Best recession bargains

        With consumer more focused on saving and delaying the purchase of big-ticket items, now may be the perfect time for people in good financial shape to take advantage of retailers' needs to unload goods and services. Consumer Reports Money Adviser experts took a look at big-ticket items to find potential bargains. Here's what they found:

• Automobiles. If you have the money to buy a car, this is as good as it gets. Dealers are desperate to sell - new or used - so they're in the mood to deal. Look for combo discounts: car buyers who once had to pick either low interest rates, cash back, or special lease deals may be able to get a combination of incentives. But don't buy on incentives alone. Consider fuel-efficient models that get the highest ratings from Consumer Reports for reliability, performance, quality and cost of ownership.
• Travel. The recession has hit the tourism industry hard, resulting in deep price cuts, especially for overseas travel and cruisers. Cruise in your backyard. Cruise lines have canceled some international itineraries and rerouted ships for shorter sails from U.S. ports, which can cut or eliminate the cost of airfare. Celebrity offers cruises from Baltimore and Charleston, S.C. Carnival's summer sailings depart from 14 home ports. Look for bargains. Great deals can be found in cities that have lost convention business (Chicago, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, Orlando, Phoenix, and San Francisco).
• Major appliances. You're likely to find plenty of incentives at local retailers. January sales of cooking appliances, refrigerators, and washers and dryers slipped between 20 and 30 percent from a year earlier. Comparison shop carefully. Don't assume that the first deal you see is the best one. And it's worth trying to haggle an additional discount or free accessories or services. Avoid delayed interest hits. No-interest deals offered by many retailers typically require that you pay the total cost of the item by the end of a certain period. If you don't, you'll be charged interest from the date of purchase.
• Cell-phone service. Two big carriers were offering major savings this spring. Most Verizon Wireless contract plans let you make unlimited calls free to 5 or 10 designated numbers on any network - on top of free calls to 80 million Verizon customers. Boost Mobile, a prepaid service that uses Sprint's Nextel network, was charging just $50 per month for unlimited national calling, texting, and Web access. Try prepaid. Trading in a contract plan that costs more than $50 per month for a pre-paid phone can save you $120 to $1,080 in the first year.
• Clothing. You can still find clothing sales of 50 percent to 75 percent off, but they're not as common as they were at the end of 2008. Shop sample sale online. You can find big discounts on designer duds on sample-sale Web sites like www.gilt.com, www.hautelook.com, and www.ruelala.com. Think inside the box. Big-box stores carry some designer labels at low prices. Alexander McQueen designs for Target, Kohl's sells a Dana Buchman line, and Norma Kamali is in Walmart.

        Editor's Note: Consumer Report MONEYADVISER, 101 Truman Ave., Yonkers, NY 10703, 1 year, $29, is a monthly newsletter that answers tough money questions and provides expert financial advice. www.ConsumerReports.org.