Last updated on June 29th, 2023
What can I bring to Australia?
Is it more expensive to buy furniture in Australia?
How long will my goods be at sea and will they be heat damaged?
These are the typical questions we are asked here at Personnel Relocations. Rightly so, there are other considerations and they are not just to do with moving your furniture.
If you watched our videos or read our recent blogs, you would know the list of what takes up space in your container, such as mattresses, bookshelves and white goods. Today, let’s consider some of the alternatives to NOT bringing your own furniture.
Buy when you arrive.
You have 3 options here:
- MORC offers interior fit-out services, which means you can have your space makeover without lifting a finger. They do all the shopping, fitting, and designing of your home.
Shop online yourself and await deliveries. This is particularly popular during COVID. Once Inspect4U has found your new home, your quarantine period is about shopping! Insider tip: Our newest eBook has the furniture prices comparison in there—KMart, IKEA, etc. Message us if you’d like a copy.
- Shop in person. This might sound like a great day out, but trust me, especially if there are children in tow, it can be a nightmare. That said, it is not impossible. You have several options here as well:
- Op Shopping. It’s short for Opportunity Shopping. It’s a good way to save money while helping charities. Op shopping is buying used items from establishments that support charities. You can purchase clothing, bedding, small furniture items, and even some items to keep you busy while you wait for your container to arrive such as books and toys.
- Pavement shopping. It might not be a term you have heard before, but it is actually a “thing” in Australia. It is not unusual to see a sofa on the sidewalk (nature strip) with the sign “FREE” hanging off it. That is, free on a first come first serve basis. In Australia, each council (municipal area) will have at least one hard waste collection each year. This is when each household can place items on the nature strip that they no longer need and they cannot fit into their weekly rubbish. These hard waste collections can be a feeding frenzy of white vans collecting goods off the pile. It is good for the environment that all this “junk” does not go into landfills but, you may take a while to complete an entire house this way. There are a number of websites you can shop at too:
Hire furniture
This might be a new concept to some. However, there are a number of furniture hire companies around. The quality is good – used, yes, but still good. All electrical items have been safety checked.
High street shops such as Radio Rentals can rent out just a few items. Other companies offer a full range which Personnel Relocations can have delivered and set up for you upon arrival in your new home. Typical rental furniture companies will have kitchen packs that include:
- Crockery
- Cutlery
- Pots and pans
- Toaster, Kettle and microwave
Their laundry pack will include items such as
- ironing board
- iron
- washing basket
- vacuum cleaner
- mop and bucket.
Another option you have is Click on Rentals, a furniture and appliance rental business servicing Melbourne and surrounding suburbs, and regional Victoria. They offer both short- and long-term rental solutions whether it’s for individual needs or a full relocation pack.
Most furniture rental companies will offer 2-3 levels of comfort and price range. You could choose between a leather lounge-room suite or a fabric for example.
The advantages of using a company such as MORC or a furniture rental company is that everything is set up for you. We all know IKEA is nearby, but when you have an entire household to assemble with an allen key, it can be the last stress you need. Although, it must be said, Personnel Relocations can arrange an installation team.
Shopping for yourself—either in person or online—can result in a number of delivery days you need to wait at home for or you need to hire a van to go and collect all your items.
I do hope this has explained some of the options available to you and broken the myth that you have to ship everything. By all means, ship some goods, but keep it simple.
Related Article: Migrating To Australia: 8 Expert Tips To Save $1000s
