How to Buy Durable Living Room Furniture

When purchasing furniture for your living room, durability is a factor to take into consideration. More than other rooms in your apartment, living room furniture is likely to be used more often and will see the most wear and tear. Be informed before you buy and look for pieces that will withstand significant use.

Skip the Cheap Stuff and Watch for Sales

There’s a reason cheap furniture deteriorates quickly-it wasn’t built to last! Generally speaking, paying more for a piece of furniture means you’ll get better quality. Better quality equates to durability. While there’s nothing wrong with purchasing inexpensive furniture, if durability is your objective you’ll want to put forth some extra money. You get what you pay for.

You may want to skip mass retailers (Walmart, Target, IKEA) altogether and begin shopping for home furniture during sales and final markdowns in quality furniture show rooms. If you’re savvy and patient you should be able to find key pieces at a discount. You will pay more in the end even with when you purchase a piece at a discount, but the product will last much longer.

Know What to Look For

Not sure how to discern furniture built to last from furniture that will fall apart? Durable furniture should look and feel sturdy. Generally speaking, durable furniture will be made with quality materials like solid wood-not veneer. The frame of any durable piece of furniture will have the joints screwed and glued together. The construction of the furniture should look like it took time to put together, not like something that came from a box that you could assemble yourself.

In terms of upholstered furniture like sofas and chairs, the fabric should be tightly woven. Look for a fabric with a greater number of threads per square inch as opposed to a fabric woven with thick thread. You’ll want to check the padding on any upholstered furniture, too, as adequate padding will prevent the wooden frame of the furniture from pushing against the fabric and causing rips or tears. Furniture of all kinds is also more likely to be durable if it was put through some sort of treatment process, be it scotch guarded fabric on a sofa or a special wood finishing coat on a coffee table.

Consider Purchasing Older Furniture

Older furniture holds up over the years. If you haven’t been the recipient of any furniture hand-me-downs from family members, you can still find durable furniture by checking out consignment stores and estate sales. Look for solid pieces, not dainty heirlooms. Do some research to find out where the good consignment shops with reasonably priced inventory are located in your town. 

Purchasing durable living room furniture is a smart decision if you want to avoid replacing items every few years. Select pieces that will last and you won’t have to worry about refurnishing your living room for a long time.

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Rachael Weiner: I’m a communications professional for a non-profit, which financially necessitates my status as an apartment dweller. Constantly “on-the-go,” I’ve resided in five different apartments across the United States over the past five years. Roommate issues, budgeting, organizing and handling problem neighbors are my specialty.