Sandygirl

My 2 cents......btw, the new Janome website shows the MSRP. No one pays MSRP.

WHat is your general budget? Share the range of pricing you are "considering". (What is your TOP price you are willing to pay IF you see the value in a price range you can handle? Keep this under your hat.)
What kind of sewing do you do now?
What features do you want on a machine?
What is on your wish list of features?
Paying cash= more bargaining power.
Financing= less bargaining power
trading in? See above note for financing.

Do a lot of research online first. Visit the mfgr. Websites, read reviews. Take notes, print pages.
test sew on various models, mfgr. Erognomices really play into your buying decision just like buying a car. You have to be comfortable with how it sews, the "looks", how the dials, etc are configured, is it noisy vs. quiet? Size of the bed, etc.

Don't be in a hurry to purchase but don't expect any machine to be "perfect" either. Models vary within one mfgr and across the board. Give and take is inevitable. Prioritize what are your must-haves and those you could do without. A lot of give and take.

I remember when I went shopping for my machine in 2006 and, again, last November. The back & forth of which models had what I wanted vs what price point was realistic for me.

TRUST your instinct and decision. No second guessing.

good luck!
Sandy

dflynn

there was a thread not that long ago about the price of the 8900. Most people paid about $2500 . Look in the search [top of page] for 8900 and you can get a lot of information. I paid $2499 plus tax at my local sewing center.

quiltstringz

One last word of advice - by all means test drive everything at the quilt show. Once you find what you like if that dealer is too far away from you call your local dealer a lot of the time they will match the price. I live in Dallas and know our local dealer will normally match the Houston show price (400 miles away). Now they can't always match the price if the machine you are getting is a demonstrator. But it definitely doesn't hurt to ask

Appa Valley

Thank you everyone for your help. I have to say I'm pretty proud of myself, I've done most of the things ya'll are advising to do as far as research goes. I shot an email back to the Janome dealer about that price and apparently Janome had sent them the wrong price and that they would honor the website price. Still a bit high according to what everyone here has said. But that's ok since I'm still researching which machine would be best for me so I may not even end up with that one. Hopefully sometime soon I'll be able to go and actually test out the machines and put all your advice into practice.

How do you find out the MSRP of a machine if it's website doesn't state the price? Just contact the manufacturer?

SuzieQuilts

These are all good suggestions, but don't forget about customer service. When I was ready to make my first sewing machine purchase I did my research. I narrowed it down to a Phaff and a Bernina in my price point. Each had an unique feature I liked. However, I was more impressed with the people at the Bernina store, and how they made me feel. Also, they were 45 miles away vs the Phaff store was 100 miles from home. That was 28 years ago. I still have my Bernina 930 and I still only do business with that same Bernina dealer.

toverly

Always check the online price. Many dealers will match it if you mention it.

caspharm

That quote is for MSRP on the Janome. I agree with trying to buy a floor model from a show or the store, maybe even a trade-in (Some people are always trading up for the latest and greatest models). I bought my Janome 8900 as a floor model from a machine shop and saved quite a bit - they even included some extra bobbins, a foot, and the double spool rack. Definitely shop around and try whatever model has the features that you want, especially helpful to have a dealer nearby.

Also, check places like Sew its for sale or other sites to find a used one.

Appa Valley

Thanks again for all your replies. I had another thought that I know someone here could help with: Whenever you give a dealer a price quote from a different dealer, then do you have to show proof of it?