How To Equip Your First Home Office On A Tight Budget

The Covid 19 Pandemic happened, and most companies have been forced to let their employees work from home. This sounds like real fun to most people because you no longer need to get up early, beat the traffic, or get to work on time. 

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It is more exciting when you can work from your favorite couch or even in your pajamas. But have you thought about the distractions? Kids playing around or noise from the tv. This is why it is advisable to get a home office. Having a home office means you can run away from distractions and get your work done in no time. 

However, equipping your home office seems to be a major challenge. A room in your home can serve as the office space, but with limited funds, how do you develop well-equipped office space? If you want to set up your home office and you've got a tight budget, it's time to stop worrying because below are a few ways in which you can equip your home office on that tight budget without breaking the bank;

Make a list of what you need

Since you have decided to equip your home office, you need to make a list of the necessary things you need. At this point, you might decide to go through the internet for the things you might need, but do you need all those designs you see on Pinterest? Does your office need a couch or just a chair? Ensure you write down the things that will be useful to you, like a chair, table, internet, etc. 

Create your budget

After making a list of what you need, you need to check your budget and the prices of the things you want to buy. So, if you need to buy a computer chair, your budget will help you decide if you get the value for money considering the quality of the chair and other added features. It is always easy to spend more than your budget when setting up your office at home. This mostly happens when you don't have exact figures that you want to spend. So before you start to purchase your equipment, be sure to make a budget of what you can spend comfortably and not go bankrupt. If you decide to spend $100 on equipping your home office, then work within your budget. Get the cost of the things you wrote down and if it exceeds your budget, try reviewing your list. 

Patronize thrift stores 

So you have a tight budget; who says you can't get quality equipment? Since you can't shop from those online retail stores with expensive equipment, then you can try buying from thrift stores. Luckily, there are thrift stores online now that you can patronize. They also have quality things in the thrift stores you see online, and their things tend to last longer in most cases. 

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Reuse old pieces of furniture in your home

That old table that you've abandoned can be of use now. Your old wall painting can make a good decoration in your home office. You must not buy everything; check around your home for what you can use to cut costs. Also, ask around from friends and family, you never know, they might be of help to you. If there's anything you don't need urgently, you can put it on hold and buy it later when you have enough money or when such an item is on sale. 

Go green

Going green is the latest trend, and everyone is trying to adjust; you should not be left out. Get energy-efficient equipment like a LED bulb; go for solar chargers instead. When you are not using your office, turn off all lights. If you must buy air conditioning for your office, ensure to buy the ones that are energy saver. You will be saving yourself from spending extra cost on electricity, and you will also be helping the environment. 

Design your office yourself

Since it's a home office, you should make it comfortable for you, which can only be achieved when you design it yourself. Get creative, do things like painting and decorating yourself. 

Working from home can be so much fun, and whether you like it or not, it is always better to create a space within your home for an office. However, most people have issues with equipping their home office space. The few tips listed above have solved that problem of equipping on a tight budget. So, no matter how little your budget is, you can still make your home office worth a million dollars. 

However, keep in mind that it is easy to spend above your budget, so you need to be self-disciplined and stick to your budget, so you don't run into debt. 

Micah Soto

Update 12 February 2021