http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/29762007/What's hot at the pawnshop these days
Tough times mean more high-end items in hock, owners say---------------------------------
So long, flat panel
A flood of big-ticket electronics is flowing into pawnshops — especially those big, thin televisions — a signal that many consumers have bitten off more spending than they can chew lately. After years of selling like hotcakes, flat-panel televisions have become decidedly unappetizing to consumers. Sales fell in the fourth quarter of 2008 for the first time ever, according to market research firm DisplaySearch.
And while it's a loss to traditional retail outlets, the decline in flat-panel television sales is a gain for pawnshops.
They are among the big sellers and most-pawned items at many pawnshops, but store owners like Phyllis Dansky of Art's Money Loan Inc. say they're only accepting televisions manufactured in the last two years so that they can handle digital programming.
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