Advisors are standing by . . . at 3 a.m.?
One can only gag at the absurdity of the titles that
are being used today to convince gullible people that those who are “ready” to
serve them have notably superior qualifications for whatever they are supposed
to be doing.
A few minutes listening to the radio (more likely in
the car these days) will inevitably give you the opportunity to learn about
offers to: 1. Take care of more than $10,000 in outstanding credit card debt;
2. Negotiate with the IRS to reduce unpaid taxes; 3. Sell your life insurance
policy (because the premiums have gotten so high); and 4. Buy an extended auto
warranty for a car that’s no longer covered by the factory warranty. And so many others that make absolutely no
sense.
It is not unrealistic to believe that credit card
companies will be willing to negotiate outstanding credit card balances. For them, it would be better to take less
than get nothing. Although such payoffs
can be arranged, they come along with substantial reductions in credit scores,
which may make borrowing extremely difficult until one’s personal finances are
again healthy (if they ever are). The flipside is that if you don’t seek a
settlement, you may be on the wrong end of a lawsuit by the credit card
company.
Negotiation with the IRS isn’t a panacea either. It’s available only to a limited group of
people and the options are usually extended payment plans and lump-sum compromises.
The latter option only exists for people who are not likely to make full
payment under an extended payment plan.
Sell your life insurance policy? Go right ahead, but other than the apparent
appeal of immediate cash this opportunity to raise money benefits only one
side: the buyer. Your family, on the other
side, will be a net loser. Yet the
commercials always like to repeat the phrase that the so-and-so family sold
their policy because it was “right for them.”
Sad!
Buy an extended auto warranty? For starters, most of these warranties are
overpriced, providing handsome commissions to sellers. Better to make regular contributions to an
emergency fund to handle repairs that may be needed. What’s more, aftermarket auto warranties have
specific limitations on what repairs are covered and where the work can be
done.
And then there’s the world of commercial euphemisms. In the good old days, car repairs were done
by mechanics. Now these people are known
as technicians. The folks (in some other
part of the world) who answer your phone calls in the wee hours are “advisors”. If you should be visiting a stock brokerage
company looking for assistance, the person you will meet will be a Vice President,
even if he or she has been employed there for only three days.
Beware of words and phrases such as:
Recommended
You Deserve
What Have You Got To Lose
If You Qualify
You Owe It To Yourself
Everybody’s Talking About
Your best response: A quick about-face.
N. Russell Wayne
Sound Asset Management
Weston, CT
Any questions: please contact me at nrwayne@soundasset.com
203-895-8877
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