# Please Slam Me



## dogcom (May 23, 2009)

So you spent to much money, you paid for a lousy advisor, you paid to much for a stock, made a lousy purchace, bought mutual funds with a high MER or whatever, please post it here so you can be slammed.

I bought a new water heater yesterday and paid $1300.00 including plumbing upgrades and taxes. I went with the best quality the company suggested because he said all water heaters are breaking down every 4 or 5 years as my Sears model did. I was going to go with a tankless water heater but the cost was 3 times as much. So do I recieve a slam or is this ok.

I also paid $150.00 for the house assessment so I can claim all house grants from the government. I think the water heater may not be included since I didn't go tankless or super expensive high efficiency which costs the same as tankless. But I can claim some good money to insulate my attic.

Because I live Richmond BC I don't care about heat so I probably can stay with my 1958 furnace since I enjoy a temperature of 54 degrees F. 

On the financial side I am already slamming myself so I am in front of that.


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## PMREdmonton (Apr 6, 2009)

I am a bit of a mixologist and always wanted a wet bar to pour some drinks. I waited 9 long years to finally own my own home and then 3 more before I finally finished my basement. It cost about $10 000 in the end - it'll just come out of the kid's inheritance.


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## Rickson9 (Apr 9, 2009)

I bought a BMW 3 series when they changed the body type in the late 90s. It was my first car and I was in my mid 20s. Our company just went public and I was holding over $300K in stock options (which later became worthless). Considering the time value of money, it will probably be the worst purchase I'll ever make.


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## dogcom (May 23, 2009)

Alot of people think that they did a good job buying thier home far away from work because they saved money on the purchase price. But if they seriously considered the time they waste and the car mortgages they needed to commute to work everyday they would find out that they made a bad decision, unless they really wanted to live far away.

PMREdmonton one of these days I will waste money and make the ultimate room with surround sound, huge TV, bar and the works. If a few of my penny stocks hit it big then maybe that will do it for me.


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## OhGreatGuru (May 24, 2009)

dogcom said:


> I bought a new water heater yesterday and paid $1300.00 including plumbing upgrades and taxes. I went with the best quality the company suggested because he said all water heaters are breaking down every 4 or 5 years as my Sears model did. I was going to go with a tankless water heater but the cost was 3 times as much. So do I recieve a slam or is this ok.
> 
> Because I live Richmond BC I don't care about heat so I probably can stay with my 1958 furnace since I enjoy a temperature of 54 degrees F.


You needed a new water heater anyway, and if you are paying someone to install it there is a significant labour portion to the cost. You are generally wise to go with the better quality, because you at least delay re-paying the installation cost. "4 to 5 years" life expectancy seems a low average, but this will vary with local water quality. 

Economics of tankless water heaters is a subject of continuing debate. Their instantaneous efficiency is not that great compared to conventional heaters, but their AFUE looks better because there is little or no standby loss. But in most of Canada the standby heat loss is not really wasted, because it is helping to heat the house most of the year. This is not so beneficial in the BC Banana Belt, but even there I would imagine you don't mind having a little "waste" heat added to your home 8 months of the year. Certainly if cost is 3X that of a conventional water heater you are not likely to recover it within the lifetime of the heater.

Regarding your furnace, it's going to pack it in one day. Because of your location economics may not justify early replacement with a more efficient model. But there is news on the energy efficiency front that may prompt you to make an early replacment. When oil & gas prices went through the roof a short while back, Natural Resources Canada passed an amendment to their Energy Efficiency Regulations that will require all new furnaces to have an AFUE of 90% or better as of December 31, 2009. I believe BC has passed a similar requirement regarding any retrofit installations made after December 31, 2009. High-efficiency condensing furnaces are considerably more expensive than the currently permitted mid-efficiency (80%) furnaces, and wil remain that way until the mid-effciency option is completley removed from the market. And Richmond BC is one of the areas in the country where the payback time for a high-efficiency furnace will be longest. It might pay you to buy a buy a mid-efficiency before the phase-out deadline to delay having to upgrade to high efficiency for 10 years or so.


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## dogcom (May 23, 2009)

Thanks for your comments OhGreatGuru the furnace thing is definately something I am debating with myself at this time. Your also right that you will not be able to by any other furnace then the high efficiency after this year, unless the company you buy it from has stock piled them. I may call in a guy for an estimate to see if I want to move forward on that. With the renovation tax rebate and the rebates available out there through Natural Resources Canada I think we all need to have a look at things if we think we need a new furnace or whatever in the near future.

