, such as being in showroom condition and being delivered to your home or apartment. There are also some differences you need to be aware of before deciding which option is best for you.
Furniture rental is different from buying in that you may have to pay costs like set-up fees and deposits, when required. Fees vary greatly from one company to the next. For example, CORT may require a security deposit based on a credit check or with debit card transactions.
Instead of a monthly payment for financed furniture, you pay a monthly rental fee, but you don’t have the interest fees charged by companies for financing. Consider taking advantage of an automatic payment plan to ensure you don’t miss any payments and risk facing additional fees.
Renting furniture online can be a time-saving, simplified way to furnish your next home or apartment without the obligation of ownership. CORT Furniture Rental’s large selection can help you find what you’re looking for, regardless of how much space you need to fill or what style you need.
