<P> Renters Choice went public on the NASDAQ stock exchange in 1995 under the symbol "RCII ." In August 1998, Renters Choice acquired Thorn Americas, Inc., which operated 1,474 stores in 49 states and the District of Columbia under the name "Rent - A-Center ." On 31 December 1998, Renters Choice changed its name to Rent - A-Center, Inc. and began operating all of its stores under the "Rent - A-Center" brand name . </P> <P> In February 2003, Rent - A-Center acquired 295 stores from Rent - Way, Inc . In March 2004, Rent - A-Center commenced operating in Canada with the acquisition of five stores located in Edmonton and Calgary, Alberta . Later that year in May 2004, Rent - A-Center completed the acquisitions of Rainbow Rentals, Inc. and Rent Rite, Inc . Rent - A-Center completed its acquisition of competitor Rent - Way, Inc. on 15 November 2006, for a price of approximately $600.3 million . At the time of the acquisition, Rent - Way was ranked number three in the rent - to - own industry with 782 stores in 34 states . The Rent - Way store acquisition program brought the store total to 3,535 stores . Given that the acquisition resulted in over-penetration in some markets, Rent - A-Center carried out the closing or merging of 282 stores between 2007 and 2009 . With 176 Mexico stores as of September 2014, Rent - A-Center is continuing its expansion in Mexico . </P> <P> RAC provides new and used brand - named furniture, appliances, computers and electronics from brands, such as Ashley Furniture, Sony, Toshiba, Whirlpool Corporation, Dell and HP . As part of their rent - to - own business model, Rent - A-Center generally makes its items available with no down payments or long term obligations . Customers can return an item at any time, for any reason, without penalty and also have the option to re-rent the same item and pick up the payments where they left off . Delivery, pick - up, service and repair are also included in the stated rental price . Customers can also upgrade items while they are renting--the payments will change accordingly . </P> <P> In March 2007, the corporate office moved to a new location at 5501 Headquarters Drive, Plano, Texas, in the Legacy Business Park . Construction began on the 175,000 - square - foot (16,300 m) building in January 2006 . Employees moved into the building on 16 March 2007 . The current headquarters measures three stories and includes structured parking for 400 vehicles, a fitness center, and lunchroom . </P>

Where does rent a center get their furniture