Short answer: a living room you can genuinely use, meaning somewhere to put a television, somewhere to put a cup and somewhere to drop your keys, comes to $2,030.85 in the Liverpool range. A bedroom with a bed, a bedside and a chest is $3,069.00. Strip both back to what you cannot improvise, add a table to eat at, and a whole first home starts at $3,975.75.
Every first home checklist ever written says the same thing: buy the bed first. True, and useless, because nobody wants to know the order. They want to know the number.
So here is the number, built from actual prices rather than a range, and built twice: once for the version that gets you through the first year, and once for the version you would still be happy with in five.
The Bedroom: $1,828.80 Minimum, $3,069.00 Complete
Strip a bedroom to what it genuinely needs and the list is three items. A bed, one place to put a lamp and a phone, and one place to put clothes that are not hanging up.
| Piece | Price | Why it is on the list |
|---|---|---|
| Liverpool Double Bed Frame | $1,387.80 | The only item you cannot improvise |
| Liverpool 2 Drawer Bedside Table | $441.00 | Lamp, phone, glass of water |
| Liverpool 6 Drawer Chest | $1,240.20 | Folded clothes, 57.3 litres a drawer |
| Full three piece | $3,069.00 | |
| Bed and bedside only | $1,828.80 | Chest can wait |
Liverpool Pine Queen Bed Frame - Natural
Go queen instead of double and the frame is $1,477.80, which is $90 for 15cm more width. That is the cheapest upgrade on this entire page and the one nobody regrets.
The chest is the item to defer if the budget is tight, because a wardrobe rail covers most of its job for the first six months. The bedside is not, because the alternative is the floor.
The Living Room: $2,030.85
| Piece | Price |
|---|---|
| Liverpool 2 Door TV Unit 140cm | $883.00 |
| Liverpool Coffee Table | $451.25 |
| Liverpool Console Table | $364.50 |
| Liverpool End Table | $332.10 |
| Total | $2,030.85 |
Cut it to the TV unit and the coffee table and you are at $1,334.25. That is the version most people actually start with, and the console and end table arrive later, usually when someone gets tired of putting keys on the kitchen bench.
Liverpool Pine 2 Door TV Unit 140cm - Natural
Somewhere to Eat: From $812.70
This is where the cheapest honest answer is not Liverpool. The Oxford Acacia Dining Table 190cm is $812.70 and it is solid acacia rather than a veneer, which makes it the least expensive real timber six seater in the catalogue.
Add Oxford chairs at $369.55 for two and a six seat dining room is $1,921.35. The equivalent Liverpool setup is $2,903.79, so you are paying about $980 for the matching finish.
Oxford Acacia Dining Table 190cm
Mixing ranges in a first home is not a compromise. It is what most people do, and a dining table in a different timber to the bedroom is invisible once there is a wall between them.
The Two Versions, Side by Side
| Get through year one | Still happy in year five | |
|---|---|---|
| Bedroom | $1,828.80 | $3,069.00 |
| Living | $1,334.25 | $2,030.85 |
| Dining | $812.70 | $1,921.35 |
| Total | $3,975.75 | $7,021.20 |
The gap between the two columns is $3,045.45, and almost all of it is storage: the chest, the console, the end table and six chairs instead of a bare table.
Which is the honest advice hidden in the numbers. The pieces you can add later are the storage pieces. The pieces you cannot improvise are the bed, the table and something to put the television on. Buy those three properly and let the rest arrive when it arrives.
For the full room by room list of what a new home needs, see What Furniture Should You Buy First for a New Home.
Start Here
Liverpool Pine 6 Drawer Chest - Natural
Solid Pine Frame with Oak Veneer
Solid Pine Structure
Newcastle Acacia Double Bed Frame
Solid Acacia Headboard & Pine/Acacia Structure
Liverpool Pine 5 Drawer Tallboy - Natural
Solid Pine Frame with Oak Veneer
Newcastle Acacia 6 Drawer Chest
Solid Pine & Acacia Structure
Liverpool Pine 2 Door 3 Drawer Sideboard - Black
Solid Pine Frame with Oak Veneer
Newcastle Acacia King Bed Frame
Solid Acacia Headboard & Pine/Acacia Structure
Liverpool Pine 6 Drawer Chest - Black
Solid Pine Frame with Oak Veneer
Newcastle Acacia 5 Drawer Tallboy
Solid Pine & Acacia Structure
Liverpool Pine 2 Door 3 Drawer Sideboard - Natural
Solid Pine Frame with Oak Veneer
Manchester Pine 6 Drawer Chest
Solid Pine Structure
Manchester Pine 5 Drawer Tallboy
Solid Pine Structure
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to furnish a first home?
A minimum version across bedroom, living and dining comes to $3,975.75 using current Cedora prices. The fuller version, with a chest, console, end table and six dining chairs, is $7,021.20.
What is the cheapest dining table at Cedora?
The Oxford Acacia Dining Table 190cm at $812.70. It seats six and is solid acacia rather than a veneer, which makes it the least expensive real timber six seater in the range.
What furniture should I buy first?
The three items you cannot improvise: a bed frame, a dining table and something to hold the television. Storage pieces such as a chest, console and end table can be added later without the room looking unfinished.
Is a queen bed much more expensive than a double?
At Cedora the Liverpool double is $1,387.80 and the queen is $1,477.80, a difference of $90 for 15cm more width. It is the cheapest meaningful upgrade in a first home setup.
