I will walk several blocks to avoid hospital and medical services lots that charge for parking. Street and city lot parking I don’t much like, but they are local taxes for local purposes, so I pay with a scowl but no grumbling. Regarding barbers, I go to a guy older than I am, (that’s ancient, man!). He tells me about his “good old days”, and I do the same for him about my times and travels. We recollect farm and factory work, life on the road, past comradeship and the passing years. We remember our different lives in each other’s company. To the young men waiting their turn, who will keep checking their phones during their time in the chair, offering no talk at all, our reminiscences are old men’s jabber. For my part, having him behind me, calmly working and trading stories with me in our soft drawls is balm beyond barbering. The experience, the gestalt, is worth the cost and the fat tip. Everybody’s gotta eat. Sorry to learn your man retired, Dick. I know that such a thing is likely to happen soon in my case also.
CJ
4 months ago
Two costs I won’t pay:
Hotel “resort fees”. I will spend too much time researching alternatives vs sane people who just pay them and get on with their day. But I despise them that much. So far, have never paid one – always found good alternatives.
Won’t support ticketmaster and other ripoff “event service fees”. There’s not an event, concert, or show I care that much about. I think they’re a scam.
I’ve gone to tons of concerts and events in the past. Somehow promoters put most of them on without fees until a few years ago. It started, small, but these fees are now out of control. Yet people keep paying, so they’ll never go away. No big loss for me.
Last edited 4 months ago by CJ
Cammer Michael
4 months ago
Banking fees. A benefit of having money is avoiding them.
I was an early adopter of online brokerage accounts back in the day when a stock trade cost $100.
Why does the index fund in my wife’s 403(b) plan charge 4x more fees than the equivalent fund in my plan?
Some legal services are worth the $, but a lot I know how to do myself. But I don’t have the proper letterhead.
I don’t mind most parking fees. I don’t see why my choice to own and use a car, which takes up a large chunk of real estate, should be paid for by orher people. But that’s not to say I won’t postpone a trip into Manhattan until a Sunday when street parking is free.
The new trend of 5 to 25 cents for a bag at a supermarket still rankles me. Yet I’ll routinely give all the change in my pocket away to someone on the street.
Boomerst3
4 months ago
Cable bills. After the add on fees the cost is increased about 30-35%. Parking fees for sporting events are $60 a game. Ridiculous. Medical costs, co-pays, etc. US healthcare is so bad.
D. Rae
1 year ago
Capital gains tax. Fee for EZ Pass on rental cars.
Jeff Bond
1 year ago
Parking. Concerts, sporting events, shows, etc. – almost every venue charges for parking. Around here that can be $20-30 per vehicle. I may sound like an old codger for saying this, but parking used to be free and accessible but has become another source of revenue for the event. I also don’t like paying to park when I’m simply going downtown. In that case, it’s the city/town profiting off the fact that I’ve gone to town to meet friends for lunch, dinner, or a drink. Now, with electronic apps, I’m paying both the city and the app vendor for something that was once free. Whenever possible, I try to find a remote option that is either cheaper or free and walk my way to the destination, but that’s not always an option.
R Quinn
1 year ago
My barber of thirty plus years just retired. Dino learned to cut hair in Italy 60 years ago.I’ve looked into a few new shops and so far have discovered that a real barber shop no longer exists, you need an appointment. But the worst thing is the price, $30 and up and it’s not based on the amount of hair either. For the time it takes to cut my hair the guy is earning $200 an hour. I have threatened to grow a pony tail before I pay those prices. But I did find a better way. My daughter in law is coming to my house to cut my hair and all it will cost me is a free dinner.
Dick, I think I pressed the wrong icon and may have signaled something I did not intend. I have written a longer comment elsewhere, but want to make sure I did not communicate something unintentionally. I share many of your views.
The guy may be grossing $200 an hour, but overhead costs mean his earnings are substantially lower. If he works alone, he has rent and utilities and business licensing fees, in addition to the mandatory continuing education many states require. If he’s working in a shop, he’s probably paying the owner a chair rent fee which covers his overhead. A cousin of mine pays $1,000 a month for chair rent, which he says is below market rates even in his low cost of living area.
