I actually just negotiated my rent. My boyfriend and I live in a very nice 3bed, 2.5 bath for $2200/month in South San Francisco (San Mateo county.) We asked our landlord and got 10% off or $220/mo discount. New rent is $1980.
My single friend who lives in a luxury 2bedroom apartment in SF also negotiated and got a $500 reduction from $4000/mo to $3500/mo.
I wrote an email to my landlord saying how much my boyfriend and I love the place and what an awesome landlord he is. But the rental market has declined as we just wanted to pay market price. I told him my intention was not to move but to pay a lowered rent. I also researched craigslist postings and sent him a bunch of similar places for less.
And the moral of this story is ... do your research before you buy (caveat emptor!) We like to pay once for things that last a gazillion years without having to think about it or do very much to maintain it.
Way back when, this was how things were -supposed- to work, not a "sense of entitlement." Anybody who's ever driven an old slant-6 engine car or used their grandmothers vintage-avocado-70's Kenmore washing machine knows what I'm talking about. We used the same old hand-me-down, 35-pound stainless-steel casing, rust-orange Jetson's-flying-saucer shaped Hoover vacuum from the late 1960's until it finally died last year. Always worked good, never needed anything more than a $5 replacement hose and a new belt every decade, always got the floor clean, and did a passably decent job sucking up pet hair out of the rug until the day it finally died nearly 40 years after it was made. Since another relative gave us a nearly-as-old Kenmore canister vacuum from the early-80's that also works perfectly fine, we have yet to spring for a new one.
In any event, never trust anything any salesman or ad says. As I tell my kids when they see an advertisement, "ads are tricks to get you to spend money you don't have on something you don't need." First, research every major purchase first in Consumer Reports. Their research is funded by Consumers Union, a non-partisan, non-profit ratings organization which is completely independent of the products they are rating. Warning, there is one sneaky product advertising website with a very similar name which is totally funded by the companies selling products!
Second, check the "low" ratings (the 1 and 2 out of 5's) on Amazon.com and similar websites. Be careful ... all those "5's" are rated when the happy new customer first gets the new product in the mail, while the 1 & 2 ratings are usually from people who started to have problems a few months after they bought it. Mine the 1&2's for information about problems you might have a few years down the line and use your judgment about whether this is an acceptable risk.
If it's a big-ticket item like a $600 vacuum cleaner, google "customer complaints X-product" to see if there are frequent product or customer service complaints. You'll pull up all sorts of websites (like U-Hell) with lots of complaints just like this article. Every company will have a few complaints, but if your browser throws up numerous websites with hundreds of customer complaints, you'll know this is a company and/or product to completely avoid.
Also, google "service bulletins X" and insert the product name into the search engine. You'll often pull up service bulletins for similar products the company has issued for it's repair vendors for known defects. This is usually a "horse is already out of the stable" research tool, but it's a good way to research if you have grounds for legal action if the company knows the product has engineering defects. Often a "demand letter" that meets the requirements of your states consumer protection statute is all it takes to get the company to offer some sort of remediation to fix your problem.
Lastly, if Consumer Reports hasn't rated your product, or if the item you are purchasing is a repair to your car, check the parent company's standing (or repair shop) with your state attorney generals consumer protection division, the Better Business Bureau, and/or the Consumer Product Safety counsel. Most have an internet database you can check to see if these government agencies have gotten enough customer complaints to take legal action, initiate mediation, or do a product recall. This won't help you find the best product, but it's a good way to avoid companies that repeatedly abuse their customers when they have problems.
Caveat emptor!!! Let the buyer beware ... but thanks to the internet the buyer isn't helpless.
I found THE solution to folding fitted sheets. It's Fit and Fold, seriously you'll be done folding in seconds it's so easy. watch this video and you'll understand: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DNxoQZ-9sDc
I can attest to the Hoover Wind Tunnel reliability issues. Mine broke just before the 2-year warranty expired. Another month and I'd have had to pay for repairs out of pocket.
