Hey all! I’m super excited to get to Japan later this month. My predecessor is helpfully offering to sell me furniture but I was wondering what others have paid previously since they are just offering me a bulk price for everything that I think is pretty high. Thanks in advance for the help!
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Furniture is cheap to buy and expensive to get rid of, if your predecessor is charging you a high amount for what’s already in the place (and assuming it’s just normal stuff like a kotatsu, bed frame, coffee table etc.) then they might be trying to take advantage.
You can go to somewhere like hard off/second street and buy most furniture for a couple thousand yen at most, but paying to have it collected/disposed can cost twice that or more. If you can be more specific about what they’re selling you and at what price I can give more concrete advice, but I would be wary of “buying” any furniture at a high cost, especially if they inherited it anyway…
I never bought anything off my pred because the timing never allowed me to meet them and go over the items in person. I would have had to have paid the price having only seen pictures, and no thank you.
Mine sold me a dining table, 3 chairs, kotatsu, small couch, bed, and mattress for 15000 yen. Everything in good or like new quality. He was a nice guy so I think it was a being nice price.
I would double check what your predecessor has bought specifically.
Some of that stuff, like the bed, shelves and kotatsu could have been from the BOE or from previous preds before.
I know ESID, but my pred asked for no money for anything that she left behind and even apologized because the TV was too difficult to throw away so she had to leave it.
Honestly, if you say no or bargain them down, there’s a chance that whatever you don’t buy they’ll still leave behind anyway because throwing out things in Japan can be such a hassle.
Hopefully this person can be honest with you themselves, but if not, I would talk to the BOE or simply say no and buy your own things when you get here.
As everyone said, most of this stuff you can buy second hand for cheap.
Honestly, the only thing I’d be willing to give money for would be the couch and tv, if they are clean and in good condition. Overall, I think $700 is an extreme rip off…
Ask your pred to send you pictures of everything they are trying to sell you. Especially if they insist on the $700 price.
It’s a very good thing that you asked this question here. You got what you needed. The person is not helping you st , you are helping them. Tell them you don’t want any of it. Watch them squirm to get it taken away.
Idk seems to expensive to me, considering stuff is cheap here. I would just tell them Im not interested personally. I got lucky and my pred left mostly everything furnished, but he broke contract. I still went ahead and bought some nice sofas and a dining table recently for like 27k combined I think.
I don’t plan on charging stuff to my eventual successor, but thats just me. Gotta pay the kindness forward
Just buy your own stuff when you get here. $700 or even $500 is ridiculous. The only thing you really need when you arrive is a place to sleep, aircon, refrigerator, washing machine, a little stove/fish grill to cook. Everything else you can easily get yourself. On Amazon or have it delivered from a store.
Make it your preds problem to get rid of their stuff. $700 USD is over 90,000 yen. Their is a 0 percent chance he will make that much here before he goes for his used stuff. Most of the time preds don’t want to deal with it and just leave everything anyway.
Im against the “selling my old crap to my successor because I’m probably too busy to sell it online” pipeline in general. I’m not sure what your pred is asking, but it’s very likely you can find products just as good in great condition from 2nd Street, Hardoff or any other local recycle shop. Japanese thrifting is usually great quality. I got a brand new oven (everything was still sealed) from 2nd Street for 60usd. Idk why people donate brand new stuff but I see it a lot. Some things are more expensive like a fridge, washing machine, aircon, but you claim it’s a “bulk” price which may include stuff you simply dont want but will get stuck with anyway. Just my two cents!
That is way too high even for quality pieces
Offer them 20,000 yen and if they dont like it dont worry
there is a good chance they will also just leave things due to the strict deadline/ cost of getting rid of things
Sounds like they are trying to rip you off.
I had no pred so had to buy everything new. this was when pandemic was in full swing, used item were the same price as new from the used market (second street, off-house).
I plan to stay for longer (at least 3+), so I didn’t cheap out n bought brand new, mid level grade stuff. total came to about 2000CAD? (double bed, washing machine, fridge). so tbh 700 for used and ready to live in apartment doesn’t sound like a bad deal, I had to pay for weekend transport/setup for stuff I bought too. obsly it depends on condition… so ask for pictures?
