City Furniture deceitful

[ibswny@verizon.net]

Be aware when City furniture delivers there so called white glove service for about $700.
They unload the furniture but don't tell you if there is a problem with it. We did a quick look at it.
4 pieces were damaged. 5 weeks later they sent a repair guy who repaired 1 piece.
They ordered us 3 replacements which came
4 weeks later, 2 of which were damaged worse then the ones we had. So they offered us $107.00 credit on them, but all we received was $53.50.
They sell damaged junk, beware.

[Michael 61]

I’m in the process of buying an entire household of new furniture for my new home - checked out their stores - was not Impressed with their quality- furniture seemed cheap looking to me.

[wisbad1]

I’m in the process of buying an entire household of new furniture for my new home - checked out their stores - was not Impressed with their quality- furniture seemed cheap looking to me.
Babette's is the best place

[Babubhat]

It’s not unusual. Shipping from far east had large pieces damaged. City always made good but the wait was annoying. Been buying there for 15 years.

Babettes just empties your wallet. Not enough quality difference to justify their prices for me. To each his own.

[JSR22]

Be aware when City furniture delivers there so called white glove service for about $700.
They unload the furniture but don't tell you if there is a problem with it. We did a quick look at it.
4 pieces were damaged. When we called 5 weeks later they sent a repair guy who repaired 1 piece.
They ordered us 3 replacements
4 weeks later they came 2 of which were damaged worse then the ones we had. We were tired of waiting. So they offered us $107.00 credit they said but all we received was $53.50.
They sell damaged junk, beware.

I know so many people who had problems with City Furniture. Damaged goods and poor quality. I highly recommend Baer's or Babbette's. Great selection and quality and great customer service.

[PugMom]

Family Furniture on 441 Leesburg has excellent quality items, & the store stands by the customer. for smaller pieces, like accent tables, i've found a few items @ Badcock (lol,) that turned out to be wise purchases. don't be afraid to shop around. good luck! :beer3:

[retiredguy123]

It’s not unusual. Shipping from far east had large pieces damaged. City always made good but the wait was annoying. Been buying there for 15 years.

Babettes just empties your wallet. Not enough quality difference to justify their prices for me. To each his own.
I agree that Babettes does not have the quality to justify their prices. But, they do have excellent service. I bought a Flexsteel reclining loveseat from them. Good service, but very low quality product.

[Babubhat]

The bulk of furniture is coming from overseas. It takes a beating during shipping. Even packed in a wood crate it has nicks. Often take a credit and touch up. No guarantees the next one is better.

There is an Amish store in Wildwood if you want to pay for better quality

[MsPCGenius]

I was not looking for high-end furniture so the prices at Badcock and City were in line with my budget. I purchased bedroom from Badcock and living/dining from City. In all cases, the delivery/set up staff were professional and very polite.

Some of the bedroom pieces did not meet my satisfaction (mostly issues with staining), and manager Anthony worked with me and replaced each and every one. I even changed my mind about one piece and swapped it for another without issue.

No problems at all with City purchases.

[Cobullymom]

Last year I went to City Furniture in SL ended up ordering 4 dinning chairs at 1000.00, in early Aug because moving in our new home in Oct I wanted to have everything ready. Paid upfront and was told all were in stock and would be delivered Oct 2. 2 weeks later was back in store looking for other things and during visit I asked about my order, along with 2 other new things. I was told my order of chairs would not be arriving now till Jan!! I said when I ordered and paid 2 weeks prior they assured me it was all set for Oct delivery. So after some discussion I said well this is not gonna work, just return my money, which was cash. SL Store could not return with cash or a check. I was told it would have to come from corporate and they would be sending me a check, should arrive in 7-10 days. Fast forward to Oct and multiple calls and numerous stories and excuses still no check!! I called store and corporate, I was either hung up on during transfer of call or sent to voicemails. I finally messaged someone on FB messenger on their page and they did reply and said check had been sent a weeks back in Aug. I told them obviously I had not gotten one, they could check and see that it had not been cashed. Now it's mid Oct and I'm NOT a HAPPY person and more lies and excuses that Check has been sent, and this is only on FB messenger I'm getting a response!! I was now told I have to wait a mandatory 8 weeks to resend check!! That would have been another long wait!! But WAIT, finally a check arrived like 2-3 days later it was post dated on the 12th of Oct and check was dated the 10th of Oct, so basically they had lied all along that my check was sent in Aug!! They are the most unethical, unprofessional deceitful furniture company or any company I've dealt with!

I did though, have great experiences with White's furniture in Summerfield, Kane's in Ocala was great, and Rooms to go was as well, all three promised a delivery date and were on time and professional. The customer service in the stores was very good. Just take a drive out of the Villages, it is worth it!

