Advice on Rental Appliances

Investor · Monterey, CA · Member since 2014 · 177 posts · 55 votes

Hi:

Im a small timer with two rental properties and was wondering where to buy apartment sized refrigerators and ranges (20") ? My tenant asked me if I could get a stainless steel one, and I said I would try. I looked on line...the prices were MUCH lower than HD but the brands were ones I never heard of, Avanti, Summit, Premier and Profile. They were from on line appliance companies that I am not familiar with. They say $45 shipping. Does that mean they just drop them off at your door? HD is almost double the price. So I was wondering if anyone has had any luck with any of these companies? The ones I have seen are Appliances Connection, Airplane Appliances, etc THANK YOU ALL! Gayle Eisner Los Gatos, CA

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minneapolis, MN · Member since 2017 · 79 posts · 92 votes

Originally posted by @JD Martin:

Thoughts: unless you have some kind of high-end apartment that demands stainless, I would stick with white. White is everywhere and oddball stuff is still made in white, like 18 inch dishwashers and 24 inch stoves.

I disagree about white appliances. Stainless steel finish is much more in-demand and can often be had for the same price as white/black. Stainless appliances provide a wow factor the second a prospective tenant walks in the door. White appliances look dated from the day they are installed.

If it means the different between 8% vacancy and 16%, the extra 50 bucks to get the stainless appliance is well worth it!

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Mike B.
Flipper/Rehabber · Yardley, PA · Member since 2015 · 451 posts · 307 votes
9y
I'm in philly and specifically do highend rentals. SS has always been my route given the finishes and high end rent I ask for (and get) esp with units on the fringe areas (e.g. Borders of B- / C-). I only have bought from HD at the time in recent years as coincidentally I ran into holiday sales and they had the best deals. Off season I would look for appliances from ScratchNdent places and also Craigslist may have some things useful
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Arlen Chou
Investor · Los Altos, CA · Member since 2014 · 942 posts · 1k+ votes
9y
@Gayle Eisner are your units in Los Gatos? Who is your tenant base? I have units in Mountain View and used white appliance and SS appliance is different units. I have not had any noticeable difference in vacancies. I would suggest that if you can wait for another month, that you wait for the holiday sale season. I have had great success at Best Buy of all places during their sales.
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Jarrod Kohl
Boston, MA · Member since 2017 · 209 posts · 126 votes
9y
@Gayle Eisner
I think the advice is missing the point.
The tenant asked for a cosmetic upgrade? So there is no problem with the current fridge? Just they don't like how it looks? This would be a simple no for me. I may consider changing it at the end of the lease if you think it would help keep them. At which point it would allow you to raise rent on the premise of new appliances.
It also sets a bad precedent to the tenant. You should be a good landlord, but just because an item is not to their liking, it does not need to be replaced.
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William Walker
Investor · Wilmington, NC · Member since 2016 · 211 posts · 262 votes
9y
@Jarrod Kohl he said the burner was broken and the unit is 10+ years old. Might be time to invest in a new one depending on the class of the rental.
Also to chime in, Sears has the WORST customer service I've ever encountered, rivaled only by spectrum. Their customer service is so bad that I will literally never purchase a single item from Sears again in my life.
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Jarrod Kohl
Boston, MA · Member since 2017 · 209 posts · 126 votes
9y
Originally posted by @William Walker:

@Jarrod Kohl he said the burner was broken and the unit is 10+ years old. Might be time to invest in a new one depending on the class of the rental.
Also to chime in, Sears has the WORST customer service I've ever encountered, rivaled only by spectrum. Their customer service is so bad that I will literally never purchase a single item from Sears again in my life.
I was going mostly off of the first post, but the fridge seems fine and one burner was out. I would consider replacing the stove if it is about the same cost (or close enough) to replacement costs. I will also second not having any good experiences with Sears. And would look at both Home Depot/Lowes as well as appliance stores in the area. A good appliance company can be very useful to a landlord or property manager.
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Ned J.Pro Member
Investor · Manteca, CA · Member since 2017 · 1k+ posts · 2k+ votes
9y
Depends on the cost difference....if you can get SS pretty close in cost to a white etc, then go SS for a more modern look. A tenant isn't going to outwardly say "oh wow, stainless steel appliances.... I'll take it".... but subconsciously it will be there just as much as having nicer paint colors and floor etc. Just consider the return on investment....if we are talking small $$ to get the "better" look of SS, its probably worth it......but tenants are going to look at a ton of other things before they truly care about the color of the appliances
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Kristina Heimstaedt
Real Estate Agent · Newport Beach, CA · Member since 2017 · 259 posts · 293 votes
9y
Johann Jells and Jd Martin this is the last place I rented: http://www.moderntake.com/p485481967/h25704cd3 This was prefabricated cabinets, granite countertops, laminate flooring, subway tiles, drop in HD vanities and stainless steel appliances. Although if it hadn't been stainless steel, it definitely would have been white.
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David K.
Investor · Attleboro, MA · Member since 2016 · 137 posts · 51 votes
9y
Depends on the tenant. I buy frequently at used appliance place near me if I can. They deliver and install for small $ plus haul away old one.
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JD MartinBusiness Member
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Rock Star Extraordinaire · Northeast, TN · Member since 2015 · 10k+ posts · 16k+ votes
9y
@Kristina Heimstaedt nice place! That would be extremely high end for a rental around here and definitely a candidate for SS, although white could have worked there with the white cabinets.
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Rachel N.
Orlando, FL · Member since 2017 · 147 posts · 92 votes
9y
You can also get Lowe's 10% off coupons from Ebay and use those in store... this past weekend we went there to buy some appliances and got a loaner model that had been used in someone's house for a week while their fridge was being repaired for 50% off, so it's worthwhile to ask if they have any loaners...
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Brandon Ingegneri
Rental Property Investor · Providence, RI · Member since 2015 · 1k+ posts · 594 votes
9y
I have several levels of rental property. With the exception of the ultra high end units, I buy all refurbished appliances from a local appliance store. Clean, recently serviced, usually a plain white or black. Tenants seem to be okay with them. It should be noted that even in the units with these appliances are all renovated, and have a modern touch. It could be easily thought that we run a slum operation from the post which is not the case. 9/10 times, tenants care about clean and neat. If you provide that, you’ll be in good shape and you’ll save a bunch of money.
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