Probably the worst part of personal finance is having to handle issues surrounding misrepresentation. Misrepresentation, as I see it, is being presented information in an unsatisfactory or false manner. Because some people are so slick and cunning, deceit can come in many different variations.
There is no specific color, shape, size, or height of dishonest people, but I would like to give you some common actions to look for:
- Rushing you to sign paperwork. Ever heard this? “Sign here, here, here and here..”
- Hiding the terms. Only focusing on payment and not the actual terms of the contract.
- Devaluing disclosures. Not fully explaining your rights as a consumer if something goes wrong.
- Speaking in terminology you don’t understand.
- Dodging your important questions.
Not paying attention to these critical signs could definitely lead to you becoming their latest victim. So, how can we have great shopping experiences and protect ourselves at the same time?
Be aware. You know that old saying, “If it’s too good to be true, then it probably is.” Do your research and be prepared. Alan Greenspan says it like this…“An informed borrower is simply less vulnerable to fraud and abuse.”
Ask questions. Asking questions is a sign of strength, not weakness. Many times we are embarrassed or afraid to ask for fear of how it will make us look. But the truth is that we look far worse when we don’t.
Take the attitude of a student, never be too big to ask questions, never know too much to learn something new. – Og Mandino
Pay attention to your intuition. You know that gut feeling that tells you something is not right.
To me, it’s kind of like having an “angel” in one ear and the “devil” in the other. We want to make the right decision and listen to the right voice, but it’s difficult. Especially when emotions are involved.
Start by creating your line in the sand moment. If a salesperson at any time crosses that line…end the conversation. I don’t care if it’s at the end of a long and outdrawn process. Your feelings as the buyer must be heard. It’s your time and your money. Refuse to let anyone abuse it.
This is so important. Feeling empowered is helping people be courageous enough to walk away. Think about it, walking away initially makes for a lot less pain later. I’m not saying that you should be hard core, but just know that you should respect and be respected.
The key here is to have a watchful eye. Don’t be too trusting. Everyone does not have your best interest at heart. Many times befriending you and making the sale is the only goal the salesperson has set out to achieve. Once you’ve been conquered…it’s on to the next victim.
Remember, the goal is for you to come out at the end of the process knowing that you have made a great decision. Don’t be afraid to say…“This is where I draw the line!”
So, how about you…have you dealt with salespeople that misrepresented products, terms, etc? How did you deal with them?
This is where I draw the line Image by Eva Blue
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{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
“Think about it, walking away initially makes for a lot less pain later. I’m not saying that you should be hard core, but just know that you should respect and be respected…. The key here is to have a watchful eye. Don’t be too trusting. Everyone does not have your best interest at heart. Many times befriending you and making the sale is the only goal the salesperson has set out to achieve.”
WOW, this is sooo important, like you’ve said… the biggest example that comes to mind is the subprime lending mess we are still recovering from. I remember back in 2007, driving to work one day and listening to a financial person (banker? loan officer? one of those people…lol…) describing the interest-only loans. As someone with ALOT of student loan debt, my IMMEDIATE thought was that didn’t sound like a good idea at all… ‘lemme get this straight,’ I thought, ‘for 2 yrs I’m only gonna pay interest on a house? And then after that my payments go to a regular amount?’ I thought about how much less of a payment that’d be and how, realistically, I wouldn’t be preparead after 2 yrs to start making a significantly higher mortgage payment if that were me. The financial guy also talked about how you could afford more of a house under this ‘great, exciting’ loan program… which was worse to me – because not only do I have this higher payment than I can handle, but I have more house than I need or can afford! But no one was really asking questions back then, it just ’sounded’ like a great thing…
They say hindsight is 20/20 but its that same lack of dilligence that got us all into this mess. There are so many conquered homeowners who are now foreclosure victims… do you think people have learned??
Oh yes, I remember that time all too well. The company I worked for started grudgingly offering the Interest Only loans when they started loosing money because they “weren’t”. I know, crazy, huh?
I’m hoping people have learned their lesson. If not, I certainly want to do my part by making them more aware which will help them to make better financial choices.
I used to get railroaded into some really bad debt when I was younger. I am sooo glad I learned to take a stand and require the important info before signing on the dotted line.
It’s sad that young people are like candy to salespeople. Getting older has it’s benefits – wisdom. I wouldn’t trade my years of training for nothing in the world.