Michael Hennessy
2 years ago
12b-1 mutual fund fees, especially to a company like TIAA, which is allegedly not-for-profit.
Exactly, I fired those folks recently as I feel they are ripping off teachers and unions throughout the United States with their stealth fees and annuities. And it was a bureaucratic nightmare to close (rollover) the account to Fidelity.
Mike Zaccardi
2 years ago
Irrationally, little costs & discretionary purchases irk me. It shouldn’t matter paying a few bucks more for a meal, a product, a service etc. Most times, it’s worth it in terms of higher quality.
I rarely feel bad about routine costs that are largely unavoidable – i.e. refilling the gas tank or a health/dental checkup.
I also have a bad trait in that I feel like a vacation is a totally discretionary cost that could be avoided. I should enjoy a vacation – the new experiences and spending time with family – but I find myself putting off such good investments in my wellbeing.
Liarspoltergeist
2 years ago
Property taxes that fund school districts with horrible educational outcomes
SCao
2 years ago
Book. (I enjoy reading, but only borrow from the library.)
CJ
2 years ago
I second R Quinn: costly repairs or premature replacement on cars, electronics or appliances made poorly or with known defects. (Looking at you LG fridge. Actually NOT looking at it, since it’s landfill bound after just 3 years, due to several compressor failures.)
Last edited 2 years ago by CJ
johntlim
2 years ago
This won’t make me popular with the financial advisors who read this website, but I am most loath to pay expenses for financial “advice.”
Exactly, no RIA should be charging over 0.25%/annum for their “investment advice”, which is nothing more than cookie cutter portfolios based on some risk assessment. Tactical asset/portfolio management requires analysis and de-risking through portfolio management. Oh, and the 800 lb. gorilla in the room, is that they get “discretionary” control over your money and they get their fee quarterly whether they make you money or NOT. What a bunch of BS.
Professional money managers and others in the financial services industry need to justify their fees and costs. One of the simplest ways to do that is to explain how complex it is to manage investments. In fact, a complex portfolio is easier for them to manage because they can put every investor in the same portfolio and use all the independent knobs to adjust it for each client. If every portfolio holds the same 13 investments in various target percentages, it’s much easier for them to automate the management of hundreds of portfolios.
I did find a non-discretionary or discretionary RIA in Houston (your choice) and they are great folks. Did not contract with them but follow them daily/weekly. Clarity Financial, LLC, d/b/a RIA Advisors.
Last edited 4 months ago by Randy Starks
Edwin Belen
2 years ago
I hate paying for an expensive meal that isn’t eaten or at least fully eaten. I don’t mind expensive food on occasion but finish it 🤣
R Quinn
2 years ago
Repairs on something that shouldn’t require them.
chris vasko
2 years ago
Late fees on anything financed. This is money flushed away for zero value and it kills me whenever it happens.
Rick Connor
2 years ago
I just came back from a 17 day vacation in California. The car rental was $1200. More than 25% was taxes and fees. More and more cities and states are putting taxes on visitors – they are easy to pass and don’t impact locals.
Adam Grossman
2 years ago
Cable TV feels like a poor value for the money. Maybe that’s only because I remember when TV used to be free, but I still don’t like it.
Ben Rodriguez
2 years ago
I will never pay an ATM fee. I’ve driven many miles out of my way to avoid such fees. The idea of being charged to access my own cash is just too horrifying.
Rent and auto payments. My 2014 VW Jetta is paid off and has just 72,000 miles. It doesn’t look all that impressive, but why pay $400 a month for a new car, when I don’t need to? Ditto for housing—why pay more than I need to just to be in the “right” neighborhood?
Sanjib Saha
2 years ago
Car insurance and car repair costs.
Even with a clean driving record and high credit score, our car insurance has been going up over the last 6 years since our daughter was added to it. I switched recently and it was a little less with the new company, but still it’s much higher than I expect.
