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"Furniture \u2022 Try offbeat flea markets, consignment shops and estate sales. The more out-of-the-way, the better. At estate sales, comb the less obvious parts of the house first, like the garage or basement, and skip sales that are open to dealers before the public. \u2022 Check rental companies. Look for clearance centers run by chains such as Cort Furniture Rental (www.cortfurniture.com). \u2022 Shop for showroom finds. The public gets a discount of 30 to 60 percent off merchandise that&amp;#039;s usually reserved for professional designers. The Seattle Design Center (206-762-1200), the L.A. Mart (800-526-2784) and Chicago&amp;#039;s Merchandise Mart (800-677-6278) are three biggies. \u2022 Look for government auctions. For a $39.95 annual fee, you can access dozens of government auction lists (that often feature furniture) at www.government-auctions-guide.com. Or search sites like www.firstgov.gov/shopping/shopping.shtml. \u2022 Browse office-furniture sites. Examples: FurnitureFinders.com, Office Furniture Warehouse of Pittsburgh (www.myofficefurniture.net). Sell.com offers some good deals on antiques. \u2022 Sweep up carpet sales. Carpet-cleaning businesses sell never-picked-up rugs cheap, and carpet stores sell remnants for a fraction of the normal per-square-foot price.  Appliances \u2022 Hunt for deals on used items. A used appliance can be a good bargain, provided it&amp;#039;s not more than five years old and has no nicks and dents. Scout for unclaimed items at repair shops and ask about old floor models at retailers -- they&amp;#039;re often discounted when the new lines debut. \u2022 Buy reconditioned. Check www.recycle.net/Consumer/index.html for resellers of reconditioned appliances (which have been taken apart, repaired, cleaned, reassembled and road-tested) or search Amazon.com for &amp;quot;reconditioned appliances.&amp;quot; Patronize resellers who offer a 30-day guarantee.  CDs, DVDs and Books \u2022 Pay less for entertainment. You&amp;#039;re usually going to find the lowest prices on used CDs and DVDs at Half.com or Amazon.com. But always comparison-shop -- visit Bizrate.com, NexTag.com and ShoppingAisles.com to check dozens of sites for the best price. \u2022 Get great deals on good reads. Besides Amazon.com and Half.com, try Abebooks.com and AddALL.com, search engines that scour used (and some new) booksellers. Bigwords.com is the best of several comparison-shopping sites, which also include CampusI.com, Studentmarket.com and Bookbyte.com.  Kids \u2022 Visit yard sales and consignment shops. Arrive early for the best selection or come late, when sellers are eager to deal. Time your thrift-store visits to coincide with their delivery schedule or browse on Monday or Tuesday after people have dropped off weekend donations. \u2022 Play the field for sports gear.  Visit secondhand sports stores, such as Play It Again Sports (www.playitagainsports.com). Or check classified-ad Websites such as Gearbay.com and OutdoorREVIEW.com. \u2022 Find used instruments. For leads, ask bandleaders at local schools for the names of the people who supply and service their instruments. And most musical instrument stores sell used instruments on consignment. Try Charles Fail Music in Atlanta (www.charlesfail.com), Rayburn Musical Instruments in Boston and New York City (www.rayburnmusic.com) and Zachary Music in Windsor, Ontario (www.zacharymusic.com). Also search classified-ad sites such as www.musiciansbuyline.com.  What Not to Buy Used To keep your family safe, avoid secondhand cribs, mattresses, car seats, protective sports devices (such as hockey helmets) and clothing with drawstring necklines or hoods. If you&amp;#039;re unsure about an item you see at a tag sale, check for recalls at the Consumer Product Safety Commission Website (www.cpsc.gov) or at www.recalls.gov. "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.goodhousekeeping.com/life/money/advice/a16771/second-hand-0304/>