Everyone should also know if you want rebates from Natural Resourses Canada you must first call in an inspector to test the heat loss in your home. This will cost you $150.00 but it must be done or you can't get the rebates.


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## Cal (Jun 17, 2009)

Dogcom - no slam here.

My hot water tank was costing me $30 a month when I first bought the home. That would be roughly $1800 over 5 years. I bought mine out for roughly the same price. So I figure after about 3 or so years I am saving $ rather than paying monthly.


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## dogcom (May 23, 2009)

Thanks cal it is always tough to know if you could have done better. My dad somehow does, he manages to get endless years out of everything and finds a way to get away with it. No matter how I try to upgrade with better products he always comes out ahead by a mile. This is why I am afraid to change the furnace because maybe it is better just to service it and go on. 

From what I hear about the new furnaces they may not last like the new water heaters because of all the new stuff they are using.


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## DAvid (Apr 3, 2009)

A furnace is probably not the best choice in Richmond -- a heat pump is probably the direction most suppliers would direct you. Since heat pumps are rated by their overall efficiency, they often are built without the condensing furnace.


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## moneymusing (Apr 3, 2009)

Rickson9 said:


> I bought a BMW 3 series when they changed the body type in the late 90s. It was my first car and I was in my mid 20s. Our company just went public and I was holding over $300K in stock options (which later became worthless). Considering the time value of money, it will probably be the worst purchase I'll ever make.


I'm in my mid-twenties and am driving a 2008 328i. I've occasionally had my regrets about running around in this. I might only keep it until spring and cut my financial losses before the free service deal runs out. Either way it's a bad financial decision.


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## msimms (Apr 17, 2009)

moneymusing said:


> I'm in my mid-twenties and am driving a 2008 328i. I've occasionally had my regrets about running around in this. I might only keep it until spring and cut my financial losses before the free service deal runs out. Either way it's a bad financial decision.


it's a good financial decision when you take the pus5y magnet factor into account.


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## Berubeland (Sep 6, 2009)

I have definitely made questionable personal relationship decisions. 

My boyfriends have been very expensive 

Then there's my son 

My bf now is definitely a keeper though


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## Rickson9 (Apr 9, 2009)

moneymusing said:


> I'm in my mid-twenties and am driving a 2008 328i. I've occasionally had my regrets about running around in this. I might only keep it until spring and cut my financial losses before the free service deal runs out. Either way it's a bad financial decision.


Unfortunately this kind of lesson is difficult to "learn". Older, wiser people who told me not to do it and their reasons - I just didn't understand. You have to "go through it" and learn it on your own. At least that's how it was for me


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## rbabi18 (Aug 11, 2009)

I had shares in Lehman Bros. that are now worth nothing. SLAMMED!


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## Mockingbird (Apr 29, 2009)

rbabi18 said:


> I had shares in Lehman Bros. that are now worth nothing. SLAMMED!


If you have a stock certificate, then hold onto it.
It might fetch a pretty penny in the near future. 
Look at Bre-X, ~$500 USD for its certificate!


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## dcaron (Jul 23, 2009)

I was into the pre-owned BMW car thing for at least 5 years, traded up twice and lost about 10 grand on the last two transactions. The cars were a pre-owned 1999 328i, 2001 M3, and then a 2002 M5. The last two were bought one year apart ...

I sold the M5 to beef up a downpayment on a new house, and stop the middle-age crisis car madness ...

s-l-a-m-m-e-d ...


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## Rickson9 (Apr 9, 2009)

dcaron said:


> I was into the pre-owned BMW car thing for at least 5 years, traded up twice and lost about 10 grand on the last two transactions. The cars were a pre-owned 1999 328i, 2001 M3, and then a 2002 M5. The last two were bought one year apart ...
> 
> I sold the M5 to beef up a downpayment on a new house, and stop the middle-age crisis car madness ...
> 
> s-l-a-m-m-e-d ...


Ouch. I feel your pain


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## Saniokca (Sep 5, 2009)

Tell me if what I did was crazy/ok:

I'm 25, making 65k (if everything goes well it should be around 80k by July) 

In february I bought a 2009 VW rabbit (new, made in Germany) for roughly 30k. Financing over 4 years = $660/m (2.9%), insurance is $250/m. The reason for the buy was that VW's are good cars and I can keep it for about 10 years. 

However, ignoring all the pro's above - did I spend too much relative to my age/income? The more I think about it the more it seems like I bought beyond my means.


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## moneymusing (Apr 3, 2009)

Saniokca said:


> Tell me if what I did was crazy/ok:
> 
> I'm 25, making 65k (if everything goes well it should be around 80k by July)
> 
> ...


