While this might not be the case in many countries, assembled furnitures is not a thing in the US from what I have experienced.

I was lucky enough to get foldable bed frames and study tables from walmart that helped me settle down fairly quickly without having to carry insanely heavy things up two floors (yes most apartments are in no-elevator, walk-up buildings).

My flatmates weren't so lucky. Every time a website product page said "semi-assembled", we trusted them. But the semi-assembled here means "put some screws in" and that's it. We had to drag heavy wooden table tops for dressers which then had to be assembled over the next couple of days. This is one way to save money. Help is not affordable in the first place. These forms of external services can easily cost $100 minimum.

A popular alternative is the super-loved fb marketplace. After tons of research, people find incredibly cheap good-quality items online and pick those up in-person. As a group of 3 or 4, my classmates dragged TV's and tables across streets and to their units. The feeling of victory from having saved money with such deals is inexplicable.

While all of these student-life hassles are happening, I'm looking at minimalism--the idea of not owning many material possessions, partly because I'm lazy and partly because it doesn't make sense to own things for a short period of time.

I wish to see how long this lasts before I succumb to "needs/wants".