Should you put new or used appliances in your rental property?

Should you put new or used appliances in your rental property?

New appliances.  I’ll explain why.

As someone who owns nearly 40 rental properties, I completely understand the temptation to get your rental property move-in ready as inexpensively as possible.  You’ve probably already run the numbers and know that if you head down to Lowes and pick up the least expensive fridge, stove, and dishwasher, you’re looking to spend about $1200-$1500.

Why not just pick up some used appliances on Craigslist for under $500?

The logic makes sense, but you need to look beyond the short-term savings.  Here are a few reasons why I don’t recommend used appliances.

Used Appliances Rarely Last Long

You’ll find yourself replacing used appliances a lot more often than new ones.  I know…big shocker, right?  So, long-term, the savings isn’t as significant as you might think.

Maintenance is a pain

Unlike hiring a plumber, there aren’t a ton of companies, at least where I live, that do service calls on appliances, and the ones that do are expensive.  Furthermore, more often than not, the cost to fix a broken appliance isn’t worth it.  You typically end up paying $65-$95 for a service call just for the technician to inform that you’re better replacing the appliance.

Weekend Calls are the worst

A leaky faucet can wait until Monday.  If your tenant’s fridge goes out on Saturday, their food will spoil by Monday.  What are you going to do?  Good luck finding a maintenance guy to go out over the weekend.

No warranties

As you might imagine, a used appliance comes with no warranty.  Not the case with new ones, though.  Lowes offers a 1-year manufacturers warranty, and even longer warranty plans that are relatively inexpensive.

buy new & Save yourself the headache

I started off, probably like many rental property owners, running all over town gathering up used appliances for my rentals, but after experiencing the aforementioned headaches, I decided to bite the bullet, and put in new appliances.  My quality of life is now much better.

Tip: if you’ve got multiple rental properties, check with Lowes or Home Depot on a bulk discount.  Getting 10%-15% off isn’t uncommon for larger purchases.