Okay, so your landlord finally approved your application and you're just hyped about moving into your new dream home. But other than filing for your address change with your new city, you noticed that you'll need new electrical appliances and furniture ( if you don't have any, that is! Duh! ). Most people buy new furniture at
IKEA or
Nitori, the Japanese version of the former:) Electrical appliances can be purchased at the following:
Yodobashi Camera
BIC Camera
Kojima Denki
Yamada Denki
And a lot other places...........
Or, you can buy second-hand items if you want to save on the costs. There are so many stores that specialise in second-hand furniture or electrical appliances. And you can buy them at 30 to 70% of the cost of buying them new, depending on their condition. Many of these places offer free delivery, so long you meet some criteria. But whether they offer free delivery or not, you should check and see if any kind of delivery is available. Otherwise, you'll need to hire a car or truck to deliver them to your new home.
Before you buy anything, we advise you to take measurements of the doors, hallway and elevator of your new home. If your new home doesn't have an elevator, you'll need to carry your stuff up the stairs. Most apartments built before 1985 or so probably won't have an elevator. Measure the breadth of the staircase and height of ceiling. We wouldn't want you weeping after noticing that your furniture wouldn't fit into your new room, consequently returning it to the second-hand shop. Also, most apartments have a place to install your
washing machine, but not necessarily for a dryer. If your room is too small, you may find a place outside on the balcony. Don't forget to measure the inner dimensions of the pan. Keep in mind that many apartments don't come with any form of
lighting equipment on the ceiling, meaning you will be required to purchase and install them on your own.
Air conditioning/heating is widely considered standard equipment that comes with your new home. However, I'm not saying that your new home will definitely come with it. If you are looking for a room with multiple bedrooms, like say for a family, you might not find the A/C in all the bedrooms, meaning you'll have to install them on your own, or suffer from the heat or cold. It's true that an A/C can cost quite a sum that you're going to have to shell out from your savings. But it can be worth the investment. In addition to the cost of the A/C, you'll need to pay a separate installation fee.
Subscribing to your
Internet provider can also be a hassle if you don't understand japanese. Depending on your desired connections, a portable Wifi would be enough, as you can take it with you when you go out.
