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Renting Furniture

July 6th, 2010 at 01:24 pm

Why in the world would anyone want to rent furniture? Most likely because they don't have enough money saved up to buy the furniture outright. So they resort to using those ripoff Rent-to-Own Stores. Its easy right? All you have to do is make a small payment weekly for what seems like forever.

I read an article the other day about Rent-a-Center. They had an Ashley Furniture sofa and loveseat set. It was nothing special. Their price was $26.99 a week for 104 week term. Which equals out to $2806.96. The exact same set from an Ashley Furniture store cost $1,048. That equals out to an APR of 121%. On something that only cost $1,048 why would you want to pay an extra $1759 in interest charges? I would much rather go without a sofa until I had enough money to pay for it with cash.

Posted in Debt | 6 Comments »

6 Responses to “Renting Furniture”

  1. rob62521 Says:
    July 6th, 2010 at 01:32 pm 1278423123
    1278423123

    You hit the nail on the head...why pay all that extra interest and the answer is...instant gratification! Chances are these people don't have a credit card they can "buy" these items with so they go to these places adn get what they want. You are in a minority to think of saving up for something...most people don't look at the extra interest they are paying. That's why there are so many of these rental places and why they can stay in business even if they have to repo some of the stuff.

  2. north georgia gal Says:
    July 6th, 2010 at 02:47 pm 1278427664
    1278427664

    I have to admit that I have been tempted by these places...but only for a moment. I don't have any bedroom furniture except for a bed and the thought crossed my mind. But then it left just as quickly! I can see how someone who is not as discplined would fall into the trap.

  3. justericka Says:
    July 6th, 2010 at 03:06 pm 1278428807
    1278428807

    I have found that if you dont mind used...you can get great deals there on things when they sell them outright. i got a 5 month old duet front loader washer for 200.00. because some yahoo who didnt have the money for it beat the heck out of it when they returned it. it has scratches on the top and the one side is dented in. i ddint care about that, so i bought it and brought it home.it looks fine in my little utility room where you cant see the side anyway, and the top didnt matter to me. ive also got a nice bunkbed set for 140 with new wrapped mattresses, and once got a nice tv for 40. the thing is..dont get the rental things...go right up and ask...do you have anything for sale outright? and they generaly do.

    however...if necessacary, i would rent a washer and dryer...we have too much laundry with 3 kids to go without. and i used to not have any savings so i could use it.

  4. LittleMsMom Says:
    July 6th, 2010 at 07:49 pm 1278445764
    1278445764

    When I was trying to sell our house, we almost rented furnature. It would have cost us $150 per month to rent a livingroom set.

    That actually was a good deal because I did not want to spend $1500 on furnature when I was trying to downsize. Also the New furnature would have helped sell our house and the difference between stained yucky furnature and new furnature can mean 1,000s of dollars difference when selling your home and trying to make it look of more value then it is worth.

  5. whitestripe Says:
    July 7th, 2010 at 12:54 am 1278464045
    1278464045

    the only time i would consider 'renting' something was if it were Rent-to-Own, and there were no fees or extra costs involved on top of the shop floor price (OR, if the fees were outweighed by the interest i would personally earn on that amount). but i agree, and a lot of people who utlise these services don't think of the total cost though, they only think of the weekly or monthly cost. my best friend nearly rented a treadmill for 'only $10 a week'. when i pointed out the total cost would be over $3000, and that you could buy a better treadmill for just $1200 at any fitness store, she replied that she couldn't save $1200. *shrug*

  6. Jerry Says:
    July 9th, 2010 at 09:50 am 1278669008
    1278669008

    Rent-to-Own is a horrible deal, and it is all about the instant gratification mentioned above. There is a reason that you will usually find these places in economically depressed areas, because they try to lead people with lower incomes to get things that they THINK they would not normally be able to afford. If people have any sort of positive experience with saving for something, they then have the insurance that they know they can do it... if not, then they really believe that they can't save $1200 (as with whitestripe's friend).
    Jerry

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