Furnishing your apartment

Once you have an apartment or place to stay, you need to furnish it with household items. Typically if you weren't new in the country, this wouldn't be that big of an issue. But if you are not shipping your items then you would need to furnish your house from scratch. Most of us wouldn't even have a car. You would have a lot of expenses and so spend wisely.

What household items are already available in the apartment?

Kitchen items - Typically, you already get microwave, oven, dishwasher and cooking range. You don't have to purchase these. Stores like Dollarama, Canadian Tire and Walmart offer quality appliances and cutlery at reasonable prices.

You don't get any other appliances or any other freebies. You have to furnish the rest.

What are the popular stores that you can shop at?

All of these stores also have coupons and initially when you are strapped for cash, these are very handy. 

1. Ikea was great with all furniture like sofas, tables, kitchen items, closet items. We also got a good deal and shipping.
2. Sleep country was good for bedding. They also deliver at home.
3. This might seem a little trivial but very important if you are landing in summer. There are few days in summer where it gets very hot. The houses in general don't have central air conditioning. Typically there is just air conditioning in the living room.  So investing in a fan might be a good idea. In fact, fans are out-of-stock when you need them.
4. Conversely, by law, houses are required to have heater for winters. So thst shouldn't be an issue.
5. Canadian Tire was another good store especially for hardware items and also has a lot of items that Home Depot has. For newcomers as well, Canadian tire offers you Master card. The credit limit initially will be 200 CAD but will go up when you shop. Some of the stores like Costco accept only Master card. This is great because it will help you build credit history.
6. Costco turned out to be a good surprise for electronic items. They have good stock clearance items that are priced at a lower price to make way for newer models. Some of these were cheaper than Walmart and Best Buy too. Consider having a membership for the 1st year at least. You also get cash back and so it might be cost-effective.

Do you want to do some charity while furnishing your new home?

1. There are stores like "Habitat for Humanity" and try to find convenience stores like these. These stores typically have gently-used items that have been donated by people. They sell items and the proceeds go to rebuilding low-cost housing. 
2. They have everything from sofas to side tables to washroom items. They are typically clean and have volunteers that come to help with running the stores.

How do I get internet at my place? 

There are different providers like Bell, Eastlink, Rogers etc. You can go to any local office and request a new connection. 

How do I get power at my place?

If you are renting a place and there were tenants before you, you will have to call the local power department to transfer the power connection to your name. 

Hope this helps you setup your new place!

Next Steps - 1) With your new home done, you might want to search for a new job, if you don't already have one. Here are some tips.

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