Do Rabbits really cost 30k? That's practically what I paid for the Bimmer (albeit a year old car).

I highly value reliability in a car so I like buying demos or lease returns...you still get a warranty but don't pay the new sticker price.

Wouldn't worry too much about the age though. Get it paid off in under two years and you're good to go.


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## HaroldCrump (Jun 10, 2009)

I have one deserving a slam for sure.
On a recent trip to the US, I used my Canadian cell phone rather liberally, without taking into account roaming charges.
Now the bill is here: over $300 in roaming charges.

It was nothing more than laziness (actually, being over-busy at work).
I _should_ have called the cell phone company beforehand to ask about roaming charges and signed up for a US roaming plan or at least acquired a pre-paid phone or something like that.
I have essentially been charged $1.50 _per minute_ while south of the border for _incoming and outgoing_.

I was super busy at work up until the day of my travel and couldn't spare the 45 mins that would have taken me on the phone, but that's not a good excuse.

So now I'm kicking myself for having to pay $350 for something that would otherwise have cost me 45 mins. on the phone and maybe a $10 fee for adding US roaming to my plan.


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## PMREdmonton (Apr 6, 2009)

I've slowly but surely been climbing my way up debt mountain since I graduated from my medical residency in 2006. I was down to my last $9K on my LOC - I was so close to actual "money in the bank". 

However, I couldn't resist and again spent money that I hadn't yet earned.

I bought myself a used 2004 BMW 745i for $25,000 + GST from a used car dealership. However, I'll point out a couple of things. The car was owned by the Ford dealership's manager. I spoke to him personally about the car and knew a lot about the maintenance habits. He was meticulous about his appearance and the same was true of his car. It was almost 6 years old but not a single spot of rust, not a single scratch or dent and not a single rock chip which is almost unheard of in Edmonton due to the amount of sand and gravel used in the winter on the roads. The other thing was the carproof was pulled and was spotless. The mechanical inspection performed at BMW Edmonton revealed no deficiencies.

Hopefully this car will serve me as well as my last used car purchase (which was a 1998 Camry bought in February 2003 and driver for 6.5 years and 100,000 kms without a single breakdown - just usual maintenance and wear and tear. I'll now pass it onto my brother-in-law who has been asking for the car once I found myself a new car to buy.). As was the case last time I hope to keep it for 5-7 years and then sell it for about $8K.

Anyhow, slam away at my conspicuous consumption - I deserve it.


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## osc (Oct 17, 2009)

PMREdmonton said:


> I graduated from my medical residency in 2006.
> ...
> I bought myself a used 2004 BMW 745i for $25,000 + GST from a used car dealership.


Probably you make over $150k/year after taxes. Spending $25k on a car while you probably are still young to enjoy it, is not that bad. I even think you are too frugal. If I were you I would have bought a new one. Maybe next time, lol.


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## PMREdmonton (Apr 6, 2009)

osc said:


> Probably you make over $150k/year after taxes. Spending $25k on a car while you probably are still young to enjoy it, is not that bad. I even think you are too frugal. If I were you I would have bought a new one. Maybe next time, lol.


Can't do it - it is not my nature. I don't think I'd derive much more pleasure from owning it new. Besides, by buying it after the break-in period, I am free to gun it as I see fit without feeling guilty of abusing a young engine. 

Besides, the car has hardly been broken in - a big 4.5 L engine in that German tank should be good for 500K.


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## moneymusing (Apr 3, 2009)

It's all about buying the demo, or the lease return. I saved close to 20k by buying the demo...and have practically all of the warranty left and free service.
I still do have a car payment though...and that's something that needs to change!


Please slam me: When I was in Switzerland I bought a Tag Heuer watch. It was about half the cost that it would be in Canada but still multiple hundreds of dollars even though a $10 watch performs the same job.

Slam away!


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## Blue Chip (Nov 10, 2009)

I gave Concrete Equities $10,000 of my hard earned cash for a property in Mexico. A year later, it looks like I may have lost all of it.

I also lost about $30,000 in a Diamond mine which never fully materialized up north.

I could go on but I don't want to depress myself any further.


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## hboy43 (May 10, 2009)

Blue Chip said:


> I gave Concrete Equities $10,000 of my hard earned cash for a property in Mexico. A year later, it looks like I may have lost all of it.


Did you realise you lost it all before or after the TV commercials started? A shill for an investment on TV should be as obviously a bad idea as an investment pitch in an email from Nigeria.

hboy43


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