I too have 2 Dyson's I have the DC-07 and the DC-07 Animal. I bought the first one when they came out and dished out 500.00 bucks only to find one year later is quit sucking. The one that is not supposed to have that issue. I sent it back and it still doesn't suck. so I went on a limb and bought another one. So again 500.00 bucks and this one so far is ok, but let me say my Hoover bagless windtunnel worked just as good. Now when I say I need a new vaccuum my husband say we're getting a Hoover. I work for a major retailer that sells Dyson and let me say I do not push them. Hope my animal keeps up!!!
I needed to read this article because I waste a lot of money trying to save only to be unhappy with my purchases. Being frugal is very challenging. I use to spend my money very stupidly just to save a buck. An example would be going to a dollar show that is half way across town. I would spend $1 for the movie and perhaps $8 round trip in gas to see it. I am guilty of all 5 and I hope to keep practicing because being frugal correctly is worth it.
I would kill to know how I was placed on their mailing list...I participate in a lot of rebates and prepaid cards are becoming the norm for that game, so when I received it I assumed it was for a rebate I had filed for...I called the toll free number but as with most scams, there is really no option to talk to a real person (unless disputing charges etc.); now why do you think that is?...Perhaps they feel they would receive many calls from irate people who did not request this card?...I'm glad there are people who find this useful, and I have no problem with those that request it......but for those of us that DID NOT request or want to be included in this junk mail, I hate wasting the energy to put this card through a shredder
Last year my rent went UP by $10. I thought that was interesting. I also found out that people who moved in are paying less for apartments then I am. I do belong to a large group of apartments so again if they give me a break, they will have to give everyone a break. Which comes to over 1,000 apartments. I doubt they will give me a break, but we will see in December.
Sell a broken vacuum? If I find myself screwed, I never add to my list of options one to pass that screwing along to the next guy. That's nearly as bad as Amanda suggestion to screw Target or the person who buys the open box return. Just full of amazement at people here. Broken stuff goes in the trash -- or on freecycle to someone who has a chance of fixing it.
Is this now a consumer complaint forum? While I love WB, I don't think this is a proper post just because you're a dissatisfied customer. This type of post reduces the quality of Wise Bread, clearly a "Personal Finance and Frugal Living" website.
Go buy a new one that looks just like the one you have... (Target has a 90 day return policy) use the new one for a while... 30 days or so, put the old one in the new one's box and return it saying it doesn't work right.
Our first DC-14 broke in a similar way. It's the clutch mechanism inside the beater bar that wears out over time, particularly when you get it stuck on the edge of carpets and such. Luckily, we had bought it at Costco so we just returned it after three years and have the nice new DC-17 now. Costco's return policy ROCKS, unlimited on this type of stuff, and in the end, we got the new model and a $100 or so refund for doing the "upgrade" (since the new model was cheaper after years). All in all, goes to show that where you buy something can have as much to do with the product itself. As for the Dyson, it's still the best vacuum out there, and yep, it sucks... sucks hard.
My bad. But if you don't like my articles, you certainly don't have to read them. Other people do, and that's cool. If you don't, that's cool too. But there's no need to whine about it.
Just a thought, but I know that our American Express card will extend the warranty of items purchased with the card. I believe they will extend the warranty up to one year for products that have warranties of five years or less, and if the item breaks within that time, they will either offer a refund or cover the costs of repair. If you bought the Dyson with a credit card, it may offer additional protection. It would probably be worth checking in to at least.
People like the original poster with their sense of entitlement.
Dude, you bought a vacuum with 2 year warranty that broke after 2 years. Dyson offered you the option to have it repaired on your dime instead of telling you to get a new one. Try that when your iPhone breaks.
FWIW We have one of the original Dyson DC-07 Animal that has been working strong for the past 6 years with a cat and kids. But you won't hear me writing a blog entry about "Hey, my Dyson is awesome!" You only get blog entries and tweets of whiners with a sense of entitlement.....
I have to concur with the "just ask" statement. Yesterday I was able to lower my rent by 100 a month just by asking, the apartment manager was glad to help us out and she offered an even better deal if we were to sign another lease. This last offer piqued my interest and my wife and I went back to talk later, signed a new lease and we got the rent further reduced and even got a discount on our parking. Non of this would have happened without a simple question, and being a good renter didn't hurt either.
