July is the time to buy… (2012 update)

Certain times of the year are the best times to buy various things based on sales and availability. Here is your tip sheet for this month:

∞ Bottled water: With summer picnics and barbecues, stores often drop the price of bottled water. If you prefer bottled water, now is the time to stock up. However, you can save even more money if you buy a filter for your tap or refrigerator and use your own bottles!

∞ Butter and other dairy products: Production is up during this time, so prices are down. Freeze butter or margarine to use later.

∞ Certain fruits: July is a good time to buy apricots, blackberries, blueberries, cantaloupe, cherries, honeydew melons, limes, nectarines, oranges, peaches, pineapples, plums, strawberries, and watermelons.

∞ Certain vegetables: July is a good time to buy corn, cucumbers, lettuce, and radishes.

∞ Computers: Back-to-school sales often offer the lowest prices of the year. You can sometimes get freebies like printers, too.

∞ Furniture: Retailers are trying to make room for new models which will arrive in August.

∞ Home Décor: With this being wedding season, retailers want to capitalize on the consumers looking for wedding gifts. These sales also help boost traffic in stores to help sell other items they have on display. With students leaving for college next month, you can also find deals on bedding, organizational items, small appliances, etc. (There will be deals on this in August, too.)

∞ House paint: More people paint in the summer months, so stores sometimes lower prices and hope you’ll buy other regular-priced things, too. July is also a good month to entice those people who don’t want to paint in the heat!

∞ Jewelry: July (along with January, March, April, August, and September) are non-gift giving months. Retailers are more likely to offer sales during these months to help promote business.

∞ Outdoor furniture and yard décor: Stores are changing over to the next season’s merchandise and want to get rid of their summer barbecue goods that were great for the 4^th of July.

∞ Sandals: Mid- to late-July is when you will see the best discounts on footwear. Sales can even be found on popular brands. Retailers want to make room for their fall items.

∞ School Supplies: Even if you don’t have children in school, some office supplies (which are also used by students) are sold at cheap prices during this time. See my post “School Supply Shopping Strategy” for tips.

∞ Swimsuits: Stores want to get rid of their inventory, so the prices go way down. The prices will get even lower in August.

∞ Suits: Any last remnants of Spring fashions will be on sale. Look for styles that are classic and timeless.

∞ Tools: July is one of the best months (matched only by November and December) to buy tools, especially tool sets, accessories, and tool storage units.

If you plan to shop online, check out my “Online shopping tips.”

Sources:

• Buy Ketchup in May and Fly at Noon: A Guide to the Best Time to Buy This, Do That, and Go There by Mark Di Vincenzo
• Your Month-to-Month Guide to Shopping Deals from Real Simple Magazine.
• 7 Things You Should Buy (and Not Buy) in July (shine.yahoo.com)
• What’s Cheaper to Buy in July (shine.yahoo.com)

Related articles:

• Best Things to Buy in July (money.msn.com)