Questions to Ask Before You Make Big Purchases

Before you make a big purchase, there are a few things to consider before opening your wallet. These factors include your budget, need, specifications, etc. In the guide below, we will be going over these questions in full to help you make smarter purchases.

Do I Have the Money to Afford the Purchase?

Take into consideration if you have the funds to make the purchase without needing to tap into your savings or emergency funds. At the same time, you also have to make sure it doesn’t cut into your budget too much either. You never want a needless purchase to prevent you from buying food or paying rent.

Do I Have a Need for This Purchase?

Is the item you’re about to buy a necessary purchase or a luxury purchase for yourself? If it is a necessary purchase, take the question of why you need it into consideration. However, if this is a luxury purchase, take your budget and needs into consideration before pulling out your wallet. The last thing you want to do is waste money on needless purchases that could ripple throughout your bank account.

Why Do You Need to Make the Purchase?

If you find the need to purchase an item, ask yourself why you have to make the purchase here and now. For example, if you need to replace your microwave, see if you can heat up your food in your oven before making the large purchase of a brand new microwave. In most cases, large purchases can be delayed until you have enough money to buy it. In the meantime, you can set up a savings account for the item you want to buy. This way, you don’t have to dip into your savings, emergency funds, rent check, or take on debt.

Did You Research Your Product?

If you are going to be spending a lot of money on an item, you want to make sure you are choosing the right one. Take your time to thoroughly research the product and specific brands. Before researching, you should also determine your budget and the necessary features you want the product to have. You want to find a product that offers everything you need at the best price. Read online reviews and explore all of the issues real users have had with the products. See how durable the product is and check out the resale value of it.

Is the Item on Sale?

Sales come in cycles. If you can wait on your purchase, you may be able to save a lot of money on it. Do some research to determine when the item you want to buy will go on sale. Look for seasonal sales and when stores are replacing their stock with newer models. If all else fails, there are usually great sales on large purchases during the winter holiday season.

Can You Purchase a Used One?

If you are willing to purchase a used product, you can stand to save a lot of money on your purchase. In fact, you can buy used refrigerators, lawn mowers, and more for a fraction of the cost you would spend on a new one. Just make sure to do your research beforehand and ensure the product works before you spend money on it. Keep in mind that this option is not suited for everybody or every purchase, but it can be a great thing to explore.

Should You Invest in a More Expensive Product of Higher Quality?

When it comes to large purchases, you must compare the cost to the quality of the product. If the purchase is expensive, you may not want to spend more for it than you need to. However, it might be worth it to spend the extra money up front on a product of higher quality. For example, if you are buying a wedding ring, ideally it will last a lifetime, so choosing a higher quality one with a higher grade clarity and cut makes sense.

Low-quality items also tend to break more easily, which means you will be spending more on maintenance costs. You can actually save money in the long term by spending more now and spending less down the line on repairs.