Same for auto repair costs, especially on German cars. It’s hard to decide whether some repairs are necessary or not, and almost always, I find the price to be absurdly high. The only reasonable experience was with Honda minivan.
car repairs have become insane. I live in a fairly HCOL with very high insurance costs, so I realize shops are also dealing with higher costs for insurance, parts, labor, etc. But geez…seems like every repair is in the high hundreds or low thousands.
Real estate agent commissions.
Interest on a car loan.
The 1% of assets charged by financial advisors.
I will walk several blocks to avoid hospital and medical services lots that charge for parking. Street and city lot parking I don’t much like, but they are local taxes for local purposes, so I pay with a scowl but no grumbling. Regarding barbers, I go to a guy older than I am, (that’s ancient, man!). He tells me about his “good old days”, and I do the same for him about my times and travels. We recollect farm and factory work, life on the road, past comradeship and the passing years. We remember our different lives in each other’s company. To the young men waiting their turn, who will keep checking their phones during their time in the chair, offering no talk at all, our reminiscences are old men’s jabber. For my part, having him behind me, calmly working and trading stories with me in our soft drawls is balm beyond barbering. The experience, the gestalt, is worth the cost and the fat tip. Everybody’s gotta eat. Sorry to learn your man retired, Dick. I know that such a thing is likely to happen soon in my case also.
Two costs I won’t pay:
Hotel “resort fees”. I will spend too much time researching alternatives vs sane people who just pay them and get on with their day. But I despise them that much. So far, have never paid one – always found good alternatives.
Won’t support ticketmaster and other ripoff “event service fees”. There’s not an event, concert, or show I care that much about. I think they’re a scam.
I’ve gone to tons of concerts and events in the past. Somehow promoters put most of them on without fees until a few years ago. It started, small, but these fees are now out of control. Yet people keep paying, so they’ll never go away. No big loss for me.
Banking fees. A benefit of having money is avoiding them.
I was an early adopter of online brokerage accounts back in the day when a stock trade cost $100.
Why does the index fund in my wife’s 403(b) plan charge 4x more fees than the equivalent fund in my plan?
Some legal services are worth the $, but a lot I know how to do myself. But I don’t have the proper letterhead.
I don’t mind most parking fees. I don’t see why my choice to own and use a car, which takes up a large chunk of real estate, should be paid for by orher people. But that’s not to say I won’t postpone a trip into Manhattan until a Sunday when street parking is free.
The new trend of 5 to 25 cents for a bag at a supermarket still rankles me. Yet I’ll routinely give all the change in my pocket away to someone on the street.
Cable bills. After the add on fees the cost is increased about 30-35%. Parking fees for sporting events are $60 a game. Ridiculous. Medical costs, co-pays, etc. US healthcare is so bad.
Capital gains tax. Fee for EZ Pass on rental cars.
Parking. Concerts, sporting events, shows, etc. – almost every venue charges for parking. Around here that can be $20-30 per vehicle. I may sound like an old codger for saying this, but parking used to be free and accessible but has become another source of revenue for the event. I also don’t like paying to park when I’m simply going downtown. In that case, it’s the city/town profiting off the fact that I’ve gone to town to meet friends for lunch, dinner, or a drink. Now, with electronic apps, I’m paying both the city and the app vendor for something that was once free. Whenever possible, I try to find a remote option that is either cheaper or free and walk my way to the destination, but that’s not always an option.
My barber of thirty plus years just retired. Dino learned to cut hair in Italy 60 years ago.I’ve looked into a few new shops and so far have discovered that a real barber shop no longer exists, you need an appointment. But the worst thing is the price, $30 and up and it’s not based on the amount of hair either. For the time it takes to cut my hair the guy is earning $200 an hour. I have threatened to grow a pony tail before I pay those prices. But I did find a better way. My daughter in law is coming to my house to cut my hair and all it will cost me is a free dinner.
Dick, I think I pressed the wrong icon and may have signaled something I did not intend. I have written a longer comment elsewhere, but want to make sure I did not communicate something unintentionally. I share many of your views.
