We cant help it. Humans are naturally competitive, and when the neighbors, your friends or even your family buy cool new appliances, electronics and other items, we cant help but want to keep up or even surpass them.

Your best friend buys a new Maytag refrigerator with the ice maker, auto defrost and built-in electric screwdriver, and suddenly, your old white one just isnt good enough anymore. The problem is that your friend secretly saved for months and months to get the top-of-the-line model and youve got $14, a pack of gum and a dream. So what can you do to give the illusion of supremacy without breaking the bank?

1. Buy an off brand. It may not have the word Maytag stamped on the front, but off-brand merchandise can be much less expensive and still have many of the options that you want. The truth is that many times, the extra price of an item comes from the name of the company. People expect name-brand items to be better, but in reality, the generic and off-brand items are usually just as good. When your friend comes over and sees your new Splurgendorfer 3000 fridge and asks about it, just say, Oh, its European. I even had to buy a power adapter for the electricity.

2. Skimp on the options. A fridge just needs to keep things cold, and an oven just needs to heat things up. Everything else is luxury. Expensive options on an appliance can jack the price up considerably, and before you know it, your budget is blown. Many times, people will buy an appliance as is without realizing that if you wait a week or two for shipping, then you can buy what you need instead of what is available at the store. Your friend may have an electric screwdriver on her fridge, but who is ever going to unscrew something with an appliance? Get the bare-bones model, and when they ask about the extras, just say, I realized that I didnt need all those extras and saved enough money to go on vacation to Fiji. (In two weeks, stop the mail, stock up on food, lock the doors and dont come out for a week. Theyll think you are on vacation.)

3. Buy used and refurbished. You are not the only ones trying to keep up with everyone else, so there are many used and refurbished appliances that are in great shape, but people just wanted something new. You can buy these for significantly less than their newer counterparts. They may not be the latest model, but often your friends wont be able to figure that out. They will just see a new appliance that looks a lot like the one they just bought.

Alls fair in love and appliances, so these tips might seem a little sneaky… and cheeky… but they are sure to help you keep up with the Joneses. Just beware that your neighbors and friends may be reading this article, too.

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