If You’re Buying Used – Beware!

This may sound a bit convoluted but bear with me.

I have fibromyalgia and with it comes a lot of pain. With the pain can come a lot of expense – doctors’ visits and pain medication can quickly eat up thousands of dollars.

One of the things that has helped me far more than any doctor or medication has been a hot tub. In our old home I had a jetted tub, which was wonderful. Our present home has no such luxury. So, in order to save my body and save some money, I decided to get a hot tub.

The first place I looked was Craigslist and was I ever surprised. A lot of these sellers need to get a reality check. They’re asking about as much for used as I can get for new. For instance, a basic hot tub, two years old, was listed at $1000. The exact same model, brand new, can be purchased right now on sale at Rec Warhouse for just over $1200. From Rec Warehouse I also get a one year warranty and a supply of chemicals at no additional charge.

Then there’s ebay. With the exception of one dealer (who only dealt in units that are too big for my patio) the prices were uniformly higher than places like Samsclub and Rec Warehouse.

I’ve also been looking for a large chain link dog run (not for the dogs but to create an outside area for our inside cats). A 10′ x 10′ x 6′ bought new can cost $700 or $800. For a long time the best deal I found (on Kijiji) was $400. That’s still too much for used. Then today I saw one at $100 on Craigslist. I emailed right away but don’t know if it’s still available. I’m keeping my fingers crossed.

Anwyay, the point to all this is don’t assume it’s a deal just because it’s used. Take the time to shop around, even for new. As with the hot tub, I think I’m better off to pay an extra $100 or so to have brand new with a warranty. And, as an old friend used to say, “There’s always another train coming in to the station.”