You just signed the lease on your first real apartment, the one without a resident adviser or a meal plan attached. The place is empty, echoing, and suddenly that four-figure security deposit feels like a distant memory. The temptation is to wander into a big-box store and buy everything new at once. Don’t do it. Not only will you blow through your entire textbook budget, but you will also be stuck with flimsy furniture that collapses before you graduate. The smart move is to treat your unfurnished apartment like a treasure hunt, and the prize is a stylish, functional space for pennies on the dollar.

Start with the big items and be patient. Your bed, your desk, and your sofa are the pieces that eat up the most money if you buy retail. Instead, set up alerts on Facebook Marketplace, Craigslist, and your school’s free-and-for-sale boards. Search these sites multiple times a day because the good stuff gets snapped up within minutes. When you see a solid wood desk for forty dollars or a gently used IKEA bed frame for fifty, do not hesitate. Message the seller immediately, say you can pick it up that same day, and bring cash in small bills. Sellers want quick, easy transactions, and your willingness to show up on time is your secret weapon.

But you do not have to stop at online listings. Thrift stores and consignment shops in college towns often get premium donations from professors who are retiring or families who are moving out. Visit these stores on a consistent schedule, preferably midweek when the new inventory hits the floor. Learn to spot quality by checking drawer joints, looking for solid wood versus particleboard, and sitting on every chair to test for wobble. Also, do not ignore the dreaded curb alert. People leave perfectly good furniture on the sidewalk when they move out at the end of the month. The trick is to know the move-out dates for nearby apartment complexes and take a drive on the last few days of July and August. You might find a nearly new bookshelf or a stainless steel lamp with a bent shade that you can fix for five cents of electrical tape.

Your kitchen is another place where you can save a fortune if you are willing to get slightly creative. Instead of buying a complete set of cookware, piece together your own collection from yard sales and estate sales. Look for cast iron skillets that are rusted but structurally sound, because a little elbow grease and a reseasoning session will bring them back to life. Stainless steel pots are also common in thrift shops, and they last forever. Check for lids that fit by pulling them out of the bin and matching them loosely. When you find a mismatched set of dishes, do not worry about patterns. The trendy look right now is mismatched, and nobody will judge your spaghetti bowl if it has a hand-painted flower on the side.

For soft goods like bedding, pillows, and rugs, you can absolutely buy secondhand, but you need to be smart. Wash everything on the hottest setting, and if an item has any questionable smell or stain that will not come out, skip it. You can often find brand-new, still-in-the-package bedding at estate sales because people buy housewarming gifts and never open them. The same goes for towels and shower curtains. But do not compromise on a mattress. Never, ever buy a used mattress, regardless of how good it looks. Instead, buy a simple new mattress from a budget online brand, and then splurge on a great mattress pad. Your back will thank you.

When you are furnishing on a shoestring, you also have to think about the university’s physical property office. Many schools have a surplus store that sells old dorm furniture, office chairs, and even whiteboards for almost nothing. A sturdy, adjustable office chair from a university surplus sale might look a little boring, but it will be better for your posture than a trendy knockoff from a fast-furniture chain. Whiteboards are fantastic for notes and meal planning, and you can often get them free if you are willing to scrub off decades of marker residue.

Finally, do not forget the power of asking around. Post on your class or dorm group chat asking if anyone has furniture they are trying to offload. Your senior friends are especially valuable. Many graduating students would rather give away their futon and floor lamp than haul them back to their parents’ basement. Offer to help them move out in exchange for what they are leaving behind. This works even better if you bring pizza. You would be amazed at how many people toss away a perfectly good coffee table just because they are sick of looking at it.

Furnishing your first apartment is not about making it perfect in a single afternoon. It is about slowly collecting pieces that tell a story and that you paid a fraction of their retail value for. By the time your lease ends, you will have a home that is entirely yours, and you will have enough money left over to celebrate with some actually decent takeout.