In the last issue of Matt About Money, a story about haggling generated several reader tips such as the following:
Ask for a price match. Miriam found that the office supply store Staples "didn't quibble a bit" when asked to match a competitor's price.
Ask for more than a match. Dan discovered that Best Buy would not only match a competitor's price; they'll beat it. After pointing out that an item was being offered on Amazon for 50 percent less than Best Buy's price, the retailer went 10 percent lower than Amazon's price.
Ask for a defect discount. Andy went to Bed Bath & Beyond to buy a painting, bringing with him the 20 percent off coupon the retailer frequently mails. After pointing out some minor flaws on the piece to the manager, he got another 20 percent off the initial retail price.
Ask for a quantity discount. Brad went to Office Max to buy 200 brochure holders that retailed for $3.35 each. Since he was buying such a large quantity, he asked the manager if he would sell them for $1.50 each. The manager said he could go to half off. When Brad handed the cashier his Office Max business partner card, the computer applied the corporate discount to the agreed upon lower price and he ended up getting the brochure holders for $1.35 each.
Matt's View
One more tip for haggling: be willing to walk away. I recently bought a tricycle for our two-year-old through an ad on Craigslist
- a more common venue for haggling than a retail store, I realize. Before going to see it, I did some Internet research and found that I could buy the tricycle new for $45. The Craigslist seller was asking $30. I decided ahead of time that I would spend no more than $20. When I offered that amount, the seller declined. I thanked her for her time and turned to leave. She then quickly stopped me and accepted my offer.
Savvy shoppers know that many retailers have either formal or informal price-matching policies, so it pays to do some comparison-shopping. For example, at Circuit City, if you find a lower advertised price at another local store, the retailer promises to beat the price by 10 percent of the difference. Or, if you buy something from Circuit City and then find a lower advertised price within 30 days, the retailer will refund the difference. At Home Depot, if you find a current lower price on an identical in-stock item from any retailer, the store will beat that price by 10 percent.
Matt's View
Some retailers will match or beat prices found on the Internet, so use price comparison web sites like PriceGrabber.com
or Shopping.com
. Others will only consider prices from another local retailer, so check prices at ShopLocal
.
With identity theft much in the news, various ID theft protection services have emerged. But a recent Wall Street Journal article said most are not worth the cost. The only pay-to-play service that may be worthwhile is a credit freeze
, which prevents access to your credit file. Depending on where you live, it may cost $10 at each of the three main credit bureaus to freeze your credit file (it's free if you are a victim of identity theft). And then you'll have to pay to lift the freeze if you want to apply for new credit. Besides the cost and time involved, another downside to a credit freeze is that it only protects against someone trying to open a new line of credit in your name; it won't prevent a thief from using an existing credit line.
The best steps for guarding your financial identity are to zealously protect your Social Security Number, review your credit report via annualcreditreport.com
to look for accounts you did not open, and either stop receiving offers for new credit in the mail
or shred any offers you receive before throwing them away.
Matt's View
The newest form of identity theft is medical identity theft. If someone steals your medical insurance information they could receive care paid for by your insurance. Even worse, their health conditions could end up on your health record, which could impact the care you receive. In order to keep tabs on your medical identity, the World Privacy Forum
suggests requesting from your health insurance provider an annual listing of all benefits paid in your name.
A recent Time magazine cover story touted "10 Ideas That Are Changing the World." Number 8 was "The New Austerity." The magazine explained that there have been many times throughout history when the demise of the American consumer was predicted. But now we may be witnessing the real deal, with people resorting to such radical practices as living within their means and paying down debt.
Matt's View
It's a powerful indicator of what a consumption-driven culture we live in that spending less than we make would be seen as a sign of austerity, which, by definition, is "an act of self denial." But it also makes me curious: how have your spending habits changed in an era of high gas prices, falling home values, and a shaky stock market? Please write to me
to let me know.