I’ve collected some vintage designer furniture since moving here and a single piece would’ve cost quite a bit… in the case I do move out/back I’d also ask if they want to buy at auction starting price before I list them I guess??
Can you post prices and a list they sent ?
Tbh I’m willing to bet even if you say you don’t want it, he’ll just leave it in the apt anyway since throwing away furniture in bulk is expensive and more annoying than he realizes
I just looked and it turns out I spent almost that much on a brand-new IKEA order when I first arrived which included a bed, some chairs, a dining table, and some storage units. Everything else in my apartment (teacher’s housing) such as the washing machine, fridge and microwave was already there. I also bought a dehumidifier, heater, microwave oven and gas grill/hob from second street. As well as various smaller things over time.
I probably spent over $700, but I wouldn’t expect to charge that much to my successor after 2+ years of use. Especially, as others have mentioned, that you are doing them a favor with the hassle of getting rid of things.
My pred was gone and my apartment used for storage by the boe because it was teacher housing. So the 2 couches, twin size bed frame, full silverware drawer and 5 4 person tea sets were there whether I wanted it or not.
Not a single damned toaster oven though 🙁
Also the kerosene heater full of kerosene that had been in the back of the closet for 2 years was a fun surprise.
That sounds crazy, defs too much. You can gets a lot of cheap new/second hand stuff online with delivery, check online and compare the prices of everything to what it would cost buying new, you could even show them the comparison to make your case for a discount.
I would also check your contract and see if anything/what is included in your apartment by the BOE and/or landlord if its a private rent. They will sometimes indicate that the basic items like fridge, bed, stove/oven etc etc is provided. Some preds try and sell off things that are actually property of the BOE/landlord. Not to say that’s what they’re doing but doesn’t hurt to check.
too expensive dont do it. im willing to bet they dont feel like going through the hassle of throwing out that furniture so if you ask for a lower price they’ll lower it for you. Haggle him
There’s no way of knowing what stuff they bought new and what stuff they picked up for cheap. Or what was given to them for free by other leaving ALTs. They could be making that price up.
What would happen if you said no to everything? It’ll cost them more money to dispose of it so they might just leave it in the apartment for free to save hassle in the end.
Tell them it’s too much money and you’d rather search for stuff yourself. You don’t know the condition of the stuff either I assume?
Edit: to add I’m leaving and not selling any of my stuff even though some of it is brand new. My successor is just getting it all. I don’t have any need for it and everyone is always broke when they arrive so why do that to them?
If the pred is leaving the country, they should really only charge you what they’d already be paying for the disposal. If anything you’re saving them money by even taking it for free
this jet bought a bed two years ago for 500 usd, and is hoping to sell it to the next jet for 300 usd…. some people are just too greedy.
the new person said no thanks, but she cant sell it to anybody else so will have to pay to get rid of it, thats why the new offer is 100 usd…
Ⅰsuggest saying “thank you but I cant afford it. I can only give you half of what you are asking, im really sorry, so you better sell it somewhere else” And guess what thei immediate answer will be hahahahaha
When I came my predecessor left me everything for free. The problem with that is that ALL OF IT WAS JUNK. So I had to completely furnish an empty apartment. I’m talking new washing machine, stove, futon, bed frame, table, desk/desk chair, etc. I probably paid about $1200 USD (at least) for all the stuff I had to buy. So I really don’t think that $700 is a bad price for a fully furnished apartment if everything is new/like new. Getting here and not having to go through the hassle of furnishing an entire apartment is an opportunity I wish I had. You run the risk of your pred either leaving you everything or leaving you nothing, and let me tell you that nothing absolutely sucks. Sleeping on a hardwood floor and eating out until someone from the school could take me shopping sucked (I am in a pretty inaka area). So if they send you pictures and everything is nice and in good condition, I’d take it. Save yourself the headache when you’re already moving to a foreign country. And again, there is NO GUARANTEE that there will be a furniture place or second-hand shop near you, in which case you’d have to order new furniture anyways.
I mean, think of it this way. If you say no, you’ll have to buy all that stuff yourself, and it can take a while to furnish your apartment.