[bowlingal]

City Furniture has been getting a bad rap for quite sometime here. If you went on to Nextdoor.com or The Villages Friendly Folks, and questioned this company, you would have found out about their business practices. Next time, due your homework on companies doing business here in the Villages

[Normal]

We bought from Furniture Row in Daytona and they delivered. The prices were good and the product was high end quality.

[BlueStarAirlines]

"Paid upfront..." "I said well this is not gonna work, just return my money, which was cash."


Your story should be an advertisement for the use of credit cards. Everything you dealt with could have been resolved within 2 minutes....

[Cobullymom]

Your story should be an advertisement for the use of credit cards. Everything you dealt with could have been resolved within 2 minutes....
We were in the process of closing on a mortgage in 2 months and using credit cards is a not recomended especially for larger amounts. So I could not use one, but thanks for telling me what I already was aware of.

[HawkinsGuy]

We purchased 2 bedroom suites from Haverty’s in The Villages and are very satisfied with quality, customer service and delivery. Will be purchasing dining and living room suites from them soon. Give them a try.

[Bay Kid]

Be warned. The salesman convinced me to buy the 3 year in home warranty. If no claims are filed after 3 years they will return the money. Sounded like great protection. Well I found out after that the money is not returned but you get a store credit. My fault for listening to the salesman and not reading the fine print. Now I have almost a thousand dollar credit to go buy something from them. Buyer beware.

[Khnrae]

We’ve had good luck with Rooms To Go. Kept us up to date on all deliveries. Came back on our schedule to replace damaged dresser. Worked well with us as our schedules getting down there is intermittent fir now

[Nucky]

Years ago a poster called Rickey D. took away my TOTV’S certificate for buying a dining room table and a white Florida style bedroom set for the guest bedroom. Turns out he was half correct. The dining room is going strong and as beautiful as the day it was delivered and the bedroom is pretty much done for. After 5 years it’s a shame that we have to buy it again. From here on out it’s either Bargains & Treasures or Babette’s for us. Good old Rickey D was right.
If you can’t sense that City Furniture is not top drawer the second you go through the doors then you deserve to have your TOTV’S certificate pulled to. I was so sick of shopping I surrendered. It’s my fault we bought there.
About 4 years later I got a notification from City saying that I had 30 days to spend something like $500 or a $1000 or they were going to close our credit account. I did them a favor and cancelled it that very day!

[villager7591]

Agreed. Bought a kitchen table, chairs, dining room set from CF a year ago. All items were damaged. Called for replacements. CF said it would be 12 weeks. Items paid for several months prior. So we asked for a refund/cancel our order and asked them to come and get their junk. We didn't want it. They gave us a real hard time about the refund. Told us there would be a 25% restocking charge. We would NEVER buy from them again.

[Sandancer]

All the furniture in my home comes from Kent furniture- They have great varieties for each room & I've never had anything delivered damaged..

[ThirdOfFive]

Just my own opinion here, and I realize that for many people this isn't practical, but we always buy our furniture used. Buying new furniture is in many ways like buying a new car; you'll never get back what you paid if you sell it.

When we moved here our house was turnkey, so no problem there: the stuff we had in Minnesota would not (according to my wife) have worked in our new home anyway. But we have picked up a few things here. One thing TV does not lack are estate sales, but we much prefer the private estate sales or moving sales to the ones done by the companies that specialize in such things. Of course some of it is dated or in poor repair, but a surprising amount is in really good condition and quite modern, and from the private sellers anyway, very reasonably priced.

Sort of a private joke between my wife and I: "Estate sale coming" whenever we hear a siren.

[Harold.wiser]

I ordered cheap stuff (rocker-recliner and love seat) from Ashley online---very happy with the furniture, service and time it took to get it.
I purchased a Lazyboy recliner from White's and also very happy with the chair and service. I exchanged the chair as well with no questions asked!

[NoMo50]

Babette's is the best place

Not always. While we have had some good experiences with Babette's, our most recent is anything but.

We ordered three barstools back in May 2022. The barstools were a normal stock item for Babette's, and we ordered them since they matched our dining set. They required 50% payment up front for a "special order," even though the barstools were a normal stock item. At the time of order, we were told the barstools would be delivered in July.

In July, we received a phone call from Babette's saying the barstools were delayed, and would arrive in August. Okay...no big deal. In August, we received a phone call saying there was an additional delay, and they would not be delivered until early November. The next phone call estimated delivery after Thanksgiving. Another phone call just before Thanksgiving, and we are told the barstools are now slated for delivery in April 2023.

Never once has Babette's offered any form of compensation for the inconvenience. Quite the opposite. They act as if they are doing me a favor by sitting on my money for a year, while continually kicking the can down the road. Yes, it would be simple to just cancel the order and get my money back. Problem is, these are the barstools that my wife wants, and you know what happens if she ain't happy. It just galls me that Babette's treats folks this way. YMMV.

[retiredguy123]

Not always. While we have had some good experiences with Babette's, our most recent is anything but.

