When a property is advertised as “furnished housing in Imperial Beach” you may instantly have visions of a nicely appointed place that is well thought out and decorated by professionals but what you may get is an old stained mattress, a night stand and a lamp! Furnished can mean very different things. What it should mean and what it often means are also two very different things. You have to be a savvy shopper when you are looking for housing which means having some clearly defined criteria before you sign anything.
What Should Furnished Really Mean?
When you are searching for furnished housing you should be looking for housing that has:
- Living room area furniture that is complete and obviously of good quality and that matches!
- A place in the kitchen that you can prepare meals and eat them
- A bedroom that has some sort of storage furniture, a bed that is clean, lamps and night tables
- The housing should be decorated appropriately
- The furnishings should be what you would normally find in a home
While the criteria above sounds like it sets very reasonable expectations, you would be very surprised to find what is often advertised as “fully furnished”.
A Couch, Table and Lamp
In some cases, you will find that fully furnished means a couch, table and lamp in others there may be a bed thrown in for good measure. The only way to avoid the shock of dealing with private owners that have used their property as more of a storage facility for the items that are too worn out for their own homes is to consider a different source for your housing needs.
