So, if you amenable to vinyl in this case, I would look for a Sunrise or Soft-Lite quote. The Pella vinyl quoted above is kind of junk. Get one of both of those quoted and then make the final comparison.

+1. While the Marvin options are nice, quality windows, they will net you a lower ROI in energy savings (u value and air leakage ratings are measurably worse than premium vinyl choices), not even considering the added cost. If you place a high value on "brand name" and appearance, then that would be the reason to consider those options, definitely not energy performance. Sunrise is a good vinyl window manufacturer located right in MI, they'd be worth checking out if you are going to choose anything other than a real wood interior.

The Pella and Marvin Infinity would be bad for ROI. You should be able to get a high quality vinyl for the Pella vinyl prices . You can get low quality vinyl that may be the as far as ROI goes but if plan on staying we might be having this conversation in another 7 years.

You're never going to see that money. Patch up the old windows until you move.

Good advice from the other PROS. Look for a good vinyl window to get a return in energy savings and value.

Corlett, do you read posts before you comment? He said he's not planning to move. "Patch up the old windows"? Great advice. What if they are falling apart and inoperable? What are you a "PRO" at anyway? You seem to comment on windows a lot but this is clearly not your field.

Touché, but to be fair when one wants ROI with time being the variable it gets tricky with windows and many other things. If you knowJoe , I think He is trying to say go quality or go home. Pretty much What you are saying but differently. This wisdom can apply to most trades.

Gotta love this "42k (supposedly discounted from 77k.....)" I wonder where did that 35k go? "Growing up in Brooklyn, the 1-st thing you learn...The minute you get a discounted rate, that is when you turn around and run without looking back... That is your hint you're about to get screwed.

Thanks for the advice all, I'm getting an additional quote from Sunrise windows and will see how that stacks up. Basically I'm in a position where I don't feel good about the cheaper quotes since the product gets alot of flak in reviews (and maybe isn't even "cheap") and the upper end of the quotes makes me feel like I'm getting hosed. Spending 10's of thousands on windows is probably never fun but I'm hoping to find a balance between wasting money on trash windows and splurging on (what the salesman ensures me) are top-of--the-line windows.

"Corlett, do you read posts before you comment? He said he's not planning to move. "Patch up the old windows"? Great advice. What if they are falling apart and inoperable? What are you a "PRO" at anyway? You seem to comment on windows a lot but this is clearly not your field."

fridge2020:

Your comment is the logical fallacy of relevance, ad hominem circumstantial. You must address my argument, that window replacement jobs rarely return the money spent on them, not my circumstances as a sink replacement contractor which is irrelevant.

Try substantiating what you say, please. Like this. The chart shows that window replacement does NOT return the money invested. Of course circumstances vary greatly from job to job, but you want to be the guy who buys the house that has had the windows replaced, not be the guy who bought the replacement windows.

I would say I bet you're a window salesman, but that would be irrelevant also.

Looks like about 73% according to these guys that track that data. Pretty sure your chart show about 73% ROI in your region.

https://www.remodeling.hw.net/cost-vs-value/2020/south-atlantic/

If you are buying windows purely for ROI, probably ill-advised. That said, most people considering window replacements are doing so because they are failing in any number of ways. In that situation, does the ROI really matter ?

"Gotta love this "42k (supposedly discounted from 77k.....)"

That's the Renewal By Andersen school of closing the sale. Huge discount if you sign NOW!!

As far a ROI that is not really decided on the windows you choose IMO. A nice good quality vinyl window will stand the test of time we spent 26K on 32 windows in 2002 those windows are still in perfect condition we even got the ones that can be fipped into the house for cleaning. This was in Calgary where the cold can be hard on vinyl but IMO middle of the road is almost always the best choice in windows, appliances etc. I can tell you a buyer looking at old windows that have been “repared” will be aturn off but most have no idea of thedifference in what you have if they look good and are in good shape. As for planning to move that is always a crap shoot. The windows we bought were middle of the road pricing. Not fancy but suited the house .

On "ROI", I probably should have used a different terrm since I'm not thinking just financial. Obviously in a dollars sense I won't get a return, though I could "lose less" in some cases.

When I say "ROI" I guess I'm conceptually also including window performance, longevity, and general happiness with the windows. As I mentioned above the pricing is all over the board and it's hard for me as a consumer who doesn't specialize in windows to know if one window is truly "worth" 20k more than another. I can compare u factors and other statistics but it's hard for me to put a dollar value on lets say 0.1 better u factor, or what that even means in practical terms. All i can really go on is looks, the salesman (who are biased to the point I probably shouldn't really rely on their opinion), and the collective internet. What's also kind of tricky is that based on what i read online it almost feels like no window is really good, so it's hard to feel good about any product I install. That said, lots of good advice from you all and i appreciate it.

@Joseph Corlett, LLC, I think that you are making a point counter to what you intended. As WoW stated and your link shows, windows return an average of 70%+ in resale value. This makes windows a pretty solid choice for ROI among remodeling projects, and that is without any regard to energy savings. When energy savings are added in, there are few projects that are as worthwhile from an investment standpoint. The Cost vs Value report doesn't have a category for "sink replacement", but assuming that your business is replacing sinks as part of kitchen and bath remodels, those both seem to slot in far lower in ROI than windows -- and that's again, with no consideration to energy savings.

To be sure, there are many unscrupulous window salesmen that make promises of the windows paying for themselves in energy savings alone, and in completely unrealistic time frames, but that should not detract from the actual dollars and cents of the matter.

Perhaps you were simply directing a snarky response at fridge and I'm misreading your intention, but if it was to undermine the value of replacing windows, you've shown the opposite.

Ah, irrelevant, yes. Like the superfluous thoughts of a "sink replacement contractor" or whatever you are commenting ad nauseam about windows. Did I use that word right? Is that like the same as ad hominem? I don't know them big words that you use like fallacy.