We ordered three barstools back in May 2022. The barstools were a normal stock item for Babette's, and we ordered them since they matched our dining set. They required 50% payment up front for a "special order," even though the barstools were a normal stock item. At the time of order, we were told the barstools would be delivered in July.

In July, we received a phone call from Babette's saying the barstools were delayed, and would arrive in August. Okay...no big deal. In August, we received a phone call saying there was an additional delay, and they would not be delivered until early November. The next phone call estimated delivery after Thanksgiving. Another phone call just before Thanksgiving, and we are told the barstools are now slated for delivery in April 2023.

Never once has Babette's offered any form of compensation for the inconvenience. Quite the opposite. They act as if they are doing me a favor by sitting on my money for a year, while continually kicking the can down the road. Yes, it would be simple to just cancel the order and get my money back. Problem is, these are the barstools that my wife wants, and you know what happens if she ain't happy. It just galls me that Babette's treats folks this way. YMMV.
Wow, a year to get some barstools. Sorry to hear that. I never "special order" anything. Fortunately, I like stuff that doesn't match.

[Babubhat]

Be warned. The salesman convinced me to buy the 3 year in home warranty. If no claims are filed after 3 years they will return the money. Sounded like great protection. Well I found out after that the money is not returned but you get a store credit. My fault for listening to the salesman and not reading the fine print. Now I have almost a thousand dollar credit to go buy something from them. Buyer beware.

Nothing unusual. Read the warranty before signing. Never buy on the spot. Salesman groaned. It is clear. I received a copy last week and tossed it. Oral representation is meaningless. Just like car buying process.

Put in on a credit card that doubles the warranty. You would wind up paying for third year which is absurd.

The moral is if the Salesman is pushing it say no for any purchases

[bagboy]

Be warned. The salesman convinced me to buy the 3 year in home warranty. If no claims are filed after 3 years they will return the money. Sounded like great protection. Well I found out after that the money is not returned but you get a store credit. My fault for listening to the salesman and not reading the fine print. Now I have almost a thousand dollar credit to go buy something from them. Buyer beware.

We were told the Exact same thing. We went to the store after 3 years to request the money back. The girl told me a check would be mailed with a couple of days. It wasn't. We returned at another time and was told it "would" have been a store credit, not a refund. But, we only had 30 days to request it so we were too late. City Furniture lied to us from the start, all the way to the end. Not a reputable company from our experience.

[LAFwUs]

Be warned. The salesman convinced me to buy the 3 year in home warranty. If no claims are filed after 3 years they will return the money. Sounded like great protection. Well I found out after that the money is not returned but you get a store credit. My fault for listening to the salesman and not reading the fine print. Now I have almost a thousand dollar credit to go buy something from them. Buyer beware.
Personally, I'd go to their store, pick out whatever I thought I could sell on FB marketplace, craigslist, TOTV, similar.
People are always needing things like new couches, mattress's, etc. Even if its 10 new table lamps...doesnt matter.
Utilize the store credit, have them deliver it and flip it as new/discounted. You may not get 100% of investment back, but a decent % is better than an un-used credit slip sitting in the kitchen drawer.

[Michael G.]

When using a credit card and don't receive the product/service, can't you go back to your credit card company and dispute the transaction for receiving a defective product?

Another tip when using a credit card, buy on the first of the month if possible.
That way if you haven't received the product/service, you have a whole month to cancel payment.

[tophcfa]

$hitty Furniture is without a doubt a complete train wreck of a company to do business with. I was about to say they are the single worst company in the entire Villages area, but then I remembered the ER at the Villages Hospital.

[Karmanng]

Babette's is the best place

Sure for very high prices

[Gatorgreen]

Be aware when City furniture delivers there so called white glove service for about $700.
They unload the furniture but don't tell you if there is a problem with it. We did a quick look at it.
4 pieces were damaged. When we called 5 weeks later they sent a repair guy who repaired 1 piece.
They ordered us 3 replacements
4 weeks later they came 2 of which were damaged worse then the ones we had. We were tired of waiting. So they offered us $107.00 credit they said but all we received was $53.50.
They sell damaged junk, beware.

We found excellent furniture at Scan Design in Altamonte and also Baers.

[LAFwUs]

$hitty Furniture is without a doubt a complete train wreck of a company to do business with. I was about to say they are the single worst company in the entire Villages area, but then I remembered the ER at the Villages Hospital.

If this is true, and it appears to be, then at what point do customers ban together and do something about it?
Seriously, venting on a forum only does so much.

Some folks on here have poked fun of the petitions that get started over this or that, (the latest being the south end turnpike noise issue), but fact remains that the power/pressure which can be applied by 100K + upset Village residents is nothing to scoff at.

TV or some entity here has to renew their lease agreement and I am sure there are policies & regulations for all businesses having a store front here. Perhaps we start there!
Basically: "clean up your act, honor your contracts, promises and customer service commitments & deliver what you promised.... or we'll get you out"
just a thought.

