Wednesday, June 30, 2010

Buying Used Instead Of New

We all buy things.  Just about every day most of us buy some thing or another.  But how often do we buy used items?  Over the summer of '09 I was unemployed.  I wanted a set of dumbbells so I could workout in my apartment.  Over the summer I went on Craigslist and purchased dumbbells... pair by pair, using the subway and my rolling suitcase.  I ended up with a set ranging from 5lbs to 30lbs.  I never paid more than 50 cents a pound.  Had I purchased those same weights new, it would have cost me over $2 a pound!  Needless to say, I saved a lot of money by going used.

Below I've included a link taking you to a great article about things you should consider getting used instead of new.  A car is a perfect example.  My brother and his wife just bought a 2008 Camry.  It had quite a few highway miles but they knew the owner well and knew that the car was well cared for.  They paid only $9,000 for that car.  If they had purchased a NEW Camry (2010 model) like my father did, it would have cost them $21,500.  As we all know, aside from the whole sticking-accelerator thing, Toyotas are great cars and will last a long time when well cared for.  The only disadvantage of buying a car used is that you usually have to pay all cash for it, unless you want to get hit with a high interest rate.  But if you have the cash, it's the way to go.  My Dad scored 0% financing on his purchase, so that was pretty cool too.

Click here to see more items you may consider buying used to save your hard earned cash.