Our Fridge Deal!

Every time we go to Lowe’s, I check out their scratch and dent appliances.  I don’t think I’ve ever bought one {before now}… in case you didn’t know this magical section exists, it does!  It’s usually at a back or end aisle.  In our store, it’s right by the doors to go outside to the fencing material and trees {past the appliances and cabinets inside}.  There are usually 10 or less appliances.  Some have issues that have been repaired by the store, some have damage and some have been used as loaners {while customers had their appliances repaired under warranty}.

I hate confrontation and don’t really like to barter.  That being said, for a good deal… I’ll do a little talking.  There was a Frigidaire black refrigerator in the scratch and dent section that had a small dent on the back rear corner.  I had looked at it a few weeks before, so I knew it had been there a while.  The original price on the clearance tag was almost $900.  The clearance price was $718.  {The listing below is the model we were looking at.}

This fridge had everything I wanted… it was a black side-by-side with water in the door and the textured finish.  I showed it to Michael just as a reference point of what I liked, but he said we should ask about it.  {I tell you, that man of mine is a gem!}

A store employee happened to walk by and ask if we needed help.  We asked if there was any leeway in the price {since I knew the fridge had been there a while}.  He directed us to the appliance department manager.  She stood and talked with us for a few minutes.  She initially said she could do $600 for the fridge {keep in mind, it’s brand new and has a small dent that won’t show at all once it’s installed}.  We looked at the other scratch and dent appliances.  I wasn’t sure we could fit the fridge in the truck that night, but she wanted it gone.  She decided if we would take it the same night she would mark the fridge down to $550.

She also offered us a Frigidaire over-the-range microwave like the one above for $100 {retail $249}.  {The microwave door was broken in shipping and had been replaced by Lowe’s, so it was as good as new.} We decided we would take the fridge for $550 and the microwave for $100.  As we started to leave to look at lumber, the manager asked if we wanted the 5 year warranty.  She said it cost about $100 but had tons of benefits – including reimbursement up to $250 if you lose food from a power outage.  {We’ve had this happen before, so this was a big selling point to us.}  We told her we would have to think about it and she said she would mark the fridge down to $500 if we bought the warranty… to which I said “ring it up darlin!”. {Okay, I didn’t really say that.  I totally thought it though.  I was BEYOND excited.}

Lowe’s has a credit card that usually gets you 5% off every purchase.  They were running a special for 10% off the first purchase.  We applied for the card which took another $50 off the fridge, bringing it down to $450!  We spent another $100 on the 5 year warranty for the fridge and $90 {with the 10% off} for the microwave.  All in all, we got the fridge with warranty and microwave for about $680 {the retail would have been about $1320 – CHA CHING!}.  That is a major score in my book!  Now I just have to find a stove and dishwasher… as long as I can do that for $320 total, I’ll hit my goal of all the appliances under $1000!

Lesson learned: ASK and ye shall receive!  For real though.  I figured they’d be willing to take a little more off since it had been there a while, but I didn’t think it would be low enough to fit in our budget.  You never know until you ask!

   This was a fridge deal we couldn’t pass up.