KMK: Furnishing Your Apt in Korea

 

I’m happy to report that my apartment search has come to an end. In the next few days I’ll be packing up my stuff and moving into my new place. If you’re like me and working for an employer who doesn’t provide housing then you might want to take a look at my post on finding an apartment in Korea. Hopefully, it will help you out on your search. I can say that I looked at dozens of places before finding my new pad.

My search started off with much excitement and energy but after the first handful of places the novelty quickly wore off. I saw every kind of apartment imaginable from cramped tiny cardboard boxes to large spacious three bedrooms with rent spanning 300,000W to 950,000W but in the end the one I choose is the perfect fit for me. Well, I shouldn’t say perfect because there is one tiny itty bitty problem: it doesn’t come furnished.

So far in Korea all my apartments have come with a bed, refrigerator, dresser, washer, TV, DVD player, microwave and utensils. Of course all those apartments were provided by my employers. This time around my place is in a brand new building and the units come with absolutely nothing. Which leaves me in the position of coming up with everything myself. I thought I would post about my adventures in finding things just in case you find yourself in the same position.

Let’s start with the most inexpensive method of furnishing your new apartment and progress to the most obscenely expensive way.

SCAVENGING

Don’t laugh or cast any side eye glances my way. Scavenging is one of the best ways of finding new stuff. First off, just think about the transitory nature of living in a foreign country on a yearlong contract. Odds are that after a year you will be returning back to your home country and probably won’t want to ship anything back. Why invest your money in things you can find for free? The answer is you don’t!

You might think that scavenging would leave you with a few moldy old couches, beat up old tables, or abused chairs with a eyebrow raising scent of cat piss and you’d be right, partly, because yes you can find stuff like that but, since you’re living in Korea, you can also find almost brand new furniture and appliances laying abandoned by their former owners. Why would anyone toss out perfect good sofas and TVs? Well, in Korea it’s all about the newest, latest, most shiny toy to come off the assembly line. IT doesn’t matter if said toy is a cell phone, sneaker, jeans, DVD, or sofa love seat. If the newer model is out then the old gets tossed and replaced faster than you can say keeping up with the Joneses ten times.

As you can imagine this can make for some fabulous strolls through side streets and back alleys. One never knows when you might stumble across a dining room table, microwave or sofa. Things become even more exciting in the swanky parts of Seoul where the quality of people’s unwanted goods skyrockets.

DOUBLE F: Friends and Forums

The next cheapest, though maybe not the most convenient, way to spruce up your apartment is with the friends and forums option. In Korea someone is always leaving and if they’re leaving they probably aren’t taking all of their crap with them. When your friends are headed back home it becomes the perfect opportunity to get your hands on anything you’ve had your eye on. Plus, with friends, nine times out of ten they’ll let you have it for free.

When it comes to the Korean forums you’ll find a shopping bonanza of furniture, appliances and odds and ends to be had. The cost is usually cheap, but the problem comes in transporting any big finds you come across online. Usually the Korean Teacher Sites have a forum section devoted to trading, buying or selling stuff so check them out. Some people don’t even mind shipping to you if you pay the cost. You could also try Craigslist.

ONLINE SHOPPING

I love online shopping. It’s quick, easy, and painless. No long lines. No bewildered clerks trying to decipher your English or mangled Korean. All you have to do is hop online and within a few keystrokes you can have your apartment completely furnished down to the potpourri in the bathroom. Personally, I use Gmarket because you have the option of viewing it in English. Delivery comes in a couple of days and the prices are more than reasonable. There is even a used section of Gmarket for people selling their second hand goods.

WALK IN STORES

The most expensive option for finding furniture is to go to an actual furniture store. These places will have beautiful crafted merchandise that will quickly burn through any won you have in your wallet, bank account or credit card. We’re talking about places on Furniture street in nonhyun dong or Sadang. I’ve listed a few places below you may want to check out. Sometimes you can find deals with fifty percent off sales, but even fifty percent off unaffordable is still unaffordable, at least in my case.

Rety

Beautiful Store

Sadang Furniture Street

T Recyde

Korean Herald’s Giving your Home an Exotic Touch

Darboutique

Lito

S-Gallery

TEhome 664-12 Sinsa dong

Gangnam gu

02 541 2082

Minimalist and clean

Also if you do need a mover you can try Brandon.