Why furniture prices have climbed and how tariffs stack up : NPR

The price of living room, kitchen and dining room furniture has increased 25% since February 2020, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

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Getty Images/Emily Bogle/NPR

The NPR series Cost of living: the price we pay examines the causes of rising prices and how people are coping with years of stubborn inflation. How are rising prices changing the way you live? Fill this form to share your story with NPR.

What is the item?

Furniture

How has the price changed since before the pandemic?

The price of bedroom furniture has increased 11% since February 2020, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The price of living room, kitchen and dining room furniture has increased by 25%.

Why has the price increased?

Like all industries, furniture manufacturers and sellers face higher expenses: utilities, insurance, salaries. Big cost increases came during the pandemic, as buyers rushed to buy home office desks and patio sets, and shipping costs skyrocketed.

But if you ask furniture industry insiders, the first thing they’ll tell you is that the price of furniture has actually increased more slowly than overall inflation, which has increased by almost 26% since February 2020.

Then the experts will find that prices are down from their 2022 peak. And then – as David Koehler did – they will deliver the popular adage:

“You could buy a sofa for $399 in 1984, and you can still buy a sofa for $399 today,” says Koehler, who runs the Johnny Janosik Furniture chain in Delaware.

Of course, not everyone wants a $399 couch, but the fact that it still exists makes furniture different from other big-ticket items, like cars or appliances.

Foreign competition has kept prices down

Aside from high-end woodwork and antique craftsmanship, mainstream furniture sellers feel intense pressure to keep prices low.

“The barriers to entry are very, very low, and the furniture industry is incredibly fragmented,” says Bill McLoughlin, editor of Furniture Today, a trade publication.

Additionally, furniture sellers are not only competing with second-hand goods, but also with any expensive projects you might have, for example, for travel or home repairs.

And the race for the cheapest prices has moved much of the industry overseas.

“Manufacturing follows low-cost labor. That’s been true for 60 years,” says McLoughlin. “Because labor is a very significant part of the cost of a product.”

American wages tend to be much higher than abroad, in addition to the higher costs of American environmental standards. So even in the national furniture manufacturing hubs of Mississippi or North Carolina, many components—fabrics, handles, and electronics, like the power button on your recliner—are still shipped from overseas, mostly from China.

Enter: rates

During his first term, President Trump’s tariffs made it more expensive to ship furniture from China, so much of the manufacturing industry moved offshore — but not to America, but to Vietnam.

This year, Trump increased tariffs on imports from almost every country. And it set new double-digit rates specifically for kitchen cabinets, vanities and upholstered furniture.

Furniture giant Ashley Furniture increased the prices of the majority of its products in June due to tariffs. The Home Furnishings Association, an industry trade group, has warned of a cumulative increase in costs for retailers and buyers.

What are people doing about it?

As importing furniture becomes more expensive, American-made furniture might start to look more attractive in comparison. But seller Koehler is worried about the reaction of buyers.

“The consumer, when we get feedback, says, ‘We’d like to buy American,'” he says. “But when they vote with their money and see that this item is $500 and that item is $1,200, they say, ‘I think I can only afford $500.’ So they end up buying an imported item anyway, just because there is such a difference in price. »

Many shoppers find themselves in the same situation as Erin Cummins in Connecticut: seeing their spending increase on other, more critical costs, like health insurance, car insurance or groceries.

“Every time we have company over, I look at this furniture and say, ‘I really need to replace this,'” says Cummins, whose threadbare sofas have been much loved by three dogs and three children. “I price it a little bit, but every time I do it I get sticker shock and I walk away.”

Cummins says that at this point, the cost of the new furniture displeases her more than the condition of what she already owns, and her sofas — still standing, even if covered with a blanket — seem more stable than her budget.