[retiredguy123]

When using a credit card and don't receive the product/service, can't you go back to your credit card company and dispute the transaction for receiving a defective product?

Another tip when using a credit card, buy on the first of the month if possible.
That way if you haven't received the product/service, you have a whole month to cancel payment.
To clarify, when you make a credit card purchase, you have 60 days from the date of the first statement on which the charge appears. So, if your statement date is the first of the month, and you make a purchase on the second, the charge will appear on the first day of the next month. So, in that case, you would have almost 90 days from the date of the purchase to dispute the charge. Whether or not you made a payment on your account has nothing to do with it. When you dispute a charge, the bank must immediately credit your account in the amount of the dispute while the bank investigates the charge.

Typically, a product ordered should be delivered within 30 days of the order, unless the merchant has provided a longer delivery time. So, if no delivery time is provided, you should be able to dispute the credit card charge after 30 days if you don't receive it.

[Babubhat]

Most banks have a transaction link you click on to dispute. Simple,

City has a massive Florida operation for decades and wouldn’t exist if it was so bad. It’s expected some will be disappointed. Heavy Furniture from overseas takes a beating on ocean liners

[Tommyc6]

Try Paynes furniture outlet on 441 in Bellview.

[Garywt]

That is too bad. We bought all our furniture there, best price we could fine. Delivery and setup was free using a coupon we received when we bought our house. On delivery day there was some furniture damaged but they wouldn’t even take it off the truck. They scheduled another delivery a few days later. All was good for us. Sorry others have had issues.

[Michael G.]

City has a massive Florida operation for decades and wouldn’t exist if it was so bad. It’s expected some will be disappointed.

I was question this also.

[PugMom]

The bulk of furniture is coming from overseas. It takes a beating during shipping. Even packed in a wood crate it has nicks. Often take a credit and touch up. No guarantees the next one is better.

There is an Amish store in Wildwood if you want to pay for better quality

i've been in that store, some pieces are lovely!! excellent quality

[polirudb]

It seems like every couple of week or months there is another horror story about doing business with City Furniture. I had two horrible experiences with them about four years ago when we purchased furniture for our entire house in The Villages. My daughter had a horrible experience with them in South Florida. Damaged furniture, cancelled deliveries, horrible "customer service", and poor quality furniture and mattresses. How they stay in business continues to amaze me.

[BlueStarAirlines]

We were in the process of closing on a mortgage in 2 months and using credit cards is a not recomended especially for larger amounts. So I could not use one, but thanks for telling me what I already was aware of.

Wow! You sure are friendly! Welcome!

If $1,000 is a larger amount then not sure what to say. There is no reason you couldn't make a payment early so when your balance is reported it would show $0. I'm sure you knew that.....

[merrymini]

People do not buy quality furniture but stuff from rooms to go and ikea. Falls apart and they complain. All this junk from overseas has driven our own furniture building companies into bankruptcy because they were not supported. Yes, they were expensive to buy but I have my Stickley furniture for over thirty years. It is solid wood and can be refinished and recovered. The culture has changed and now we have to live with it.

[Fredster]

People do not buy quality furniture but stuff from rooms to go and ikea. Falls apart and they complain. All this junk from overseas has driven our own furniture building companies into bankruptcy because they were not supported. Yes, they were expensive to buy but I have my Stickley furniture for over thirty years. It is solid wood and can be refinished and recovered. The culture has changed and now we have to live with it.

So true, I have a Thomasville bedroom set which is 20 plus years old and in great condition. With reasonable care it, probably will last another 50 years!
Of course Thomasville is no longer around!

[Boomer]

People do not buy quality furniture but stuff from rooms to go and ikea. Falls apart and they complain. All this junk from overseas has driven our own furniture building companies into bankruptcy because they were not supported. Yes, they were expensive to buy but I have my Stickley furniture for over thirty years. It is solid wood and can be refinished and recovered. The culture has changed and now we have to live with it.



Oh my! Such a conversation we could have!

Back home, I have “Leopold’s Chair” and its ottoman by Stickley, along with a couple of other Stickley pieces. I had the chair done in leather and I think it looks like a beloved baseball glove. It is well into its second decade with us. It’s my favorite piece of furniture.

I have loved good furniture since my dollhouse days.

When we bought in TV, 10 years ago, we bought a turnkey. It was our second house and I did not want to try to furnish a whole house where I did not know the territory.

The house we bought had been built in 2007 and was from the days when the developer had a furniture store in Sumter Landing and offered decent mid-line furniture, coordinated from room to room. When the house was new, the first owner had it nicely furnished by the developer’s furniture store…..that I can’t remember the name of. (sigh) Anyway, the furniture definitely was not junk. It was not Stickley, but it was nice stuff.

It was not long after that when the developer sold out to the existing furniture store and got out of the furniture business.