Just thought I'd share in case it helps you -
I had to buy a new vacuum in December after our Eureka Bagless kicked the bucket after only two years. I spent a day on the internet, and finally settled on the Bissel Momentum Cyclonic after reading reviews on it from Sam's Club.com and Amazon. I really like it. It's easy to clean (ie: it was really simple to get out the baby wipe I inadvertantly sucked up from under my daughter's bed), and does a good job with pet hair. We bought it from Sam's Club for $89 which was about $50 less than comparable models from Target.
1. Did you research Dysons before buying one, they are know for their cleaning power but not their reliability at least last time I looked. (a couple of years ago)
2. Buying the best funcationing pruduct does not mean its the best quality. Check out the cost of maintenance on a Farrari...
3. Sometimes the old stand buy just does the job. I have a 14 year old Eureaka thats actually been on fire and still runs to this day. (yes long story...)
Just my thoughts as Dysons are more a fad than a good product in my opinion.
I got two years out of a $50 vacuum and was mad about that. There are still working vacuums around from the 50s. How hard can it be to make a quality product. You would think that spending $600 on a vacuum would at least buy you more years of use, but apparently not Anyway, thanks for the warning. I guess I can now stop saving my money to buy the dyson I've been planning on and buy another $50 vacuum. At $25 a year, that now looks like a bargain.
...paying $600 for a vacuum cleaner is kinda asking for it. I mean no disrespect whatsoever, but a vacuum cleaner really shouldn't cost more than a laptop computer. I wouldn't pay $600 for that thing even if it had an unlimited lifetime warranty.
Hi,
I actually just negotiated my rent. My boyfriend and I live in a very nice 3bed, 2.5 bath for $2200/month in South San Francisco (San Mateo county.) We asked our landlord and got 10% off or $220/mo discount. New rent is $1980.
My single friend who lives in a luxury 2bedroom apartment in SF also negotiated and got a $500 reduction from $4000/mo to $3500/mo.
I wrote an email to my landlord saying how much my boyfriend and I love the place and what an awesome landlord he is. But the rental market has declined as we just wanted to pay market price. I told him my intention was not to move but to pay a lowered rent. I also researched craigslist postings and sent him a bunch of similar places for less.
Good luck with yours.
And the moral of this story is ... do your research before you buy (caveat emptor!) We like to pay once for things that last a gazillion years without having to think about it or do very much to maintain it.
Way back when, this was how things were -supposed- to work, not a "sense of entitlement." Anybody who's ever driven an old slant-6 engine car or used their grandmothers vintage-avocado-70's Kenmore washing machine knows what I'm talking about. We used the same old hand-me-down, 35-pound stainless-steel casing, rust-orange Jetson's-flying-saucer shaped Hoover vacuum from the late 1960's until it finally died last year. Always worked good, never needed anything more than a $5 replacement hose and a new belt every decade, always got the floor clean, and did a passably decent job sucking up pet hair out of the rug until the day it finally died nearly 40 years after it was made. Since another relative gave us a nearly-as-old Kenmore canister vacuum from the early-80's that also works perfectly fine, we have yet to spring for a new one.
In any event, never trust anything any salesman or ad says. As I tell my kids when they see an advertisement, "ads are tricks to get you to spend money you don't have on something you don't need." First, research every major purchase first in Consumer Reports. Their research is funded by Consumers Union, a non-partisan, non-profit ratings organization which is completely independent of the products they are rating. Warning, there is one sneaky product advertising website with a very similar name which is totally funded by the companies selling products!
Second, check the "low" ratings (the 1 and 2 out of 5's) on Amazon.com and similar websites. Be careful ... all those "5's" are rated when the happy new customer first gets the new product in the mail, while the 1 & 2 ratings are usually from people who started to have problems a few months after they bought it. Mine the 1&2's for information about problems you might have a few years down the line and use your judgment about whether this is an acceptable risk.
