"Buyer beware" doesn't just apply to used-car sales.

At some point, regardless of size, most churches will find themselves in the market for a copier—and the selection process can be downright complicated and stressful.

Whether to lease or purchase? How to identify hidden costs in the fine print? What to do about pushy salespeople?

"It's rough," said Deborah Sutton, director of operations and chief financial officer for Miami's multicampus Christ Fellowship. "It's a lot of sales pitches with lots of discounts and lots of [savings] if you do it this way versus that way. And [copier salespeople] tempt you with refunds and things like that."

Along with that, Sutton said many complicated details are tied into contracts.

Far too often, churches lock themselves into lengthy and expensive contracts without proper investigation and attention to details, explained Lisa Runquist, an attorney and editorial advisor to Church Finance Today.