You are so right that the good American-made furniture companies have been driven out of the market.

Boomer

[RUCdaze]

It isn't only City Furniture. Just go across the street to Relax in Comfort. The first thing they tell you when they try to sell you anything it that it's warrantied for five years. Try to take them up on that! I personally had a problem - a big problem - after eight (8) months. They will waltz you around like a taxi dancer and never make good!

[Carla B]

The developer's store in Sumter Landing was called Southern Lifestyles. It was fun to go there and wander the store looking at the way the displays were beautifully set up. It was so disappointing when the developer closed the store and then leased space in Sumter to City Furniture. Having window shopped City Furniture a number of times in South FL, I already knew what to expect. Haven't been there to this day.

When we moved here we needed a lot of furniture. We picked out a bedroom set at a store in South FL that was reduced 50%. Southern Lifestyle advertised they would match any competitor's price in FL provided we gave them the SKU # so they could verify the price. We did and they agreed to match. But, their freight charge would be at the rate as if it were shipped from the South FL store to our house, rather than from the factory. It was over $500. So, I called Babette's, asked if they represented that manufacturer and would match the 50% off, which they would, and told them the quoted freight charge from Southern Lifestyles. Babette's answered that they would charge us $0.00 delivery. That response earned for them many more purchases from us. This occurred as the Great Recession was underway and they were anxious for business. As the economy recovered they have steadily raised their prices to where my husband doesn't even want to go there.

Another observation, when China got into making furniture, the quality went downhill. Among our purchases in 2008 were a couple of large Bernhardt LR/DR pieces. Bernhardt, while not known for being of the best quality, were supposed to be decent manufacturers. These pieces seem to have been finished with something like hairspray applied over factory dust.

[Aces4]

People do not buy quality furniture but stuff from rooms to go and ikea. Falls apart and they complain. All this junk from overseas has driven our own furniture building companies into bankruptcy because they were not supported. Yes, they were expensive to buy but I have my Stickley furniture for over thirty years. It is solid wood and can be refinished and recovered. The culture has changed and now we have to live with it.


Amen! We bought our Ethan Allen solid maple furniture, Circa 1776, well before they pulled production out of the USA.

We also have a walnut inset set of Baker tables, spoon foot with hand carved fan detail. One is a sofa table and then there are two side tables. These pieces are timeless, have survived over 40 years of living, are gracefully designed but are heavy, solid wood. We also had some Drexel pieces and we laugh at the pieces of furniture foisted on buyers now. It’s like buying clunky, painted cardboard out there.

Henredon was a great furniture source back then and I believe Eldred Wheeler Furniture is still making beautiful period pieces.

North Carolina was the furniture hub back in the day. Change isn’t always for the best.

[Calisport]

They all seem to order from the same place to me. Babettes took about a year to deliver my dining room table so I stopped looking there. Also they didn't seem to care about it at all and hard to get in touch with. I had to drive to Leesburg to talk.

[Pairadocs]

Be aware when City furniture delivers there so called white glove service for about $700.
They unload the furniture but don't tell you if there is a problem with it. We did a quick look at it.
4 pieces were damaged. 5 weeks later they sent a repair guy who repaired 1 piece.
They ordered us 3 replacements which came
4 weeks later, 2 of which were damaged worse then the ones we had. So they offered us $107.00 credit on them, but all we received was $53.50.
They sell damaged junk, beware.

Can't even go into how much we lost with this "company", YES, you pay a premium and they REFUSE to take back things they BRING IN DAMAGED. I was actually threatened by their driver (I was home by myself when they came), and he got so angry I would NOT sign the paper that said I got ALL the furniture we ordered and it was all in good condition....that he SHOVED the corner of one chest THROUGH the dry wall on purpose ! It was a nightmare, they brought the wrong furniture for one room, refused to remove it... to try to shorten the story, we had to involve the police, seniors against crime, and also the state of Florida division of consumer protection. Hint... it too TWO FULL years but we finally were able to get the furniture we paid for, but it is a very long process, a person AT THE STATE told me this company has so many complaints they just don't have enough people to work the load, but don't give up. It is so unfair to others if we let them continue to get by with their business practices.

[Pairadocs]

Be warned. The salesman convinced me to buy the 3 year in home warranty. If no claims are filed after 3 years they will return the money. Sounded like great protection. Well I found out after that the money is not returned but you get a store credit. My fault for listening to the salesman and not reading the fine print. Now I have almost a thousand dollar credit to go buy something from them. Buyer beware.

Yes, that is exactly what they have done to so many people, they go to great lengths to give people the idea they WILL get a check for that amount. You can spend days reading the horror stories about this company that are on the internet, at the BBB, with the state consumer department, it will spin your head when you really dig into them and their history all over Florida.

