Looking at the picture in the article, I see not only the new furniture, but a tablet on the end-table, what looks like another tablet in the daughter’s hand, an RC helicopter on the coffee table, and three remote controls (TV, DVD, Cable most likely). They also smoke, and the woman & children look overweight - so apparently they find money somewhere to handle their impulses.
If this article was supposed to make me feel badly for them and stir up anger against RTO companies, it failed. What I see here is another typical case study of losers. I have zero compassion for them.
The I-stopped-reading-when quote: "Perhaps she could have saved up the money on her own, but whenever she has tried to do so, her stash has been wiped out to handle daily needs." If daily needs wipe out your savings for a nice couch, you certainly can't afford a nice couch with a 3x markup.