News Center 7’s Consumer Advisor Clark Howard is offering strategies to help college students and their families reduce the high costs of setting up a dorm room.
Howard noted that expenses for essentials like bedding, refrigerators, and furniture can quickly become unmanageable if shoppers do not have a specific spending plan.
While many students feel pressure to create rooms suitable for social media, the cost of these temporary living situations can create a financial burden.
Shopping at home, using secondhand marketplaces, and planning purchases well in advance are cited as the most effective ways to lower costs.
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Jackson Barry is a rising freshman attending Georgia College and State University this fall.
He said the variety of necessary supplies for a living space caught him by surprise. “Absolute shock by how expensive everything is,” Barry said. “I didn’t think about buying a vacuum and a rug and a duster and like a broom, like all those things.”
Barry’s mother, Misty Barry, attempted to mitigate these costs by beginning the shopping process a year in advance. She said spreading the expenses out helped keep the family on track.
“I like to plan and like to save as much as I can,” Misty Barry said. “I want to stay as close to a budget as I can and not purchase everything at one time.”
Shopping for secondhand items and utilizing home resources are primary ways students can reduce spending. Consumer experts suggest checking your own home first for items you already have and asking family members or friends for unwanted items to borrow or purchase.
Online platforms such as Facebook Marketplace and local thrift stores offer opportunities to find lightly used supplies. Barry found success using local listings to find items near his residence.
“It was a good price,” Barry said of a recent purchase. “It was right next to our house.”Other students noted that the pressure to have a perfect room can lead to unnecessary spending. Student Allison Hoffmann said the process of preparing her space was difficult to manage on a budget.
“Decoration was very stressful because I wanted to get my room to look cute, but I didn’t want to spend too much money,” Hoffmann said. Student Christian Aycock found that some purchases, like electronics, might not be necessary at all depending on a student’s habits.
“I haven’t turned on my TV since I got it,” Aycock said.
The Dorm Room Guide is an online platform that assists students by finding deals and testing products. Students are encouraged to focus on purchasing items that will last rather than buying into temporary trends. One student suggested focusing on personal taste rather than simple consumption.
“Make sure it feels authentic so you’re not buying stuff out of consumerism and you like it,” the student said.
Before students move out at the end of the year, having a disposal plan can also save money or help others. Howard suggests planning to donate or sell items rather than throwing them away during the move-out rush.
Many colleges have established programs where departing students can donate unwanted items to incoming freshmen.
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