[Pairadocs]

We were told the Exact same thing. We went to the store after 3 years to request the money back. The girl told me a check would be mailed with a couple of days. It wasn't. We returned at another time and was told it "would" have been a store credit, not a refund. But, we only had 30 days to request it so we were too late. City Furniture lied to us from the start, all the way to the end. Not a reputable company from our experience.

If I told you the number of times they have put this one over on people, you would probably think I was exaggerating, but if you start to investigate with the state consumer affairs department and the BBB, and trust pilot on line, and other sources, you will be shocked at their "reputation". The number of times people call, go in, "check" on their refund is always prolonged until the 30 day period to request it is gone.

[Pairadocs]

If this is true, and it appears to be, then at what point do customers ban together and do something about it?
Seriously, venting on a forum only does so much.

Some folks on here have poked fun of the petitions that get started over this or that, (the latest being the south end turnpike noise issue), but fact remains that the power/pressure which can be applied by 100K + upset Village residents is nothing to scoff at.

TV or some entity here has to renew their lease agreement and I am sure there are policies & regulations for all businesses having a store front here. Perhaps we start there!
Basically: "clean up your act, honor your contracts, promises and customer service commitments & deliver what you promised.... or we'll get you out"
just a thought.

There seems to be an endless stream of new residents who do not realize the complaints on this company... and it definitely is NOT just the stores in the Villages. Seniors against crime in the Sheriff's annex has no LEGAL powers, but don't skip them, they guided us in our filing with the state attorney general and the state consumer affairs. It was a LONG, two year process and then just when we thought we were stuck with furniture we did NOT order, and would never receive what we paid for upfront 100% (they required 100, not 50% on orders !), we finally got "most" of what we paid for with the help of the state consumer office. Never did get one $798. chest but we considered ourselves fortunate to get anything !

[Catalina36]

Be aware when City furniture delivers there so called white glove service for about $700.
They unload the furniture but don't tell you if there is a problem with it. We did a quick look at it.
4 pieces were damaged. 5 weeks later they sent a repair guy who repaired 1 piece.
They ordered us 3 replacements which came
4 weeks later, 2 of which were damaged worse then the ones we had. So they offered us $107.00 credit on them, but all we received was $53.50.
They sell damaged junk, beware.

When I became a owner / snow bird in the villages we needed furniture for our new home.
I went to City Furniture and ordered several pieces. Waited several months and some of the pieces were slightly damaged not too bad but this is brand new furniture there shouldnt be any damage at all. I called their service department and no response. I went to the store and filled out a service order. Never did I receive a phone call or service call. Luckily for me I was able to take care of the slight damage myself and live with it. The Rest of my furniture I needed I ordered at MACY'S. I am from Long Island and Macy's delivered to The Villages. Every piece of furniture I ordered from Macy's was delivered 100% wrapped up and protected and in perfect condition. If you catch Macy's on a Sale which I did it will be less expensive or the same as City Furniture pricing. The Macy's Furniture is HIGH Quality not the junk City Furniture sells.

[Catalina36]

Yes, that is exactly what they have done to so many people, they go to great lengths to give people the idea they WILL get a check for that amount. You can spend days reading the horror stories about this company that are on the internet, at the BBB, with the state consumer department, it will spin your head when you really dig into them and their history all over Florida.

Maybe you can sell the $1000 credit to a friend / neighbor for $500.

[Catalina36]

BUY FROM MACY"S IN THE STORE OR ON LINE. The furniture comes completely wrapped and protected and is High Quality Furniture. I purchased half of our furniture from Macys and the Quality, the Delivery Service, everthing was 100% perfect.

CITY FURNITURE SELLS JUNK, the furniture was taken off the truck uncovered, unprotected, and every piece was delivered with some kind of damage. Their customer service is horrible, actually ZERO customer service. Save yourself the mental stress and hard earned money and buy your furniture at MACY's.

[Fenster]

Delivery service is horrible. They tried to leave us damaged goods 4-5 times, for one item. Other items were hit and miss. Would never ever go there again.

[Boomer]

The developer's store in Sumter Landing was called Southern Lifestyles. It was fun to go there and wander the store looking at the way the displays were beautifully set up. It was so disappointing when the developer closed the store and then leased space in Sumter to City Furniture. Having window shopped City Furniture a number of times in South FL, I already knew what to expect. Haven't been there to this day.

We moved here we needed a lot of furniture. We picked out a bedroom set at a store in South FL that was reduced 50%. Southern Lifestyle advertised they would match any competitor's price in FL provided we gave them the SKU # so they could verify the price. We did and they agreed to match. But, their freight charge would be at the rate as if it were shipped from the South FL store to our house, rather than from the factory. It was over $500. So, I called Babette's, asked if they represented that manufacturer and would match the 50% off, which they would, and told them the quoted freight charge from Southern Lifestyles. Babette's answered that they would charge us $0.00 delivery. That response earned for them many more purchases from us. This occurred as the Great Recession was underway and they were anxious for business. As the economy recovered they have steadily raised their prices to where my husband doesn't even want to go there.

