IMO, matching is most important.

I would get what matches the other appliances. is taking the fridge when you move the norm in your region? It isn't in my area (northeast). I would buy a white fridge and leave it. The buyer will ding money off the listing price when you sell and probably more then what you paid for the new fridge. NancyLouise

Are the other appliances 13 years old also? Is it likely buyers are going to replace everything given the price point in your market? I'd go with white so it matches and is consistent.

Yes, the other appliances are also 13 years old. They may want to replace them given the desire some have for stainless. All of them work fine, especially the cooktop and ovens.

The main reason we didn't install stainless 13 years ago was that our ovens were not available in stainless. The dishwasher has a cabinet panel. The cooktop and matching down draft are made specifically for propane.

First of all, will a freestanding regular sized fridge actually fit in the hole that your other fridge left? Or will you need a counter depth or built in for it to look remotely correct? With the home being in the upper 3%, your best bet may be to get a panel ready fridge and cover it with a plain white metal painted panel.

If you really think a standard fridge will fly at that price point, (it wouldn't here) then get a white fridge off of Craigslist and leave it. Then get what you want for your new house when you get to your new house. Just be sure that the CL fridge isn't too old. But, there are a lot of white fridges on there from everyone upgrading to stainless.

I have a feeling that if you go that route though that buyers will wonder what else in the house was skimped on or is lacking. A house is like a jigsaw puzzle, and you can't substitute a piece from a different puzzle without it looking odd and drawing a lot of unneeded attention to it and the fact that it's missing a puzzle piece.

What color are the cabinets and the counters? Just wondering whether the 13-year old appliances may be a major drawback when you're selling. If you 're in the top 3% pricewise, I would think that buyers expect relatively new top-end appliances --- unless it's the lot size that puts your house in that price group. Or is your market so hot that buyers can't be picky?

Is it really Freon or is it a newer refrigerant? Did you look into a repair? If it's less than a plain white fridge maybe you should get it fixed.

Every time we've sold a home (all FSBO, all sold in 10 days or less) we went to every Open House we could before we listed. We looked at homes at the price point we were thinking of listing our home, slightly below, and significantly above. Not only does it tell you what your direct competition is like, but trends and expectations in higher priced homes tend to trickle down. Which is exactly how we decided not to replace our laminate kitchen counters with granite or quartz etc. Many homes that were listed $100,000 over ours still had nicer laminate. We were a little surprised because everyone HGTV seems to demand stainless and granite. But, in reality, we were living in the Midwest where it can take significantly longer for trends to take hold. I think your question is really a regional/local one. What will buyers expect at your price point? This is also where Zillow comes in handy.

This post was edited by Mmmbeeer on Tue, Jan 21, 14 at 19:03

Thank you all for your input. After I thought about it, all of the appliances are actually 12 years old, not 13, given when they were installed and it's the beginning of the year, not the end. It doesn't really matter though.

In response to some of the comments:

Yes, we had a repair person out yesterday. We were fully prepared to repair it. He indicated it was a leak. After doing some research, and based upon what he said, repairing a leak is hit or miss. It could leak again in a few months.

I live in a kind of odd area with a lot of variation in what kinds of houses one finds in the upper end of the market. Having worked as a real estate agent for over 8 years here I have a good grasp of the market and the competition. I've been in 100's of houses in all price ranges. I no longer work as an agent, but have kept current on what is sold and what is available. I've worked with upper end buyers.

Some of the value of our house comes from the 17 acres of wooded property. Having been an agent, and having had several appraisals on this house, we are pretty realistic as to how much value that adds. Much of the value comes from the size and construction. Few of the newer houses in this price range are all brick as ours is or contain have as many baths, etc. Ours is of a similar size to the other homes in this price range with and without the property.

Craigslist appliances are generally few and far between and overpriced here. My community is pretty mobile and there is a large market for used goods. People assume that the students moving in and out every few years are willing and able to pay a premium price for used items. I saw a 20 year old Whirlpool fridge for sale yesterday for $400. I have a slightly newer and better fridge in my basement. If I wanted to go that route I would move it upstairs, but I think that would be worse.

I've measured the opening multiple times so I know what size fridge I need to purchase. It's not a Subzero or similar fridge so that does make it a bit more standard.

As for taking the fridge: it's about 50-50. Some leave it, some don't. If the original had not broken, I would have left it. I will leave all other appliances including the washer/dryer.

Thank you all for your input. I'll search out a white fridge that fits in the space. The worst case it that it becomes our second fridge in the future, and I become one of those people selling my 20 year old fridge for $400. :)

I thought the Craigslist idea was a good one. Here's another thing I'm wondering--if someone is selling and the appliances are not stainless, would offering a, say, $1,000 credit at closing for new appliances help sway those people who really, really won't settle for anything less than stainless? Just wondering, since I am one of those would-be sellers.

Imho probably not. $1K isn't that much when it comes to replacing appliances. The buyers more then likely have already deducted the amount of money (cost for replacing appliances that They think it will cost) off of the purchase price when they make an offer. Hash it out then. If the only problem with your appliances are that they are not SS, why offer a credit at all? NancyLouise