How confident are you of your expertise in purchasing fine furnishings? There are many different furniture stores, brands, furniture types, and prices to consider when making a purchase. A number of people buy without really investigating their options. If you would rather be more informed, the following tips will help.

When shopping for wood furniture, especially antiques, check the inside as well as the outside surfaces. Check the inside, underneath and the drawers. You want to make sure you inspect every little aspect of the furniture closely. Often called secondary woods, internal and underside surfaces give you a lot of clues as to true quality of construction and aging.

You should be negotiating when purchasing furniture. A lot of furniture retailers mark up their merchandise dramatically; if you negotiate, you can sometimes talk down the price and save up to 20 percent. If you don’t like haggling, bring along a …