I got a deal on a new 9 from my carrier for $5 a month for 24 months.

$120 CAD.

But, in canada, the phones come carrier unlocked and had no issue flashing it. Though i only ever powered it on once before it was flashed - to turn on oem unlocking. The sim was not used until then. So it didn't do any auto downloads that might have caused a problem.

Long short: you can find them cheap if you look.