Crap.
A good real estate agent can save you from a world of hurt when buying property. This is your real estate agent of course, not the person selling the property to you. Unless you are an expert in insurance and can figure out exactly what you need, an insurance agent is a necessity.
Telemarketers, they can go die.
Telemarketers I can understand, but real estate agents? What experience did you have, Marsie?
Here’s an interesting opinion piece on real estate agents:
Ivylass, you are very perceptive. My dislike of real estate and insurance agents has to do with my own bad experiences. At different times in my life I have been “forced” to do business with friends and relatives. (Against my better judgement.) Nobody was holding a gun to my head, but family dynamics dictated it.
All three of these experiences were horrible.
What it boils down to is I feel that real estate and insurance agents “prey” on family and friends. I am older and wiser and have made a rule never, EVER to do business with friends and family. I would rather leave the relationships intact. This is not to say that I don’t like the people that I do business with, but when my brother in law asked if I could help him with public relations, I said “no” and explained why.
I wouldn’t hire my own mother to sell my house… That doesn’t mean I wouldn’t hire somebody’s mother…just nobody’s that I know.
Well, Marsie, it sounds like your problem is with family and friends doing business with each other, not with real estate agents and insurance agents.
Today I have something to add to this thread. Some time ago my girlfriend called a learning centre to get information about a bookkeeping course they offered. She found it interesting because they said they were focusing on the most common packages used for the task.
So she called and, in place of getting a brochure or a prospectus, she gets a salesman in person! Because, they say, they care about her and know what she needs! Needless to say, this made our BS-meter beep, but she said she was going to see what turned up first.
The guy called in yesterday while I was in the University. The course was much less interesting than it looked like, so my GF was not interested. What is interesting is the way the salesbeing went straight through the script, like an actor: first he was Encouraging And Positive Friend, then he played Shocked And Outraged Good Guy, and then went into You’re Throwing Away The Opportunity Of A Lifetime Mode (for bookkeeping? My GF has a degree in Business and Admin, and just feels like keeping up to date with the software…). Then, of course, he switched to You’re Dumb And Stupid For Not Buying This, and then into You’re Wasting My Time Mode.
He even huffed when he left.
As all this happened after I read all of this thread, I was howling with laughter while she told me. She was not as amused, but when I explained she saw my point and we had a good laugh together.
I despise sleazy sales tactics, but I’m not usually smart enough to see them coming - they hardly ever snare me, but I usually end up having to work my way through layer upon layer of bullshit before the light bulb clicks on and I walk out.
Two of my worst experiences:
A kitchen saleswoman who visited my house, measured up for a kitchen, sketched a design on the spot - that bit was fine, until we got talking about cost; we went through:
We have a promotional discount at the moment, just sign here… (nope)
I can authorise an additional discount, because I’m not actually a salesperson, but a manager, and I’m covering for sick leave, just sign here… (nope)
OK then, I’m so confident you’ll love this kitchen and think you should have it so much that I’m going to forget my commission and give it to you as a discount; just sign here… (nope)
May I use your telephone? - I’ll ask the sales director what he can do (calls the office) "Yes, that’s right, but he’s not going to buy it unless you give him a better deal <pause> I don’t care what it will do to my bonus <pause, pretending to be chastised> Well, that’s as maybe, but I’m just going to give it to him; can’t you see we have to do this?
(still not convinced - I want to shop around)
OK, look, why don’t you sign up now, then think about it - you can cancel any time you like, just sign here… (nope)
If you don’t sign tonight, you can’t get these discounts, PLEASE sign it… (nope)
I’ve wasted a whole evening on this; I won’t get paid for this if you don’t sign <starts to cry> (nope)
At that point, I decided enough was enough and just said “look, I’ll help you carry your samples to the car” (i.e. ‘you’re leaving now’).
The other one was when I bought my home PC; the system bundle itself was quite a good price, but the guy tried to sell me an extended warranty (which is where they make all the money) - he started off by telling me how complex computers are and how difficult they are to fix - I told him that I know this, as I’m an IT support manager and that if the thing failed outside of warranty, I’d fix it myself.
Then he started on this long spiel about how I could use the support contract to get extra hardware installed free of charge - I told him I was quite capable of installing drivers and plugging in a card or two. “Oh no, you can’t do that!” he said, “If you open the case, you’ll invalidate the warranty, even if you don’t touch anything” (even though the advertised features of the machine included things like vacant PCI slots - features you can’t use without opening the case. At that point I pretty much told him to shut the fuck up and sell me the machine and just the machine.
Yuck, I hate it when they tell me that. I’m sure they make a good amount on money installing new components on sealed cases. My policy is this: if I can’t open the case, I’ll be running, not walking, through the door.
Fine with me when they charge people that can’t or won’t update the computer by themselves, but I hate it when this policy is forced on me.
About 14 months ago, my husband and I decided that we had outgrown our four door car and were in need of a van. Well, he wanted an SUV, but I knew we couldn’t afford one with a third row of seats which is what we desperately needed. What? The dogs weren’t comfortable crammed in the back seat with the baby’s car seat. What?? 
We had a terrible time with asshats when we bought the last car so we went out in full bullshit deflecting armor this time. We eventually settled on a Mazda MPV and after minor haggling, we signed the papers and left in our new van.
A full TWO WEEKS later, we got a call from the dealership, they were unable to get the financing as we signed it, we had to go back in. They wanted a cosignor or a huge down payment. Uhm, no.
I led them on for a few days so we could keep the van (SUCKERS!) while I obtained financing online. We took the Mazda back, told the sales guy what scum he is. Then we went directly across the street and purchased a Kia with the same features, more room and far better warranty.
I will never buy another car without obtaining financing first. Walking in there with a check in my hand was fantastic.