Rebates (Again)

Ok, the dishwasher on the left is $399 and on the right, it is $619. What is the difference?

If you guessed the handle, you are correct. As I have posted many times, rebates are a differentiator. The one on the left has $150 in incentives (still is a $60 handle).

How about the difference between these? Lefty is $399, righty is $449.

There is a big difference between these two. Left is last years. The newer model has a steam cycle and is 30% larger for $50 extra (after 200 in rebates).

1. Find comparable brands like Frigidaire, GE and Amana and look at their products.

2. Find desirable features. For example in cooking, it could be convection, 5th burner, etc.

3. Then look for rebates. I love Bosch (stylish, etc), but I could learn to love another brand for $300 less in rebates.

Welcome Groupon Subscribers

Yale will be featured on Groupon on Thursday, January 6. The offer is $100 for $50. I like action based marketing. It's much easier than creating radio spots. You can join Groupon here.

But anyhow, January is an interesting time to buy an appliance. Consumers don't want to purchase after holiday spending. Manufacturers, especially this year, need the sales. New products will be available in June, so inventory needs to be moved.

Thus, you see this:

Frigidaire $99 dishwasher (after $250 in rebates)..with a Groupon deal, this actually nets to $49.

Boschs' best selling integrated dishwasher $849 (after $200 in rebates).

Frigidaire stainless stove $499 (after $125 in rebates).

Products I Would Buy Now

Black Friday has become Black November. Appliance manufacturers are no longer ceding Holiday business to electronics and apparel . In fact, they are starting early.

Examples as follows:

Frigidaire Gallery Dishwasher - $199 after a ton of rebates. It's only available in black, but this is a very good dishwasher at $329-$349.

Bosch Dishwasher - $399....Normally sells well at $629. Good cycles, stainless tank and super quiet.

Bosch washer - $499 (normally $749). This will save you money even if your's is new. It is 4.5 cubic feet and uses very little water, electricity and detergent.

Frigidaire Electric stove - $299 in white, black...$399 stainless. Self-cleaning ceran priced well.

Frigidaire gas range - $499 white, black...$599 is stainless. Five burner with griddle burner.

Even More Rebates

This post is yet another example of how the recession has affected manufacturers. As I have written many times, the key to manufacturing efficiency is volume. Reducing by rebate is far more desirable than idling the plant.

Have a look:

Frigidaire Gallery gas range with griddle and power burners....$599 in stainless, $499 in white after $300 in rebates.

Frigidaire Gallery 5 burner electric range...$399 in stainless, $299 in white

As I have said many times, rebates are a huge part of smart shopping and saving money.

Rebates (Yes Again)

Consumer rebates are the choice of most manufacturers these days. It is not permanent like a price drop with less consumer redemptions and can be timed for shorter durations.

Like this:

Frigidaire Gallery range with griddle burner, power burners and self cleaning for $599 or $250 short term rebates.

Timing rebates has become a critical part of shopping and saving money....be sure to inquire at your local, regional or national store of choice.

Frigidaire Rebates

It's an almost herd mentality. Once one company rebates, then all of them join the fray. I could be writing this post about GE, Viking, Electrolux, SubZero, Thermador or Wolf. But Frigidaire is the subject. This is a good, basic stainless steel package, which sold for $1999 4 years ago.

Have a look:

Self cleaning range FFEF3048

Dishwasher FFBD2407LS

Over The Range Microwave FFMV164LS

Stainless refrigerator FFHT186LS

$1659 after rebates.....Frigidaire used to own this commodity stainless market, but their rebates stem out of fear from a newly aggressive GE....who incidentally have a $1659 package of their own.

Bosch Rebates

The appliance industry nationally was off 9% in August and another 9% in September. Manufacturers will react by lowering prices to spur demand. Lowering prices means rebates.

Lets have a look at the impact of Boschs most popular appliance package...

HGS3053, five burner gas range, $909 before rebates

HMV3051, Over the range microwave vent, $409

SHE43P25, stainless steel dishwasher, $799 before rebates(this has a few for a $599 after rebate price)

B22CS30SNS, counter depth stainless steel side by side, $1949

Total is $4025

After rebates is $2849

Savings of $1176

Percentage is 29.2%

This is a Columbus Day promotion which ends the 12th. After that rebates will only be $800 instead of $1176.

