A notice to all those interested and/or interested in purchasing a new home: “be sure to investigate any and all sale opportunities before purchasing home appliances! As a FTHB (first time home buyer), I’m in the market for the following:
- Fridge
- Stove
- Dryer
- Vacuum
- Lawnmower
- Dressers
- Patio Furniture
- Couch/chairs/tables
I’ve been looking around for some time now, shopping at places like Lowes and Home Depot. I’ve investigated numerous fridges, at numerous locations, but have yet to put together the perfect combination! But aside from finding what exactly it is I want, I have to take cost into consideration, as I don’t have much wiggle room. But how exactly should one who’s buying a home and/or furnishings for the first time really prepare to shop?
Aside from these major appliance stores, I’ve taken an in-depth look at what e-commerce has to offer. What I found is quite intriguing! Regardless of what you hear from peers, online shopping isn’t always the cheaper route, but you’d be surprised how diverse the selection is. I’ve visited some highly reputable sites like Amazon and GEAppliances.com, and found prices to be similar, but the assortment to be HUGE. This is particularly true with furnishings, including tables, chairs, and solid wood storage.
For instance, you’ll find some excellent wall décor along with beautiful solid wood furniture at Brick and Mortar locations like Raymore and Flanigan, but you’ll find an even larger selection at pristine, trustworthy websites like Amazon, or Hardenfurniture.com.
Subsequently, I’ve visited Best Buy, Home Depot, Lowes, and many more similar locations in search of some type of package deal; whether it is financed or paid off the same day. Now I’m a very anal person when it comes to shopping, and tend to research for hours looking for the best price; but after days and days of browsing these home appliance stores, I simply had enough. So, I took one last trip over to Lowes because they had most of the desired product; meaning they had the precise fridge (with the new-age LED lights), along with the Maytag stove that I wanted. These were in fact the two most expensive items from what I listed above. Furthermore, I simply picked each item out and went to the register with a list. Come to find out, Lowes was offering a discount of up to %10, which you typically can find on energy star appliances, but in this case I was able to pull from a booklet offered through the United States Post Office. (Be sure to drop in and grab a change of address form!)
Now although I was able to seize a great deal on most of the items I wanted, I still didn’t have a couch or loveseat, nor did I have a table to eat at! These items can run up in price, upwards of 1000 dollars for a dining room table, and aren’t as easily located as the others. So, I went back to the computer.
There are many that would disagree, but it’s the newer, quirky designed furniture that I find distasteful and ultimately non-appealing. After a few attempts at grabbing some things from Amazon, I surely enough went back to reputable solid wood manufacturers like Harden Furniture, which as they so nicely put it on their home page “A family-owned and operated furniture company started in 1844, Harden Furniture has a legacy of fine furniture making deeply rooted in American craftsmanship, quality and tradition.” And it’s true; people have been purchasing Harden and Stickley tables for years now, adding eloquence and taste to their homes. Believe me; solid wood living room furniture isn’t going anywhere! Aside from selection, almost all of the websites (i.e. – Harden, Amazon, etc..) are easy to use and provide free shipping costs.
Most importantly, whether you’re shopping in-store or online, be SURE to check out coupon/deal sites for the latest discounts on all these goods. You can do so by simply visiting Google, or any other search engine for that matter, and typing in “Lowes Discounts” or “Amazon Coupons.” This will generally take to a competitive coupon site offering multiple deals. I’ve found this to be quite helpful as well! In accordance, a lot of these major dealers have spectacular holiday deals. As I understood (and missed unfortunately) Lowes had %20 percent off their entire store selection, which is quite amazing! With Father’s Day approaching, this could be the case as well…
All in all, there comes a certain balance when it comes to buying things for indoor/outdoor living. With the economy the way it is, it’s always helpful to keep a close eye on things that may be of help, particularly for first time home buyers. With that, I hope that you’ve learned a few new tricks to keep some dollars in your pocket and a smile on your face!
