I feel that waiting until you can pay in full is the best way to go. Now that doesn't mean paying full price though. Do your research and write it down. Go into a local shop and tell them you want to purchase XYZ machine. They will want to get a trade-in and possibly other discounts will be thrown in. But if you have the cash and you can control the date you buy, you are in a good position. If it is an expensive machine and you can live with last year's model, then look at those. Lessons should be included in all their machine sales- that is good business. Haggling is not bad- if you don't research and don't do a little haggling (I call it price dancing) then you will pay too much.