Monogram Joins The Rebate Fray

Monogram has always been an enigma. GE started by calling their best products Monogram and thus the "new" line was born...and flopped. Then they went the OEM route with their professional ranges by sourcing from DCS (poor choice) and it flopped.

Finally, they started manufacturing stylish and compelling products especially their hoods and new ranges, just in time for the depression...sorry recession. With their competitors rebating their products, Monogram joins the herd.

Their rebate is as follows:

Buy any pro range and hood or cooktop, wall oven and hood and receive $1,000.






Add a Built-In refrigerator and add another $1,000.

The Mighty Have (Not) Fallen

Five years ago, if you asked me when SubZero would have a rebate, I would have said never. All cliches aside, upscale appliances follow the building and remodeling trends. When construction is booming, there is enough business for SubZero/Wolf, Viking, Miele and Thermador.

When there is not, these brands have to fight for market share. Rebates have become commonplace as a short term consumer incentive, because they can in theory be withdrawn with increasing business. Somehow, these rebates will probably be more prolonged, but that's an opinion...

Let me show you how to qualify for $2500 from SubZero/Wolf (it is the same company)

Buy a SubZero and a Wolf range or cooktop and wall oven and receive $1000






Add any major piece like this Wolf hood or SubZero wine cooler, and the rebate increases by $250 per piece.





What do you think?

The Annuity

As you know, we have a partnership with NStar and National Grid and are rebating EnergyStar refrigerators $169.

So this Frigidaire 17 cubic foot becomes $349 after your rebate...



With energy standards improving at 18 cents a kWH to run, you will save over $100 versus the same refrigerator purchased just 10 years ago, and over $200 savings over one purchased 20 years ago...

Not a bad deal for $349.

EnergyStar Refrigeration

Our new site needs work, and it does have issues. We are working to address, but to clarify: All EnergyStar refrigerators for NSTAR and National Grid customers from GE, Frigidaire, Electrolux, SubZero, Thermador and Bosch have $169 instant rebates...Its a little confusing at the present time without question

Meet The New Boss (Tomorrow)

Had a great blog set for today...I was posting the new introductions on appliances from an industry show held at Foxwoods yesterday, but I forgot the pictures. So now the post is about: How to buy appliances now:


Some of this is a review

1. Look for rebates: Its still number one. Sears, Lowes, Home Depot and every appliance store has some kind of rebate offer. Example: Viking and Thermador pro ranges have similar specs, but Thermador is also adding a dishwasher for free with purchase...advantage Thermador.

2. Have a Bottom Line Mentality: 30% off $1,000 is still more expensive than $650. As consumers, we pay with dollars not discounts. The price at the bottom of the invoice is the only relevant item

3. Free is...?: Free Delivery is a great idea, unless there is a charge of $30 for removal, another $60 to walk up two flights of stairs and $25 for a range cord(which costs $3). Ask these questions before you buy

4. Buy what you use, will use and more importantly understand: The over the range GE Advantium is a great piece cooking at 4-8 faster than a regular range. If you use just the microwave only feature, you have overspent by $400-500...same with convection or any other step up feature.

5. Be Social: Angies List is worth the subscription, some free resources like Yelp and Citysearch will have reviews. Quick Note: There are issues with every store...Look at the responses from the stores to the problems as an indicator of your future experience...Also, ask friends, neighbors and tradespeople where they shop

6. Selection is good: Meaning you want to see it. Do not be pushed into store brands without a reason as salespeople typically are paid a higher commission for selling a store brand

7: Service: Establish who will fix it BEFORE you buy. Appliances are not cars. Every major car dealership has service, not every appliance store does the same. You will need service on a new product 15-18% of the time, so prepare beforehand

8. Walk: There are plenty of stores who want your business if someone is being unreasonable or unaccommodating(or both)

EnergyStar $169 Rebates

Quick review then a question:

Replacing a 10 year old refrigerator with an EnergyStar will save $100-110 per year...

Replacing a 20 year old refrigerator with an EnergyStar will save $200-250 per year...

Piece of advice: Your second refrigerator...remove it.


Now the question: What does the SubZero built in, GE french door, Frigidaire top mount and Bosch side by side have in common:



They all have $169 instant rebates as a joint venture between Yale, NSTAR and National Grid.