Another observation, when China got into making furniture, the quality went downhill. Among our purchases in 2008 were a couple of large Bernhardt LR/DR pieces. Bernhardt, while not known for being of the best quality, were supposed to be decent manufacturers. These pieces seem to have been finished with something like hairspray applied over factory dust.



Yes. That was the name of the developer’s furniture store. Thanks for the reminder.

In 2013, when we bought the turnkey from the original owner, I was told by a friend that when the southern most area of Lake Sumter Landing was being built, there was a “deal” to be had with the developer’s furniture store where the new buyers could choose a percentage of the cost of the house in furniture……

(It is possible that I have no idea what I am talking about :) because we were not the original owners of the house. But what I do know is the furniture was nice. It was coordinated from room to room, and it had come from the store in LSL.)

That part of TV was being built at the time when the housing bubble was popping in the rest of the country, so maybe the furniture thing was part of an incentive. I don’t actually know. I don’t think TV suffered greatly from the housing bubble’s ending, but as sales slowed in other places, it must have had some kind of slowing effect on TV. (But, again, I might have no idea what I am talking about.)

There has always been a huge markup on retail furniture, but, even so, I guess it was not profitable enough for TV to continue in the market.

I always thought it was too bad that Southern Lifestyles went away and was replaced by what is there now. I guess it must be more profitable to rent the space out instead of selling furniture.

Btw, I heard recently that the millennials are now wanting “brown” furniture, aka, cherry, mahogany, etc., and are looking for the good stuff, at second-hand stores or auctions or at Grandma’s house.

If you would like to see what is happening with second-hand stuff and you are sitting in a waiting room or an airport or anywhere with time to burn, you might want to take a look at ebth.com which is Everything But The House — an online auction site based in the ‘burbs of Cincinnati. Lots of different categories of things up for auction, sight unseen, but good descriptions and photos, some of it excellent, some of it quite hideous, all in the eye of the beholder.

Boomer

[Carla B]

Yes, Boomer, when we built during the recession, we were offered the choice of a discount on the house or that many dollars worth of furniture from Southern Lifestyles. We chose the discount on the house, and it has been our once-and-done house.

The millennials are a funny group. First, they didn't want to buy houses, they preferred the mobility of renting. They also shunned their family's furnishings, china, silver, crystal. Then, probably due to the Pandemic, they decided to plant roots and acquire houses of their own, which, most certainly, contributed to the hyper-inflationary cost of housing. Now you say they are looking for quality used furniture. I wonder if next they will seek out used china, silver, etc., which they formerly scorned.

[Worldseries27]

be aware when city furniture delivers there so called white glove service for about $700.
They unload the furniture but don't tell you if there is a problem with it. We did a quick look at it.
4 pieces were damaged. 5 weeks later they sent a repair guy who repaired 1 piece.
They ordered us 3 replacements which came
4 weeks later, 2 of which were damaged worse then the ones we had. So they offered us $107.00 credit on them, but all we received was $53.50.
They sell damaged junk, beware.
i learned this lesson the hard way. Always inspect the furniture in your driveway bring out an extension cord if necessary to power any of the chairs if they need electricity . It's best to reject them on the sidewalk . Do not allow them to get the furniture thru your front door. Saves you a lot of problems and at that point you can always cancel the whole order .

[Happydaz]

Amen! We bought our Ethan Allen solid maple furniture, Circa 1776, well before they pulled production out of the USA.

We also have a walnut inset set of Baker tables, spoon foot with hand carved fan detail. One is a sofa table and then there are two side tables. These pieces are timeless, have survived over 40 years of living, are gracefully designed but are heavy, solid wood. We also had some Drexel pieces and we laugh at the pieces of furniture foisted on buyers now. It’s like buying clunky, painted cardboard out there.

Henredon was a great furniture source back then and I believe Eldred Wheeler Furniture is still making beautiful period pieces.

North Carolina was the furniture hub back in the day. Change isn’t always for the best.

We bought the same, well made Ethan Allen 1776 series over 40 years ago and they are still in excellent condition. The dovetailed drawers last forever. We moved down here with all our best furniture and they look great in our Villages home. There was no way we were going to get rid of all the beautiful high quality pieces and antiques we had collected over our lifetime. Before moving into our home we had wood floors installed throughout our Gardenia model and we had plantation shutters installed on all the windows. The house has a Key West look to it. I guess a lot of people think you need to buy all the white and beige furniture to live here, but it is OK to express your individuality. The furniture we had years ago was far superior to the stuff produced today, but some better quality prices can still be found. We did buy some nice quality bar stools ten years ago at Southern Lifestyles and we also bought a few pieces at City Furniture for a spare bedroom and they are quite serviceable for our needs.

