Moen, Kohler, Delta, American Standard, Glacier Bay - is there really a difference between all of these brands in terms of durability/quality?

There are substantial differences, as you can tell if you handle them and study their construction. A Price Pfister, for instance, sells a name and styling, but you will find that many contractors will flatly refuse to install them and, if you insist, the contractor won't provide a warranty. A Delta, for instance, would provide a better product for much less money. You will find that there are very large differences in life expectancy of cartridges, seats, and seals from brand to brand.

Generally, I would recommend that you stay away from house brands, or brands that you can't find everyplace. The reason is that often repair components will be very hard to find. If you buy (particularly) a bathtub faucet, you will go to great lengths to find that replacement cartridge when you need it because replacing a bathtub faucet is very difficult. This can have you hitting every plumbing supply house in a 100 mile radius looking for the part. This is the voice of experience speaking.

About the Author: Jim Locker is a technical guy who has done a lot of real estate investing and landlording. The experiences he writes about and advice he gives are either first hand, or in answer to specific questions posed by others. He is commonly known as jiml8 around the internet.