To think I can furnish a house for £20,000?

[LKnope]

We’ve bought a house. It has four bedrooms and two receptions rooms.

The owners are downsizing and moving to a two bedroom cottage so don’t require all the furniture they have in the house.

We’re moving from a two bedroom flat so don’t have an awful lot of furniture to bring with us.

As part of the sale, the estate agent mentioned that they’re downsizing and I asked if they’d be interested in maybe selling some furniture. They do have some nice items and it’d mean that we would be able to move in and not have to think about buying stuff for a while: we wanted to live in the house and figure out how we want to decorate and style it before buying all that much. Plus wait time for new furniture at the moment seems very long.

They came back to say yes, they’d sell us the following:
3 x kingside beds with headboards
1 x single bed with headboard
8 x bedside lockers
2 x chest of drawers
2 x wardrobes
1 x 32” Samsung TV
1 x fabric corner sofa
2 x fabric two-seater sofas
2 x armchairs (fabric)
2 x coffee tables
1 x dining table
6 x dining chairs
1 x hall console table
1 x tv cabinet
2 x IKEA storage sets (in kids’ rooms- we already have the same ones so I know they’re IKEA)
2 x children’s desks with chairs (I think these are IKEA too)
1 x washing machine

All for a non-negotiable price of £20,000.

Now, it’s very objective because we have no idea of where most of the furniture came from and how much it cost new but, at the end of the day, it’s secondhand furniture. It’s perfectly nice but clearly used.

I sent back a nice, I thought, note to the estate agent to say thanks but no thanks and that the price is above what I would expect for secondhand items and it’d make more sense to buy new given the price.

I’ve received a call from the agent now to tell me that the vendors are very upset and went to a lot of trouble to do me a “favour” to even consider letting me buy their furnishings, and they think I’m kidding myself if I think I could buy furniture new for the amount they quoted.

For context, if it matters, I have budget to decorate with new furniture. We just considered this for convenience until we figure out what we want to do in terms of decorating long-term.

For further context, we paid above asking price.

AIBU to think that £20,000 would buy a significant amount of new furniture, and that their response was shitty?

Nah, they are taking the piss. Clearly they think that’s what it’s worth, it doesn’t mean it is. I suspect it cost them that or more and they think they are selling for a discount, but second hand furniture doesn’t sell for that high. The response is very rude.

There's less than 20 things (as in types of item) on that list, so if you budgeted £1,000 a line you would be £3,000 up.

The beds might cost more than that, but a lot will cost a lot less (TV, washing machine, desks, IKEA storage).

I'd say to them you don't want to purchase, but also if any furniture is left behind you also won't have any issue with that. We did that when our vendor said they wanted to sell us the blinds and some bar stools for the kitchen island, we didn't care enough to pay but wanted them to know that they didn't need to go through the hassle of disposing them if they didn't want them. They left them.

My vendors tried this - asked if I would like a huge wardrobe for £500. I said no and they got really funny with me. Basically it was so huge they had problems getting it out, but get it out they did! They also left a huge mirror and a bookshelf that I made them come and collect.
It’s second hand furniture - it’s not worth 20,000 unless some of it is gold plated. Keep your money, make your mortgage smaller and get your own stuff bit by bit.

Yes,that is too much to pay for all the second hand stuff. They want to get rid of it in one foul swoop it sounds like. and have just made up a price. If they were to sell items individually,it would not come to that total.

If I was in your position, I would probably get things bit by bit, and take time to think about what things you would really like in your new place,then you can see it all coming together eventually. You would probably not be happy, sitting amongst other peoples stuff for ages.

I wouldn't go for that deal either.
Are any of these items amazing expensive brands, one of a kind type special bespoke stuff?
They are massively cheeky and trying to get out of tip tuna imo

IKEA will buy back furniture. It seems they pay about a third of the price for stuff in good condition. £20k is silly. Good luck to them trying to sell it for that much.

I have just gone through the list and can get most of it brand new for £5319 from IKEA . That would leave you close on £15k to buy a television and a washing machine.

