5 Things You Should Consider Before Buying Used Office Furniture

As we all are aware there are several advantages of buying used office furniture. However low cost and high quality remains the major driving force behind buying used furnishings and office accessories. Plus it is environment friendly since it saves thousands of trees from cutting and recycles steel and aluminum parts of the furnishings. 

The second hand or slightly used furniture industry is expanding due to large influx of buyers from all over the nation. However you need to be cautious while buying used furnishings. This blog post illustrates on the points you should keep in mind while buying used office furniture.

Thorough Inspection

When it comes to buying used cubicles or desks or any type of furniture you should carefullyinspect it. Buying used office furnishings online without actually visiting the store can be risky so the best way is to window shop online and then visit the real store for thorough inspection.

Naturally the condition is not going to be like brand new furnishings there will be few scratches or marks here and there. You can use these to drive the price down further. Secondly make sure to check for loose bolts, missing screws, internal damage, and mold on fabrics and cushions.

Branded & Slightly Used

Most of the white collar companies as well as blue collar companies change their office furniture every five years or so, for the sake of fashion. This proves to be ideal opportunity for second hand furnishings consumers like us since we can buy quality furnishings at huge discount rate.

Chances are you will end up buying branded used office chairs at a huge discount. Used but branded furniture not only stylish but it also has a longer lasting power. Usually the life of any branded cubicle or desk is around twenty years if used properly so even if you buy a say 7 years old desk you can use it for at least another ten years.

Age of the Furniture

Although there is no direct relation between age of furniture and its price, when it comes to durability age is very important factor. For steel and aluminum furnishings like used office chairs, age is not major concern since most of the material used is either steel or aluminum which neither rusts nor degrades. But make sure that you are not buying more than seven years old furnishings. It will not only be out of style but also require a lot of maintenance.

Discounts

There is no standard guideline for deciding how much discount you can get on any particular item. You may be able to buy used cubicles at 80% discount on the original price and you may get only 60% discount on the filing cabinets of same make and year. If possible look for more than one second hand stores and try to bargain the best price for the same material. Discount generally depends on age, quality and quantity of the furniture. Luckily haggling is not at all bad in any second hand stores so haggle as much as you can. Usually you can get discount on the original purchase price from as low as 40% to as high as 80%. Sometimes people even end up getting 90% discount on good quality furnishings.

Bulk Purchase

This is the first rule of thumb, if you are buying used office furniture try to buy it in bulk. It will not help you to drive down the price but it will easier for delivery and installation too. Plus second hand shop owners love to sell in bulk since it empties their storage space and save maintenance on stored material.