After I graduated in August, I relocated from Cambridge, MA to Bellevue, WA to start my new job. This is the first time that I rented an apartment — previously I either lived at my parents’ home, or at a furnished dorm unit provided by universities.

Overall, this was an exhausting experience, and a large part of my energy was spent making decisions on the furniture and appliances. The fundamental conflict was that I wanted to have a certain standard of living, without spending a ton of money. A key reason why I wanted to spend as little as money as possible was that I was not sure how long I would stay in Bellevue, and it was possible I would just use everything I bought for one year.

In the end, I was able to settle in with less than \$1,000 for the one-time purchases. Below I documented my thought process, the decisions I made, and the lessons I learned for future reference.

  • Mattress. There are basically three kinds of mattresses: foam, spring, and hybrid. The hybrid mattress with individual coils is the best and most expensive one. The foam mattress is lighter than the spring mattress. Eventually I bought a Zinus 6 Inches Green Tea Cooling Memory Foam Mattress Queen Size on Amazon at \$180 after tax. The features of Green Tea and Cooling cost me extra, but I thought they were worth it since the mattress was going to be used on a daily basis.
  • Bed frame. I bought an Amazon Basic Foldable Bed Frame Queen Size for \$110 after tax. The price is decent and I like the foldability. I might be able to keep it even if I move to a different city.
  • Dining table and chairs. I considered for a while whether to buy a foldable dining table and some foldable chairs. The ones with vinyl were not bad and I almost decided to buy them. But then my wish for the standard of living gained the upper hand, since I felt the dining table is a central piece of furniture that I will see and use frequently. Even though I had to discard them if I relocated to a different city, I eventually bought a Costway Dining Table Set from Target at \$150 after tax. Costway is an affordable brand I noticed while browsing, which also sells at other places including Walmart, Wayfair, and their official website.
  • Office desk. I had always wanted a standing desk since I knew their existence. However, from first-hand experience, I knew the electric standing desk was heavy. The electric standing desk also cost more than the ordinary office desk, at over \$100. On the other hand, the non-electric standing desk was typically not big enough. Eventually, knowing that I would not adjust the height frequently, I bought an ordinary 48 x 24 Inches office desk from Amazon at \$65 after tax. This desk, however, was a bit low at less than 28 inches. Next time I should probably aim for a higher one.
  • Second office desk. Considering the need of using a desk at different locations or in a standing position occasionally, I decided to buy a movable non-electric standing desk. I initially bought one with a single supporting pillar from Amazon, but it was too wobbly to use. Hence, I exchanged it for one with two supporting pillars, which cost \$50 after tax. It was still wobbly, but better, and I kept it eventually.
  • Office chair. I had wanted a trusted SIHOO chair after I heard the progress of Chinese office chair brands. But knowing I would have to discard it if I moved to a different city, I pushed back the idea of getting a wheelchair costing more than \$100. Eventually, I got an ordinary Furmax wheelchair at \$45 after tax from Amazon. Initially, the chair I got was not low enough, so I returned it for another. The new one was not as comfortable, but lower by maybe 1 cm, so I kept it.
  • Microwave oven. I lived in a dorm unit without a microwave oven for five years. When I did need to use one, I used those in the common kitchens in the dorm. My new apartment did not have one either, and I debated for a while whether to buy one. Estimating that I would use it at least once a week, I decided to buy a 0.7 cu microwave oven. It turned out that this was the one of the best purchases I made for this new apartment, as I actually use it much more frequently. I mainly compared two models at Target, one from Kenmore and the other from Black+Decker. The former was the cheapest, costing less than \$45 after tax, and the latter was slightly more expensive, costing \$60 after tax. After thinking a long while, I favored the latter due to its shiny stainless steel outlook and handle, and got it from eBay at a slightly lower price.
  • Frying pan. I was advised to get a cast iron skillet initially, and personally I was also concerned with nonstick frying pans, so I went for the classical 10 Inches Lodge cast iron skillet. It turned out to be too heavy and I returned it for a 10 Inches Lodge Blackrock cast iron skillet, which was still heavy but better. I used it a couple of times, and was not happy as I could not wash it in a dishwasher. I tried to fry with my stainless steel saucepan, which stuck a lot. Eventually, I decided to use a nonstick frying pan, and the Blue Diamond brand came into sight. A key concern I had about nonstick pans is that once the nonstick layer is gone, the leak from the aluminum body is harmful, so I preferred a stainless steel body, and got the Blue Diamond 11 Inches Stainless Steel Clad Pro model at \$30 after tax from Amazon.
  • Saucepan. I had used a stainless saucepan before and I was generally happy with it. Without much hesitation, I still went for a stainless steel saucepan, and chose a Michelangelo 3 Quarts saucepan on Amazon for \$30 after tax. Later I learned, though, stainless steel is not absolutely safe, as it contains metals like chromium and nickel, but there is food grade stainless steel, which is generally safe.

The above cost \$720. There were various other low-value items, the choice of which did not take much time.

  • Cart. I bought a small one from Amazon at \$45 after tax.
  • Utensils: plates and bowls, food containers, forks and spoons, knife, spatula, cutting board, oven mitt. I bought them from Target, Amazon, and local supermarkets at an estimate of \$110 after tax.
  • Bath curtain. I bought one from Amazon at \$15 after tax.
  • Bath mat. I bought one from Amazon at \$10 after tax.
  • Trash bins. I bought an open one from Amazon at \$15 after tax and another one with a lid from Target at \$15 after tax.
  • Water tank. I bought one from Amazon at \$35 after tax.
  • Screwdriver. I bought one from Amazon at \$10 after tax.

In total, the above one-time purchase costs \$975. Of course, there are also some recurring purchases.

  • Aluminum foils, plastic wraps, kitchen towels, toilet papers. I bought them from Amazon and Target at an estimate of \$20 after tax.
  • Body wash, shampoo, conditioner, hand washes, dish wash pods, laundry pods, surface cleaners. I bought them from Target at an estimate of \$70 after tax.
  • Trash bags. I bought them from Amazon for \$15 after tax.

Later on, I bought a rice cooker for \$20, a pan lid for \$20, a tong for \$10, a utensil holder set for \$20, a bunch of food clips for roughly \$10, and chair cushions for \$30, a chair mat for \$15, all from Amazon. All these extra add \$230 to the grand total.

I also spent considerable time researching sofas and e-bikes, but I did not buy them eventually. I was inclined to buy a sofa bed, but eventually felt I might not use it frequently enough to warrant a \$150 price tag. For guests, I could simply buy an air mattress, which is light and saves space. I also considered getting an e-bike as my main way of transportation within Bellevue — not a bike because of the hilly landscape. I almost decided on Lectric XP Lite 2.0, but eventually gave up as e-biking did not appear to be a popular way of transportation, perhaps because it was not nearly as good as a car.