How to Buy a Refrigerator From an Appliance Outlet Store

I am a Baby Boomer. And for most of my life, I didn’t have to watch my pennies until now.

Other than the stock market doing its usual dance of ups and downs, I knew from past experience that I could deal with that. I wasn’t prepared for things breaking down in my household in succession. Although it is said that renting an apartment is considered the new way of living, my husband and I own our home. And as homeowners, it is our responsibility to replace or fix anything which breaks down. Preferably, we have the money to do this immediately.

Our stove died in June, but since I seldom cook or bake in the summertime, my husband and I decided to put off the major purchase until the fall. We bought a toaster oven and decided it would have to do until a major sale came along. Last year, I cooked a turkey for Thanksgiving and Christmas after spending years delegating that task to different relatives. As long as I had a working stove and oven by Thanksgiving, I would be happy.

July, our air conditioning died in the heat of our annual Fourth of July family gathering. Luckily, the party was over before we realized this.

After logging over 100,000 miles on our vehicles, there was no way we were going to waltz into a new or used car dealership to trade them in for newer models. After major maintenance totaling $5,000, we were left with our vehicles, but with the hope of getting another combined 200,000 miles out them. My personal goal is to keep my used truck running for at least another 10 years before running it into the ground.

Our refrigerator dying was a tragedy in our household. Out of all our home appliances, our refrigerator played the most important role in our daily lives. Its ice maker spoiled us with constant ice water and cold drinks. As a cook and home baker, I appreciated the time and money it saved me. Most frozen food will last in the freezer for up to a year. If I found specials at the supermarket or bought in bulk, I could store items in the freezer. If I knew I didn’t have time to cook or bake, I could always make a dish in advance and keep it in the freezer until it was time to use it.

Over the months, while searching for a stove, I visited several retail places, but did not want to pay full price for a brand new appliance. As a retiree with no income other than a pension and maybe some small checks from freelance writing, I didn’t have a steady pay check or a possible chance at overtime like your average working person. Most of my pension deals with my monthly living expenses.

After strolling through a local home show without purchasing anything, my husband and I discovered a display sponsored by a major appliance outlet store. While looking at the appliances, we realized the affordable price tags offered. Why were they up to 50% off the original retail price? The appliances on sale ranged from new in box discontinued models to returned purchases.

I discovered shopping for appliances at outlet stores is no different from shopping for clothing at outlet stores. If you can live with minor cosmetic dings in new appliances, you will be saving yourself some money. By purchasing our refrigerator at an outlet store, we saved $1,000 on a $2,000 new refrigerator. After carefully shopping for a refrigerator, we found a larger model with double doors and an ice maker (cubes, crushed and shaved ice) built into the door. There were no visible scratches or dents in the front, but a tiny dent on the side caused the $1,000 mark down in its price.

Why should we care about this tiny dent? It didn’t keep the refrigerator from working. Unless you were looking for it, you would probably not see it. Let’s be practical, here. Anything you buy becomes used once you get it home, so why worry about a ding?

We noticed that the appliances on sale were covered by a factory warranty, with customers having the option to purchase an extended warranty. None of the appliances were sold “as is”. There were also options when it came to delivery and installation. My husband and I were willing to transport the refrigerator ourselves since I do own a truck. If I bought the proper hook-ups, my husband was willing to do the installation himself. If we didn’t arrange to do all of these ourselves, we would have paid close to $100 for the services.

Another thing to think about before shopping for your new appliance is what to do with your old refrigerator. If it is still in good condition, you can keep it, sell it, give it away or donate it. If you pay to have your new refrigerator delivered, most likely, the service includes free hauling away of the old refrigerator. Since our refrigerator is no longer in working condition, we have removed its doors to prevent children from crawling into it, closing the door and suffocating. In our community, we can arrange to have the county haul it away or take the unwanted appliances to the dump.

In the past, I used to shop retail stores and pay full price for my appliances. I thought nothing of what I was spending. Now, I automatically do my research so my efforts result in savings. Although paying with cash is the ideal way of purchasing a major appliance, there are also other ways to paying off this purchase wisely. Either purchase the appliance with your lowest interest credit card or negotiate for a percentage off the purchase price as a discount. Another way to save is agree to a payment program to pay off your purchase within a 12-month period without interest. This gives you a chance to plan and budget your weekly, bi-weekly or monthly income.

With the money my husband and I saved on the refrigerator, we were able to purchase a stove from the same appliance outlet at less than half the original price. All it takes is careful planning and agreeing on the purchase.