If it's a big-ticket item like a $600 vacuum cleaner, google "customer complaints X-product" to see if there are frequent product or customer service complaints. You'll pull up all sorts of websites (like U-Hell) with lots of complaints just like this article. Every company will have a few complaints, but if your browser throws up numerous websites with hundreds of customer complaints, you'll know this is a company and/or product to completely avoid.
Also, google "service bulletins X" and insert the product name into the search engine. You'll often pull up service bulletins for similar products the company has issued for it's repair vendors for known defects. This is usually a "horse is already out of the stable" research tool, but it's a good way to research if you have grounds for legal action if the company knows the product has engineering defects. Often a "demand letter" that meets the requirements of your states consumer protection statute is all it takes to get the company to offer some sort of remediation to fix your problem.
Lastly, if Consumer Reports hasn't rated your product, or if the item you are purchasing is a repair to your car, check the parent company's standing (or repair shop) with your state attorney generals consumer protection division, the Better Business Bureau, and/or the Consumer Product Safety counsel. Most have an internet database you can check to see if these government agencies have gotten enough customer complaints to take legal action, initiate mediation, or do a product recall. This won't help you find the best product, but it's a good way to avoid companies that repeatedly abuse their customers when they have problems.
Caveat emptor!!! Let the buyer beware ... but thanks to the internet the buyer isn't helpless.
I asked the landlord in January if he would not increase my rent the $40 he informed me that the 2009 rent would increase. To my surprise, he agreed!
So it's not less than 2008, but it is the same!
I found THE solution to folding fitted sheets. It's Fit and Fold, seriously you'll be done folding in seconds it's so easy. watch this video and you'll understand: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DNxoQZ-9sDc
I can attest to the Hoover Wind Tunnel reliability issues. Mine broke just before the 2-year warranty expired. Another month and I'd have had to pay for repairs out of pocket.
Just read the author's tagline: "An adman with inside knowledge, I'll steer you to wiser choices." Oops...
Re: Amanda's post: If you were being serious, then you are a really horrible person.
I too have 2 Dyson's I have the DC-07 and the DC-07 Animal. I bought the first one when they came out and dished out 500.00 bucks only to find one year later is quit sucking. The one that is not supposed to have that issue. I sent it back and it still doesn't suck. so I went on a limb and bought another one. So again 500.00 bucks and this one so far is ok, but let me say my Hoover bagless windtunnel worked just as good. Now when I say I need a new vaccuum my husband say we're getting a Hoover. I work for a major retailer that sells Dyson and let me say I do not push them. Hope my animal keeps up!!!
I needed to read this article because I waste a lot of money trying to save only to be unhappy with my purchases. Being frugal is very challenging. I use to spend my money very stupidly just to save a buck. An example would be going to a dollar show that is half way across town. I would spend $1 for the movie and perhaps $8 round trip in gas to see it. I am guilty of all 5 and I hope to keep practicing because being frugal correctly is worth it.
I would kill to know how I was placed on their mailing list...I participate in a lot of rebates and prepaid cards are becoming the norm for that game, so when I received it I assumed it was for a rebate I had filed for...I called the toll free number but as with most scams, there is really no option to talk to a real person (unless disputing charges etc.); now why do you think that is?...Perhaps they feel they would receive many calls from irate people who did not request this card?...I'm glad there are people who find this useful, and I have no problem with those that request it......but for those of us that DID NOT request or want to be included in this junk mail, I hate wasting the energy to put this card through a shredder
Last year my rent went UP by $10. I thought that was interesting. I also found out that people who moved in are paying less for apartments then I am. I do belong to a large group of apartments so again if they give me a break, they will have to give everyone a break. Which comes to over 1,000 apartments. I doubt they will give me a break, but we will see in December.
Sell a broken vacuum? If I find myself screwed, I never add to my list of options one to pass that screwing along to the next guy. That's nearly as bad as Amanda suggestion to screw Target or the person who buys the open box return. Just full of amazement at people here. Broken stuff goes in the trash -- or on freecycle to someone who has a chance of fixing it.
