Buying New? Review!
Here’s some tips and websites to visit when you’re looking for a new appliance.
Firstly, when buying new, the first question – does it make more sense financially to buy new OR repair? If your appliance is 8+ years old and the cost to repair exceeds half the value of the unit — it’s likely that a new appliance makes more sense, but do your homework. Make sure you’re not getting price-gouged by the repair service. If after doing your homework, a repair isn’t the best, most cost-effective option (perhaps parts are expensive or possibly no longer available), it’s time to get educated. As such we ALWAYS recommend doing your homework on as new appliance models hit the market regularly and options abound. We also recommend not just getting advice from recent purchasers but also those who’ve owned their appliance for awhile – ESPECIALLY after the warranty expires.
Here’s a few sites we’ve found are helpful to our clients’ needs as they go about searching for a new appliance. Warning: while, these sites typically offer free, unbiased info, we cannot guarantee that. ALWAYS use common sense when getting someone else’s advice. Remember – Caveat Emptor!
If you’re just curious to see what’s out there, the major brand stores typically have much, if not all of their inventory online available to see and purchase. Close-outs, rebates, sales — all are opportunities to save money. We’ve periodically referred people to AJ Madison, an online appliance store that will drop-ship your appliance right to your door. They have a HUGE inventory and if you’re curious to see the full range of appliances, from kitchen to laundry room, from low-end to high-end – they have it. While we’re not giving any recommendations nor do we get any type of commission for mentioning any of these resources, they’re here for your use, so you can become our best customer — an EDUCATED one!
One note about warranties – be VERY careful in reading the fine print on regular and extended warranties. You typically pay extra for extended warranties, but remember that the appliance manufacturers are trying to make a profit and in our experience, they don’t always have the customer’s best interests in mind. Sorry, but it is what it is. Third-party warranty providers are hired by the “big guys” so as to cut costs and when it comes time to repair, the lowest bidder is typically the guy who’ll be knocking on your door. We don’t do warranty work because frankly, in our experience, the providers play politics on everything from how much they pay, when they pay and the administrative games they play to get paid – such as requiring certain verbiage and contextual language in describing repairs on their required documentation and related submission and review process — it’s a game we prefer not to play. It helps us keep our costs down and focus on customer service excellence.
We hope this info has been helpful. Remember, if you ever have any questions, Lafayette Appliance Repair is here for you. Please feel free to give us a call. We’ll be more than happy to help.
Happy Hunting!