Think of it this way: You’re paying for both the furniture, and for the convenience of having a fully furnished apartment waiting for you. You’ll have less stuff to worry about when you land at your location.
ETA: You’re going to have a LOT of stuff to adjust to/figure out once you actually get to your location and start settling into daily life. Personally, I think it’s worth it to have one less thing to worry about. You can of course try haggling it down a bit.
Sure, your pred could be ripping you off, or they could be in a bind, having left this way too late. Financial troubles, something idk. But you don’t have to worry about their problems. Just worry about you. I’d ask them to show you the items that THEY bought on the store’s website, and offer to pay half the price online / a bit under half. Demand clear pictures from all angles. Do not buy anything in bulk. Ask the BOE to confirm the condition/check it out before you agree to take anything (if they agree to, they might not). Only worry about big expensive stuff – plenty of small stores like daiso and donki for grabbing all the small stuff. I wouldn’t offer to buy anything your order recieved or bought second hand.
There are horror stories of Preds showing up to apartments with closets full of trash, junky appliances, etc. But I don’t think that’s the rule, just the exception. People are correct in that you may be left a bunch of stuff you didn’t agree to take – depends on how strict the BoE is. But I don’t think possibilities are any reason to be rude to your pred.
I think in your situation I’d only offer to send money once I moved in and saw /confirmed the state of the furniture and that nothing unwanted was left. That way your pred (if being honest) can avoid some of the bulky waste fees, and you can have more control over the situation. Or perhaps someone at the BoE can hold your money in escrow or something.
Really, it depends on what quality of furniture you want. If they claim it’s all mostly new, bought by them, and that’s what you want, then you can easily compare to new prices online and figure out a fair price. If your happy with hand me downs of hand me downs then yeah, you can save a ton of money by hitting up Facebook sayonara sales (if you have a car- no one has ever offered to pick up when I sell on Facebook). Personally I wouldn’t trust anything from those but that’s just me. Jimoty is good but you’ll need a vehicle to pick stuff up most of the time (again, I’ve sold most of my stuff here, and it’s all been picked up. You might be able to ask for delivery but I don’t know how common it is). For both options, unless you’re planning on getting a big van to drive, well, a lot of the larger furniture I’ve sold doesn’t fit in smaller cars (bed, mattress, couch). And people don’t really deliver in my experience.
Just like everything with jet, ESID is the reality. How strict will your BOE be about item removal? What prefecture are you in? What city? Do you have a car? Not all places have a good used furniture market.
Seeing this thread really highlights the ALT community in Japan. A million different answers: that’s a rip off, that’s a good deal, you can buy a couch for free in like new condition from Facebook when you get here, blah blah. Hopefully you get enough advice that you can figure out what applies to you to help you make your decision.
The only thing I am happy to give a concrete japan-wide answer on is this: garbage here isn’t difficult, getting rid of large items isn’t difficult (or expensive, atleast in my area). Anyone saying this is lazy and/or couldn’t be bothered to even partially assimilate into Japanese culture/way of doing things. It’s definitely different from what you’re coming from, but that’s going to be most of your life for the next few months. For me atleast, it’s actually easier than where I lived in Canada.
In case you wanted to know, here is about what I paid for everything:
My Ikea bed and mattress and extras was around 30,000
My Ikea desk and chair was 25,000 or so
My nitori kotatsu set was another 20,000 or so.
Spent 15000-20000 on other items for storage from nitori and Ikea.
So all my big furniture was 90K-100K. Plus all the little stuff. (Plus 16k for an air fryer/oven combo which made life 60% better)
Fridge, stove, washing machine, curtains, and lights were provided by the BOE.
Tell them you don’t want it. They’ll leave it there anyway because it costs to get rid of as well as being an arduous process involving stickers and reservations.
I just gave it to my successor, I wasn’t going to cart it around the country, the price it would cost to replace it wasn’t much off what it would cost to ship and new JETs typically have huge initial expenditure.
Depending on the area you might be able to get stuff via sayonara sales or second hand stores that is a lot cheaper. If you think it’s too much to pay I’d tell them no thank you and don’t worry about it past that, you don’t have any obligation to take it.