Tax Free Weekend

Our best month for the last four years has been August, because of the tax free holiday. Now the Tax Weekend becomes the first month of a tax increase...Just because our state government doesn't want to, doesn't mean we can't

So this weekend select GE, Frigidaire, Whirlpool, Maytag, Kitchenaid, Franke, Bosch, Schonbek Crystal, Hinkley, Rohl, Hansgrohe, Bertazzoni, Marvel, Uline and Blomberg will have full tax rebates of the 6.25%

August 15, 16 and 17

Wall Ovens...Again

Let's end the wall oven quandry...

Wall ovens like most appliances fit cabinet specifications. New construction typically fits a 30 inch cabinet, and older sizes can be 27 or even 24 inch.

In 1975ish, convection became the new feature in high end cooking. Convection as you know is fan forced heat for more even cooking. 35 years later, there hasn't been much in the way of significant inprovement from the original design.

With this much easier task at hand, I would consider the following:

Super Premium:

Wolf and Miele - Wolf has two convection fans and a ton of cooking modes for people who want to cook. Miele has the best controls, which eliminate the guesswork out of almost any recipe.








Premium:

Thermador and Electrolux - Both have good controls as their value proposition. Thermador has the best rebate program (yes a free dishwasher would help sway me as a consumer)








Sleeper:

Bosch - I dont understand the marketing, but their products are attractive, functional and a great value.

$1000 Dollars

Most Manufacturers have a middle mentality. They are truly scared to sell upscale products, because they are unsure of their own value propositions.

Lets look at one of my favorite companies, Bosch, and their new counter depth side by side:





Digital full featured ice maker and LED lighting. Its a very nice refrigerator, but look at their entry level piece...





Basic ice maker and regular lighting for an affordable 1929. Bosch then rebates this product $350, so now it is now $1000 less than their other piece and $500 cheaper than every other piece in the category

Total Savings $1100 plus...

New Bosch

Bosch has introduced a new side by side refrigerator. Sure, side by sides are being out sold 10-1 by french doors, and Bosch does not market that popular category...





At $1599 after rebates, it is $700-1000 cheaper than the comparable french door. This is a good, less expensive alternative for people who want to renovate/sell their units for less.

Better Late Than Never?

So Frigidaire has a new stainless steel dishwasher with stainless on the inside. Consumers don't buy dishwashers over $500 without stainless on the inside, and Frigidaire learned this the hard way. For years, they concentrated on plastic tanks (ok to $399) with tons of features at $599. Invariably, they would rebate the product to $450 somewhere...

But that was then, Let's look at the "new" Frigidaire...








Not bad, decent features.....but how does it compare to the best seller?

Bosch





Frigidaire has more features and is $40 cheaper, but Bosch will heat the water hotter and is quieter. Once again, I would lean to the Bosch piece, but Frigidaire will package this as part of the rebate program to enhance sales.

Rebate Boy and The Maytag Company

Compiling appliance rebates is a nightmare. There are 6 different places, which can rebate the same model only with different dates. You always have the best deal in the unlikely event that they eclipse at precisely the same moment.

Now we have state of the art computers and some of the most brilliant appliance minds in the industry. When they fail, it comes down to one man. That man is Jay Upton, also known as Rebate Boy. I actually had him as a mentor (old people are assigned new people its serious business here), and the poor dope actually volunteered for this time consuming yet thankless task. (You can't teach everything.)

Let me show how Rebate Boy changes a $1799 dollar Maytag Epic laundry set into $1199 based on rebates, which expire July 5. All the writing is different rebates.





This is the set of Maytag/Whirlpool Epic Duets, which are the same pieces.





This is Jay "Rebate Boy" Upton.

How To Buy Appliances..Part 7

This is really not all that difficult...Its easy if you know what you want. Much harder when you have no idea. How about a novel idea? Lets stay under your budget, pick desirable items and as an added bonus, not lose your mind.

1. Establish a budget. You will stick to it.

2. What pieces do you really want. Is it a SubZero, stainless steel appliances, slide in range?

3. Rebates. I hate to say it, but $500 in rebates would sway my loyalties between similar items.

So lets say you have no idea:

4. Start at the range. There are more tough choices than any other product.





5. Refrigerator next, once again the most difficult dimensionally.





6. Dishwasher and over the range microwave should match the other two pieces.









If you stay within the same brand, there are numerous budget saving rebates. I am not partial to side by sides, but this Bosch package has a whopping $1350 in rebates...I can learn to love it for that type of money.