The Gaming Den

From cable tv to home ownership, the big marketing thins is teaser rates. That is, they advertise a rate vs their competition that you get for a year or a few months, before it bumps up to another, higher, and usually unlisted amount.

Their current customers, of course, can't get this rate. Since your rate is locked in by address, name, or credit record, it's darn near impossible to game it. But that's not why I think it should be banned.

I might note, though, that it is banned for telephone contracts in the US, and some other utilities.

However, these rates are one of the things which has left us in this current credit crunch and economic depression. People who bought homes they could afford on the teaser rate found they could not afford the same home later. Planning to be better off later is fine for the bank: They get the house, and thousands of dollars from the buyer. But it's terrible for the buyer who gets their credit crunched for following the rules.

And I think it's terrible for the transparency and open market: How are consumers supposed to be informed when they're being specifically misinformed of the costs?

-Crissa

Oh yes you can get lower rates for existing customers, sometimes equal to or better than the promotional rates offered. Depending on your cable company there are different methods in which to go about doing this. Threatening to cancel your service (never sign a contract) and switch providers is a good way right now to get some better rates.

The problem is deregulation and fear of regulation that makes service providers put force on politicians to keep them unregulated, just as the banks are doing.

Deregulation was supposed to inspire competition, but many monopolies have been created in the telecomm industry due to having NO regulations and letting run wild like banks, insurers, etc.

Now that technological advances exist, which was the reason for deregulation, the service providers are holding the technology hostage for high costs.

I think it is either China, Japan, or Korea; but one of them has free internet that is faster than anything in America, while America is becoming a technological backwater, thanks to corporations.

This means either the corporations figure it out, or the government will step in and take their monopolies away and let some foreign business come in with cheaper and better service and just wipe out the American companies.

There are a few websites out there that should be spread all over the internet to help inform people about what is going on in the telecomm industry. The one I frequent has links to others, and so on you can get lost in the MANY websites out there trying to fight the abuse of the telecomm industry.

I would suggest anyone interested in keeping up with the reality of what is going on to check out and follow to other websites after reading it:

http://www.stopthecap.com

You wil find out what is happening locally in the USA, and be able to compare to the rest of the world, to see how NA telecomm is one of a few, holding their country hostage in a technological backwater, while the rest of the world and even some 3rd world nations are surpassing us in telecomm.

Don't buy into the re-education plans of service providers that lobby politicians with their astroturfing, but keep yourself informed and make your own judgments no matter which website you choose to follow to keep informed.

Strangely, none of those solutions the big companies look for with consumption actually involve pricing based upon consumption, but instead peak possible consumption...

But that has little to do with a teaser rates on mortgages. You can't threaten to cancel your mortgage, but the bank can delay collecting on their foreclosure until the housing market resurfaces... But you can't do anything to stop them.

-Crissa

Sorry, saw telephones and my anger got the better of me and didn't read the rest of the post.

Crissa wrote:I might note, though, that it is banned for telephone contracts in the US, and some other utilities.

Really? Because they totally did that shit to me about four months ago.

Assholes.

People who bought homes they could afford on the teaser rate found they could not afford the same home later. Planning to be better off later is fine for the bank: They get the house, and thousands of dollars from the buyer. But it's terrible for the buyer who gets their credit crunched for following the rules.

How were they uninformed? If the company specifically says, "We're charging you $39.99 for the next six months, and then it's getting bumped up to $59.99 after that," then it seems pretty straightforward to me.

Psychic Robot wrote:How were they uninformed? If the company specifically says, "We're charging you $39.99 for the next six months, and then it's getting bumped up to $59.99 after that," then it seems pretty straightforward to me.

In my experience they only tell you the initial rate, and then inform you of (i.e. start billing at) the higher rate once the honeymoon is over.

How unethical.

I don't think I've ever run into that. I could always find the non-discounted rate somewhere.

Edit: typo

Find me where on, say, the Comcast site that the rate is listed? Or on BofA's ARM offer pages?

You only find out the rate after you've engaged deeply, if at all.

I know Comcast's rates, because they're required by the feds to send a copy every year, as a customer. Do you?

-Crissa

TOZ wrote:I don't think I've ever run into that. I could always find the non-discounted rate somewhere.

Edit: typo

But why should you have to go looking for it? Why shouldn't the company have to present it clearly in the first place? Why do we tolerate crap like 6 pt. fonts and important information tucked away on page 13 of a service contract?

Because most people are too lazy to complain about it? I completely agree it isn't right. I just haven't run into the problems mentioned here. And I damn sure wouldn't get stuck in a housing contract that would suddenly change so many months in. Rentals all the way for me.

Rentals do that, too, TOZ.

-Crissa

I know, and I'm happy to be in miitary housing where it doesn't change. So that won't be a problem for the next eleven or so years. But I think the question of what the real cost of my rent will be is one of the big questions I would be sure to have crystal clear before signing anything.

TOZ wrote:Because most people are too lazy to complain about it? I completely agree it isn't right. I just haven't run into the problems mentioned here. And I damn sure wouldn't get stuck in a housing contract that would suddenly change so many months in. Rentals all the way for me.

Funny thing. You have run into these problems and you just don't know about it. This exact practice is partially responsible for the economy crashing, because so many people defaulted at the same time due to exactly this.

I'd say more like I haven't felt it, really. I'm living in a socialist society. Everything I have is provided by the government, for the price of having to go fight their wars.