Best time to buy home improvement stuff?

[mommy111]

I am looking for things to upgrade the appearance of a really old home that we just bought....stuff like bathroom vanities, track lighting etc. Is there a good time to buy this stuff? Should I be getting membership to a loyalty program like Home Depot? Costco? Ikea? We're on a budget and are doing only the bare minimum, but we definitely need to light the place up and replace some broken bathroom fixtures

[truly scrumptious]

The USPS moving packet usually has coupons for home improvement places. Almost always 10-15% off at least. You can pick one up at your nearest post office.

[brittone2]

CHeck younghouselove's blog. I think they've had info in the past on the best times of the year to buy appliances. They usually do very well figuring out good deals on appliances.

If you have any smaller, locally owned places, look for scratch and dent or discontinued models. We purchased our first Bosch that way...they had to replace the front panel. We bought it, and the panel had already been replaced and was perfect. We got a significant discount.

We have a Sears outlet in our area that has some as well. They do ship, based on what I've seen online. That may or may not be worth it, but it might be something to look into. Sometimes they just have a small scratch on the side or something and it may not show in your kitchen (like depending on the orientation of your fridge, a scratch may be hidden against a wall, but that might not be true in another kitchen).

[mommy111]

Thank you do much for the suggestions!

[marymoo86]

I always pass by the clearance tables at Lowes to see what is on there as you never know what good deal could be had - especially with returned special order items.

[corrie23]

I'm not sure if you've looked at the Rustoleum Transformations products, but they're a good inexpensive way to update cabinets/vanities. I just did my bathroom vanity with it (as well as trim that I added to make a matching frame for our builder's grade mirror) and I'm very pleased with the result. They make one to refinish counter tops too although I've not yet tried it. Reviews on that seem a bit less glowing than for the cabinet product though.

ETA: and don't forget Craigslist as a resource too. It's amazing what you can find on there. I've also been looking to make many updates on our 30 yr-old home (we've been here 11 yrs.) as it suffers greatly from deferred maintenance and poor owners ;o) I've been really pleased to have found things on CL, at thrift stores, H4H Restore, etc.

[AngB]

I also bought coupons for certain % off on ebay when we were doing a bunch of work on our house, that helped us save significantly and Home Depot will accept the coupons as well.

[elmojessi]

Do you have a Habitat for Humanity Restore near you? It's hit or miss, you'd me amazed at some of the quality stuff you can find there if you get lucky.

[mommy111]

Wow, am I glad I posted this!! Hadn't even heard about most of these resources like restore (googled, apparently there's a store close to us)....Or rustoleum......or younghouselove.... Going to look!

[brittone2]

Do you have a Habitat for Humanity Restore near you? It's hit or miss, you'd me amazed at some of the quality stuff you can find there if you get lucky.
Yeah, the Restores I've been to get some amazing stuff in from time to time. It is obviously hit or miss, and you may have to make it something you check out weekly to catch the good stuff. But...if you aren't in a rush to replace things, taking your time can translate to money saved!