Price on Hot Springs Flair. Am I paying too much?

[Bld20]

My family decided that we were going to use the money we had set aside for this years vacation to purchase a new hot tub instead. We’ve never owned one so I started by doing some research online and came up with 2 brands that were highly rated and sounded like either would work for us. I tried to research pricing but couldn’t find much information. We started off by going to Arctic Spas. We went in and were informed that there were no hot tubs available until November and were given a very high and broad quote. Moved on to another store but again, end of August or early September before delivery. We found a tub that was acceptable and put down a refundable deposit just in case and then went to a Hot Springs Spa dealer in Southwest Washington State. Very nice people, the store was busy and we really liked the hot tubs. Again we were told that the inventory was limited in their warehouse but they did have some being delivered in the next week or two. We discussed options with the salesperson and she said that they had a Hot Springs Flair that was coming in and met our needs. She quoted us $12,995 before tax which included locking cover, lifter, cv steps, salt system, start-up kit, subpanel, and 8x8 smart deck. She came down $1,000 in price and so the final quote was $11,995+tax. I was a little skeptical about the price but my wife was ready to commit and we felt like our options were pretty limited if we didn’t want to wait for months so we put down $1,000 deposit. It’s about 1-1.5 weeks out from delivery and I haven’t paid the balance yet. I found this forum and noticed a lot of people are getting higher end tubs from Hot Springs for less money. Sometimes significantly less for the Flair model. There were other higher end options available but she said they were a lot more expensive and that this one was closest to our price range. Does $11,995 sound like a reasonable price? Am I getting taken here? Thanks in advance!

[castletonia]

Hot tub pricing varies throughout the country.  Geographic region, the local economy, your dealers cost of business all factor into the price they sell for.  I don't know what hot tubs sell for in Washington.  I can tell you that I am about $750-$1,000 less but that is without the smart deck so I would say that price is reasonable and no you are not being taken.  Not really sure what higher end models people are getting for less. 

I would look at it this way.  There is always going to be someone getting a "better" deal.  The thing is you don't know what the circumstances are that resulted in that deal.  Right now with inventory basically being non-existent or selling out almost instantly, there are not going to be those special circumstances that result in those one off deals.  Reputable dealers are not going to take advantage of the situation Covid has caused but high demand and low supply means that they don't have to be as aggressive with pricing either.

[jmack]

With the smart decking thats a fair price. I sell HS spas and we are about $800 less but that's without the smart deck.

[Samuel]

I agree with everyone else here, It really depends on where your purchasing your spa.
A few things: Artic spas is one of my competitors and know quite a bit about them. They have a really deceptive warranty. What can ruin the warranty, what is actually covered, etc.. You will definitely want to read the fine print. Also with arctic spas, the company is said to work really well in the snow, and colder climate, but their insulation is terrible. They use their equipment to keep the shell warm. What happens is when the equipment is in the same area as the shell without ventilation it begins to overheat and break down quickly. Also due to improper insulation it results in leaks, and a lot of them. Those are some things to keep your eye out for.

The spa itself with a smart deck fully packaged as you suggest, would be a great deal considering our price here with that same package is $12,189.00 to give you a comparison.

Thanks