Is this now a consumer complaint forum? While I love WB, I don't think this is a proper post just because you're a dissatisfied customer. This type of post reduces the quality of Wise Bread, clearly a "Personal Finance and Frugal Living" website.
That's just wrong in so many ways. I love it! Very inventive. But it's wrong and I just couldn't do it.
Go buy a new one that looks just like the one you have... (Target has a 90 day return policy) use the new one for a while... 30 days or so, put the old one in the new one's box and return it saying it doesn't work right.
Our first DC-14 broke in a similar way. It's the clutch mechanism inside the beater bar that wears out over time, particularly when you get it stuck on the edge of carpets and such. Luckily, we had bought it at Costco so we just returned it after three years and have the nice new DC-17 now. Costco's return policy ROCKS, unlimited on this type of stuff, and in the end, we got the new model and a $100 or so refund for doing the "upgrade" (since the new model was cheaper after years). All in all, goes to show that where you buy something can have as much to do with the product itself. As for the Dyson, it's still the best vacuum out there, and yep, it sucks... sucks hard.
My bad. But if you don't like my articles, you certainly don't have to read them. Other people do, and that's cool. If you don't, that's cool too. But there's no need to whine about it.
Just a thought, but I know that our American Express card will extend the warranty of items purchased with the card. I believe they will extend the warranty up to one year for products that have warranties of five years or less, and if the item breaks within that time, they will either offer a refund or cover the costs of repair. If you bought the Dyson with a credit card, it may offer additional protection. It would probably be worth checking in to at least.
People like the original poster with their sense of entitlement.
Dude, you bought a vacuum with 2 year warranty that broke after 2 years. Dyson offered you the option to have it repaired on your dime instead of telling you to get a new one. Try that when your iPhone breaks.
FWIW We have one of the original Dyson DC-07 Animal that has been working strong for the past 6 years with a cat and kids. But you won't hear me writing a blog entry about "Hey, my Dyson is awesome!" You only get blog entries and tweets of whiners with a sense of entitlement.....
I have to concur with the "just ask" statement. Yesterday I was able to lower my rent by 100 a month just by asking, the apartment manager was glad to help us out and she offered an even better deal if we were to sign another lease. This last offer piqued my interest and my wife and I went back to talk later, signed a new lease and we got the rent further reduced and even got a discount on our parking. Non of this would have happened without a simple question, and being a good renter didn't hurt either.
Just thought I'd share in case it helps you -
I had to buy a new vacuum in December after our Eureka Bagless kicked the bucket after only two years. I spent a day on the internet, and finally settled on the Bissel Momentum Cyclonic after reading reviews on it from Sam's Club.com and Amazon. I really like it. It's easy to clean (ie: it was really simple to get out the baby wipe I inadvertantly sucked up from under my daughter's bed), and does a good job with pet hair. We bought it from Sam's Club for $89 which was about $50 less than comparable models from Target.
Good Luck!
I have a couple of comments...
1. Did you research Dysons before buying one, they are know for their cleaning power but not their reliability at least last time I looked. (a couple of years ago)
2. Buying the best funcationing pruduct does not mean its the best quality. Check out the cost of maintenance on a Farrari...
3. Sometimes the old stand buy just does the job. I have a 14 year old Eureaka thats actually been on fire and still runs to this day. (yes long story...)
Just my thoughts as Dysons are more a fad than a good product in my opinion.
I got two years out of a $50 vacuum and was mad about that. There are still working vacuums around from the 50s. How hard can it be to make a quality product. You would think that spending $600 on a vacuum would at least buy you more years of use, but apparently not Anyway, thanks for the warning. I guess I can now stop saving my money to buy the dyson I've been planning on and buy another $50 vacuum. At $25 a year, that now looks like a bargain.
...paying $600 for a vacuum cleaner is kinda asking for it. I mean no disrespect whatsoever, but a vacuum cleaner really shouldn't cost more than a laptop computer. I wouldn't pay $600 for that thing even if it had an unlimited lifetime warranty.
Miele! Miele! Miele!