You Might Want to Move in with your Own Appliances

This might not come as a surprise, but most apartment leasing companies, house rental leasers, and new home builders don't usually put a whole lot of thought into buying appliances for the place you move into. Their only thought is usually how much the appliances initially cost. So, as one article from USA Today put it, "They pick the appliance, you pay the utility bills," and they don't really care how high the bills get as a result of the lower-end appliance. Many of the higher-end, higher priced appliances have most of the highest Energy Star ratings and save the consumer money in utility costs in the long run. That really isn't a concern for the landlord or new home builder though. Of course it wouldn't be, unless they have higher standards - - and the bottom line isn't the buck, but quality and integrity. None of this really comes as a surprise to me.
Many people are hoping the government will step in and require landlords and new home buyers to meet minimum energy standards. I wouldn't hold my breath. Instead, if you're fortunate enough to have the money to invest in your own appliances, I would say to go ahead and buy these yourselves. It really depends more upon which is the higher cost: buying the appliance and moving it from residence to residence or paying a higher energy bill. Then there's the cost to the environment. This is really where the prayers could come in handy. To pray that the government will make the right decisions as far as our environment is concerned, and in return also lowering our energy bills. It's more about saving energy than saving money, but both can be met by higher appliance standards. It's a lot to think about... We can do a lot by boycotting companies that don't think about our best interests - - both in reference to utility bills and the costs to the environment. We need to give more attention and positive feedback to those companies that already have enough integrity to worry more about quality and not the dollar as the bottom line. This would be a great thing to look into expanding upon, say researching the homebuilders and leasers who do offer higher energy ratings on their appliances. It's a lot to think about. If you would like to read the article that lead to this blurb, you can visit the site below.