Wow, two sides of the fence here. People who find it offensive seem to generally agree that it depends on the item and who is asking.
Breaknrun, I guess I’d get pissed because I had just told someone I was uncomfortable talking about it and they still pushed me on the issue. At that point, it would be about them not respecting what I had just said - that I was uncomfortable about it. The first time, I’d be polite - but then I’d say it was about respecting my comfort zone.
As for why it bothers me the first time someone asks…well, it just feels intrusive. I guess because I don’t want someone thinking that I have just ooooodles of cash to spend (if it was a pricey item), etc.
Tibs.
FTR, yojimboguy, I’ll be 35 in two weeks. I don’t exactly recall if I was taught that asking prices was rude by my parents or I just picked up on it. I’m sensitive to the fact that other people find it rude/tacky/tasteless and so don’t brazenly approach the subject like I want to. I just question this attitude like I did most everything else when I was a teenager. I see a lot of people here proclaiming they questioned the faith they were raised with in their later years when they could do so intelligently and then found that faith lacking (or not). This particular eitquette didn’t make a whole lot of sense to me then and I’ve found that since I started openly and honestly answering the question about price or how much I make it still doesn’t hold water that it’s rude. Nothing bad has happened to me or the people that asked because they know this information.
I’ll ask JuanitaTech 'cause she posted after I did (and I like your username): What do you think your co-workers intentions are when they ask you those questions? Do you think they’ll ask you for money? Plot to embezzle from you? Tell someone else? Who cares? If I told somebody I had $37 in my bank account vs. $37,000, I still wouldn’t lend them money if they asked for it. It’s not hard to say No. I’ve got that little or that much stashed away for reasons known only to me.
I hate it when people judge you by your financial status, the car you drive or what part of town you live in. I do my best to bypass that kind of class struggle by not giving a hoot about what they think of my material means and posessions, which is why I’m up front about them. I prefer to let my intellect and social aptitude stand on their own.
burundi said that there are some topics that shouldn’t be broached unless you are among close friends. Take a look in GD my friend, all those subjects (and sex too!) are being discussed by people who for the most part have never met before.
This opinion still costs 2¢ but prices go up next week. Get 'em while they’re hot!
There are CERTAIN things that are okay to ask about. Airline tickets, for instance.
Last year, there was a big stink here in Phoenix about ticket scalpers getting most of the tickets for Games 1 and 2 of the World Series. The news programs were making it appear as though no real fans got any. This was not, in fact, the case. I did. So, the next day, I went in all happy about my successful late night odyssey into ticket-buying (involving three telephones and two computers). Since all anybody was hearing about was what the scalpers were charging, everyone asked what I paid for them. My response was simply “Face value.” I wasn’t offended, because it WAS such a big topic of discussion.
Well, I think several things when people ask such things. One, as I said earlier, that I’ll look foolish for having spent too much. Or that they will explain why, whether I got a deal or not, I should have spent my money some other way or not spent it at all. This latter worry has been borne out many time with relatives. When I was younger, various aunts and uncles would pry into my life and explain what I should do to live better. (These etiquette rules, if that’s what they are, apparently don’t apply down generations. They would pry into my life with questions that they would never ask of their siblings and cousins, but had no trouble asking of their children and nieces/nephews.
I inherited some money in January. I asked people around me for advice, and I got a lot of good advice. And I also got hit up for a loan from a coworker, to start up this business that he’s always dreamed of. And I gave it to him. I loaned him an amount that would not leave me broke and in trouble if he fails to repay me.
And frankly, I don’t really expect his business will fly. I think it most likely that I won’t get paid back. I made the loan because it was the first concrete opportunity I’ve had in my life to finance someone’s dream. I know he’ll work very hard, and if it flies I’ll be happier about contributing to the fulfillment of the dream than I will about any payback.
In other words, I’m a sucker. 
So the less people know about my finances, the better.
Exactly. Often times, I’ve had friends who bought a certain kind of outfit, or a pair of shoes or something, and I was like-how much was it-because I really love it, and I want one. Or something like that.
I guess you don’t think it’s rude to ask someone their age, huh, yojimboguy? 
I’ll be 25 in a few weeks.