[Dotneko]

That is too bad. We bought all our furniture there, best price we could fine. Delivery and setup was free using a coupon we received when we bought our house. On delivery day there was some furniture damaged but they wouldn’t even take it off the truck. They scheduled another delivery a few days later. All was good for us. Sorry others have had issues.

This was exactly our experience as well. Two pieces were damaged and not even removed from the truck. We bought our entire house from them. No complaints.

[Djean1981]

Can't even go into how much we lost with this "company", YES, you pay a premium and they REFUSE to take back things they BRING IN DAMAGED. I was actually threatened by their driver (I was home by myself when they came), and he got so angry I would NOT sign the paper that said I got ALL the furniture we ordered and it was all in good condition....that he SHOVED the corner of one chest THROUGH the dry wall on purpose ! It was a nightmare, they brought the wrong furniture for one room, refused to remove it... to try to shorten the story, we had to involve the police, seniors against crime, and also the state of Florida division of consumer protection. Hint... it too TWO FULL years but we finally were able to get the furniture we paid for, but it is a very long process, a person AT THE STATE told me this company has so many complaints they just don't have enough people to work the load, but don't give up. It is so unfair to others if we let them continue to get by with their business practices.
Did they pay for the wall repair?

[Boomer]

Amen! We bought our Ethan Allen solid maple furniture, Circa 1776, well before they pulled production out of the USA.

We also have a walnut inset set of Baker tables, spoon foot with hand carved fan detail. One is a sofa table and then there are two side tables. These pieces are timeless, have survived over 40 years of living, are gracefully designed but are heavy, solid wood. We also had some Drexel pieces and we laugh at the pieces of furniture foisted on buyers now. It’s like buying clunky, painted cardboard out there.

Henredon was a great furniture source back then and I believe Eldred Wheeler Furniture is still making beautiful period pieces.

North Carolina was the furniture hub back in the day. Change isn’t always for the best.

Considering the fact that TV is moving along quickly on the southern end, I would think Ethan Allen in Orlando would be thinking about marketing here.

I don't think they have sent everything to other countries, but they have sent some.

I think Ethan Allen still throws in the complimentary services of a designer. I once got that when all I was buying was a rug.

Considering the huge markup on furniture, I would think the high profit could make Orlando EA marketing to TV worthwhile. It's not really that far away.

I know that a year or so ago, EA was having supply time problems like everybody else, but I don't know how that is now.

I was listening recently to a "Chairish" podcast where the topic was how popular vintage pieces are now. By vintage they are not talking about true antiques. They are talking about the "good stuff" many of us bought 30+ years ago. I guess our traditional cherry and mahogany is now so out it's in. :)

Boomer

[Miboater]

Considering the fact that TV is moving along quickly on the southern end, I would think Ethan Allen in Orlando would be thinking about marketing here.

I don't think they have sent everything to other countries, but they have sent some.

I think Ethan Allen still throws in the complimentary services of a designer. I once got that when all I was buying was a rug.

Considering the huge markup on furniture, I would think the high profit could make Orlando EA marketing to TV worthwhile. It's not really that far away.

I know that a year or so ago, EA was having supply time problems like everybody else, but I don't know how that is now.

I was listening recently to a "Chairish" podcast where the topic was how popular vintage pieces are now. By vintage they are not talking about true antiques. They are talking about the "good stuff" many of us bought 30+ years ago. I guess our traditional cherry and mahogany is now so out it's in. :)

Boomer

I believe they are opening a Ethan Allen store in the Lake Deaton shopping area expansion.

[Boomer]

I believe they are opening a Ethan Allen store in the Lake Deaton shopping area expansion.

You’re right! When I read your post, I googled “Ethan Allen and The Villages” and read that TV will have one of 6 new design centers that Ethan Allen is in the process of opening soon.

I bet the store does well. Homebuyers in TV need more options for buying furniture than what is here now.

Boomer

[manaboutown]

My furniture is mostly Baker, Kittinger and Kendall. My father sold furniture and educated me on quality. Furniture is worth about 30 cents on the dollar of its retail price new. Shop for good buys on used furniture in high end areas such as Palm Beach.

[Garywt]

Be aware when City furniture delivers there so called white glove service for about $700.
They unload the furniture but don't tell you if there is a problem with it. We did a quick look at it.
4 pieces were damaged. 5 weeks later they sent a repair guy who repaired 1 piece.
They ordered us 3 replacements which came
4 weeks later, 2 of which were damaged worse then the ones we had. So they offered us $107.00 credit on them, but all we received was $53.50.
They sell damaged junk, beware.

This is a shame. I definitely had a different experience when we bought there. First off the delivery and setup was free as The Villages gave us a coupon in the book they gave us when we bought the house. Next, if anything was damaged they wouldn’t even take it off the truck, they just scheduled a new delivery. Finally we love our furniture, it looks great and we have had zero issues with any of it.

[Bay Kid]

Make sure you read the fine print in their multi page receipt.