Renovating? Redecorating? For Best Buys, Don't Shop Retail

 You played it safe and smart with your mortgage, and while you're not willing to venture into the rocky housing market just now, you are in a position to upgrade the home you're in. You know that home improvements like kitchen and bath renovations both enhance your enjoyment of your home and add up to real dollars when it does come time to sell.

So how do you get the best deal for your renovation dollars? Play it safe and smart again and don't buy retail.

Retailers of home improvement supplies, like all other retailers, make their money through markups -- the extra "price" they add on to their actual cost for materials and items. Average retail markup for home furnishings is nearly 44 percent, and just over 26 percent for appliances and electronics, according to the Service Sector Statistics Division of the U.S. Census Bureau.

If you're undertaking a significant remodel in your home -- whether replacing kitchen cabinets and appliances or completely gutting a bathroom -- buying retail can mean you spend thousands, and even 10s of thousands, more than the actual cost of the materials.

Buying direct from the manufacturers is a less costly option, but not always easy or practical for average consumer. There is a smart alternative - DirectBuy, the leading members-only showroom and home design center that offers merchandise at manufacturer-direct prices without traditional retail markup, shaving thousands of dollars off the retail price of remodeling products and materials.

Founded in 1971, the club has more than 150 locations throughout North America where it shows and sells home furnishings, home improvement materials, fixtures, appliances, electronics, flooring, accessories and more.

"As we completely renovate and add on to our house, we have used DirectBuy to save thousands of dollars on plumbing fixtures for three bathrooms and a laundry room, a tankless hot water heater, hundreds of square feet of tile, granite countertops, lighting fixtures, bathroom cabinetry, a washer and dryer, new garage doors and some living room furniture," says Gary Zierhoffer of Maryland.

The company offers products from over 700 brand-name manufacturers at confidential insider prices. That means you pay the actual cost of materials, not the added price retailers tack on to achieve their profits.

"Our dining set was available at 2 popular furniture stores," says Andrew and Valerie Pisani of New Jersey. "The range of prices was $16,500 to $19,000. We found the exact set and color at DirectBuy for $6,850. This one purchase more than made up the membership cost."


Avoiding retail markups can save you 10s of thousands of dollars on your next remodeling project. Learn more about how to save by setting up an appointment to visit the DirectBuy showroom near you. Copyright ©, ARAnet, Inc.