My wife’s been cutting my hair for, forever. She does a great job, no appointment needed. For some reason, she refuses to let me cut her hair though…
The guy may be grossing $200 an hour, but overhead costs mean his earnings are substantially lower. If he works alone, he has rent and utilities and business licensing fees, in addition to the mandatory continuing education many states require. If he’s working in a shop, he’s probably paying the owner a chair rent fee which covers his overhead. A cousin of mine pays $1,000 a month for chair rent, which he says is below market rates even in his low cost of living area.
12b-1 mutual fund fees, especially to a company like TIAA, which is allegedly not-for-profit.
Exactly, I fired those folks recently as I feel they are ripping off teachers and unions throughout the United States with their stealth fees and annuities. And it was a bureaucratic nightmare to close (rollover) the account to Fidelity.
Irrationally, little costs & discretionary purchases irk me. It shouldn’t matter paying a few bucks more for a meal, a product, a service etc. Most times, it’s worth it in terms of higher quality.
I rarely feel bad about routine costs that are largely unavoidable – i.e. refilling the gas tank or a health/dental checkup.
I also have a bad trait in that I feel like a vacation is a totally discretionary cost that could be avoided. I should enjoy a vacation – the new experiences and spending time with family – but I find myself putting off such good investments in my wellbeing.
Property taxes that fund school districts with horrible educational outcomes
Book. (I enjoy reading, but only borrow from the library.)
I second R Quinn: costly repairs or premature replacement on cars, electronics or appliances made poorly or with known defects. (Looking at you LG fridge. Actually NOT looking at it, since it’s landfill bound after just 3 years, due to several compressor failures.)
This won’t make me popular with the financial advisors who read this website, but I am most loath to pay expenses for financial “advice.”
Exactly, no RIA should be charging over 0.25%/annum for their “investment advice”, which is nothing more than cookie cutter portfolios based on some risk assessment. Tactical asset/portfolio management requires analysis and de-risking through portfolio management. Oh, and the 800 lb. gorilla in the room, is that they get “discretionary” control over your money and they get their fee quarterly whether they make you money or NOT. What a bunch of BS.
Professional money managers and others in the financial services industry need to justify their fees and costs. One of the simplest ways to do that is to explain how complex it is to manage investments. In fact, a complex portfolio is easier for them to manage because they can put every investor in the same portfolio and use all the independent knobs to adjust it for each client. If every portfolio holds the same 13 investments in various target percentages, it’s much easier for them to automate the management of hundreds of portfolios.
I did find a non-discretionary or discretionary RIA in Houston (your choice) and they are great folks. Did not contract with them but follow them daily/weekly. Clarity Financial, LLC, d/b/a RIA Advisors.
I hate paying for an expensive meal that isn’t eaten or at least fully eaten. I don’t mind expensive food on occasion but finish it 🤣
Repairs on something that shouldn’t require them.
Late fees on anything financed. This is money flushed away for zero value and it kills me whenever it happens.
I just came back from a 17 day vacation in California. The car rental was $1200. More than 25% was taxes and fees. More and more cities and states are putting taxes on visitors – they are easy to pass and don’t impact locals.
Cable TV feels like a poor value for the money. Maybe that’s only because I remember when TV used to be free, but I still don’t like it.
I will never pay an ATM fee. I’ve driven many miles out of my way to avoid such fees. The idea of being charged to access my own cash is just too horrifying.
I’ve never used an ATM. Who uses cash nowadays?
Rent and auto payments. My 2014 VW Jetta is paid off and has just 72,000 miles. It doesn’t look all that impressive, but why pay $400 a month for a new car, when I don’t need to? Ditto for housing—why pay more than I need to just to be in the “right” neighborhood?
Car insurance and car repair costs.
Even with a clean driving record and high credit score, our car insurance has been going up over the last 6 years since our daughter was added to it. I switched recently and it was a little less with the new company, but still it’s much higher than I expect.
Same for auto repair costs, especially on German cars. It’s hard to decide whether some repairs are necessary or not, and almost always, I find the price to be absurdly high. The only reasonable experience was with Honda minivan.
car repairs have become insane. I live in a fairly HCOL with very high insurance costs, so I realize shops are also dealing with higher costs for insurance, parts, labor, etc. But geez…seems like every repair is in the high hundreds or low thousands.