They are annoyed because now they are going to have to pay for it to be removed and binned.

Second hand furniture has very little value even when it has some quality. A week ago we bought a solid oak dining table at auction for less than £50. 4 pine dining chairs went for £5.

They are probably seeing the rejection of their 'kind' offer as a rejection of their taste.

Ok so cost new.

3 x kingside beds with headboards - 3k
1 x single bed with headboard -300 - assuming mattresses included?
8 x bedside lockers -800
2 x chest of drawers -1500
2 x wardrobes - 2k
1 x 32” Samsung TV -300
1 x fabric corner sofa -1500
2 x fabric two-seater sofas - 1000
2 x armchairs (fabric) -1000
2 x coffee tables -1500
1 x dining table -500
6 x dining chairs - 500
1 x hall console table -200
1 x tv cabinet - 100
2 x IKEA storage sets (in kids’ rooms- we already have the same ones so I know they’re IKEA) -50
2 x children’s desks with chairs (I think these are IKEA too) - 100
1 x washing machine - 300

So much depends on quality but you’d be looking at about 14k here.

I would say

Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha

And remind them you expect it to be empty.

I bet they have added up what things cost new eg £1k on a sofa rather than the used price which could be anything from "free if buyer collects" to 50% of new price if they are very new.

Actually, thinking about it... the thing that pissed me off most was the cooker. They had a large range style cooker. I had looked and realised I could get the Rangemaster one I had been looking at in the gap. The husband contacted me and offered to sell me theirs. I though about it and asked for details. He wanted £700 for it. I looked it up, it was 10 years old and cost £700 brand new!

It went downhill from there but we really wanted the house so we waited him out!

In the last few years, both our parents and parents-in-law have downsized. In both cases they were extremely grateful that the buyer was happy to take the bulk of the furniture for a nominal few thousand pounds. Have a look on Marketplace on FB and you will get a good sense of what it’s worth. As an aside, I have pretty well stopped buying new furniture now that I’ve discovered Marketplace.

1. The furniture is not new. Have a look on eBay/fb marketplace at what second hand furniture actually goes for (not what it is advertised for) - you are lucky to get 20% of the new cost even if it is pristine/ ex-display. Mostly it’s much less.

2. You didn’t choose it, and quite possibly wouldn’t, so to expect you to pay top dollar for it is unreasonable.

We are shortly moving out of job-related accommodation, don’t need all our furniture, and the people coming after haven’t got much. So we have agreed to sell them what we don’t need, which will include:

King size bed and barely-used mattress, with bedside cabinets and wardrobe.
Parker Knoll 3 piece suite.
Kitchen appliances (W/M, dishwasher, F/F)
Small cottage suite
2 x LCD TV’s (37” and 42”)

We’ve agreed on £500, but tbh the more I look into it, the more I realise we are doing well out of it.

The estate we are moving to offers a “furniture package” which they say is worth £8,000.

Yes they might have been really expensive brand new depending on brand but it's only worth now what people are prepared to pay.

This us roughly how much you could pay on second hand sites.

3 kingside beds with headboards 1000
1 x single bed with headboard 200
8 x bedside lockers 600
2 x chest of drawers 200
2 x wardrobes 600
1 x 32” Samsung TV 100
1 x fabric corner sofa 300
2 x fabric two-seater sofas 400
2 x armchairs (fabric) 200
2 x coffee tables 80
1 x dining table 100
6 x dining chairs 300
1 x hall console table 50
1 x tv cabinet 50
2 x IKEA storage sets (in kids’ rooms- we already have the same ones so I know they’re IKEA) 80
2 x children’s desks with chairs (I think these are IKEA too) 100
1 x washing machine 50

About £4500

Usually a good time to sell something is usually when someone is asking to buy it; off their own back, so not having a pisstaking price is key if you actually want to sell it. Also, you need to remember that if you won't be needing it, it'll be up to you to get rid of it, both points the vendor has forgotten.

Say thanks, but no thanks, they'll just have to sell them elsewhere, or take them with them, or dump them, or they might actually just leave them in the house for you at no cost when they run out of time or energy; at that point you can either take them, or contact their solicitor to tell them they left furniture that you want removed or your disposal costs will be charged to them if you're feeling petty.

By the sounds of it, they're planning on taking pretty much nothing, and are looking to you to finance a whole new swanky furniture set for their new home.

I am looking at furnishing a holiday cottage and have been astonished at how cheap 2nd furniture is, particularly sofas and dining sets.

I suspect the vendors don't realize how little their furniture is worth on the open market. I would politely suggest to them that they list it on Facebook marketplace.

They may well get back to you in a week with a sensible offer!

And that is being very generous, you can often find ALOT cheaper

@Dobbyisahouseelf - did they take fitted carpets???

Thanks all.

I’ll go back and answer some questions directly in a while.

To be honest, while their furniture is nice enough, we didn’t even want it that much. We just thought it’d move things along a bit if we bought it. In my head I was thinking they’d come back looking for about £8k and we’d negotiate down to £5k.

I figured then I’d just get a skip and bin the mattresses etc and get new ones in.

We’ll be moving our current beds (bought brand new last year- £1.5k for king size with orthopedic mattresses), sofa, etc but our flat is going to be rented so we were going to move some of the house furniture into the flat to prepare it to rent.

I think house buying has just made me lose sight of what’s reasonable. We went sale agree on a different house at the end of 2019 but the vendors were so insanely difficult and demanding, we had to pull out. I’m now just so wary of any sign of trouble that I’m hyper-sensitive.

Come to think of it, when I was getting rid of my old sofa last year, I ended up getting £50 for it on Facebook marketplace and I was happy with that as it saved me hauling it to the dump. It was in decent condition and I think I had paid £2k for it new.

The more I think about it, the more insane I think I am for even suggesting it in the first place. We’re lucky to have a decent budget (have been house hunting for ages!) and the best part of a new house is buying all the lovely bits so don’t know what I was thinking denying myself that pleasure.

Hmmm - a nice king size bed with headboard new would be around 2.5k

From Harrods maybe! I bought two new beds with headboards and mattresses last summer, one double, one kingsize. Delivered, assembled, and old ones taken away for £1100. They weren’t the cheapest in the shop by a long way.

They're off their heads. I wouldn't give it another thought. Just because you're buying their house you owe them nothing beyond the purchase price and need never gave anything to do with them again.

I think people think that what they paid is what something is worth. I had a relative who couldnt understand why no one was interested in her second hand sofa. Yes it was lovely and fairly new but people in the market for second hand are not going to pay nearly £1k for a sofa! She kept saying "But it cost me £X (cant remember) from [posh local shop]" and wouldnt have it that for £1k you could get a really good brand new one!

My sisters NDN have marketed their house 4 times in the last 4 years and never had a single viewing as it is massively overpriced. Their logic? "We paid X for it, spent Y improving it so it is worth X+Y" and it isnt.

Yes they have done a beautiful job on the house but it is all cosmetic, its not actually added value in terms of more space from other houses on the road or what have you. In fact it only has one loo now as they knocked out the downstairs shower room to make the kitchen bigger, which has probably knocked money off the value and not increased it as they seem to think! People are idiots.

Let them get rid of it.

It's nicer to choose your own stuff and have it from new with warranties etc.

Plus you've no idea what has already happened to their furniture - pets weeing on the sofas, small children being sick on mattresses etc.

Your renters might have their own beds OP, so maybe don't re-furnish it before asking the new tenants what they want. Lots of people prefer their own furniture. Especially mattresses.

They are bonkers

About 30 years ago, we bought a 4-bed house and the vendors wanted £600 for leaving the carpets in the bedrooms.

They were in a terrible state, a revolting rust colour - some were offcuts (all the same carpet) and nailed to the floorboards.

Naturally, we declined their generosity.