Finding a good deal is something that we can all appreciate. After all, earning money is hard work and spending it should provide us with the value that we are looking for. However, there are plenty of scams and rip-offs out there disguised as good deals, and most of us don’t even know about them. Let’s take a quick look at the biggest rip-offs that people keep spending money on.
Trading in Old Cars for New Models
We always like having the newest car around, and dealerships often contact their customers to see if they’d like to trade in their old car for a newer model, all without changing the payment amounts. Getting the newer model of your vehicle without increasing the payment amount might seem like a good deal, until you realize that a year’s worth of payments have been erased!
“What he didn’t realize is that this lost him one year’s worth of payments towards his car.”
Diets
Diet plans seem like great deals, especially when you’re still losing weight. This is the case until you realize that you’ll gain back twice the amount of weight the second that you stop the diet. It’s just a money grabbing scheme targeted at desperate people.
“Diet gimmicks. When people are desperate to lose weight, they’d go to great lengths with herbs, diet pills, and “easy” exercise machines.”
Greeting Cards
Hallmark has made a living of charging $10 or more for folded pieces of paper with some impersonal sayings and jokes that were never funny to begin with scribbled on the inside. Charging such huge prices for pieces of paper that recipients probably don’t even look at is one of the biggest scams out there. People throw those greeting cards right in the garbage!
“My girlfriend writes me letters on holidays. She doesn’t buy a card, rather she just writes a really nice letter. Its wayyy better than a card because its her own thoughts and isn’t a waste of money.”
Single Serve Portions
We’re all busy people, and most of us don’t have time to cook, which is why single serve portions of food sold in grocery stores seem like attractive options. You don’t have to cook anything and it’s just enough food to get you through to the next meal. Some can even be pretty tasty too. The issue is that grocery stores keep packaging smaller and smaller meals but charging more and more for them. It’s really a scam of convenience.
“The ways companies will come up with to repackage smaller portions in fancier containers to charge people extra for the ‘convenience’.”
Cars
Perhaps one of the biggest rip-offs of all is the automobile. They cost a whole lot to begin with, they require constant fuel refills, and maintenance never stops with them. Let’s not forget the cars only depreciate in value too, so as soon as they leave the lot, you will start losing money.
“So, now that they’ve convinced you to buy a new car because you “deserve” it, what are the real costs?”
Bottled Water
Bottled water is another one of these massive scams that people just seem to keep paying for blindly. There are some brands of bottled water that charge insane amounts of money, something like $5, for nothing more than water that probably wasn’t even filtered to begin with. It’s just regular tap water being sold to you under the guise of being something special.
“As someone once pointed out, bottled water is often more expensive than gasoline.”
Cleaning Products
Have you ever paid excess amounts of money for a specialized cleaning product, only to realize that a bottle of vinegar and a sponge would have probably done a better job? Companies charge insane amounts of money for cleaning products that don’t work any better than the stuff you have sitting around in your kitchen cupboards.
“Carpet Powder = Baking soda”
Drinks at a Bar
Of course it’s fun to go out with some friends and have some drinks at a bar while watching the game, but it certainly isn’t cost effective. Bars often charge up to five or even ten times the value of a drink. Who wants to pay $20 for a beer?
“I am amazed at how much money people spend on drinks at bars and restaurants. So overpriced.”
Cable TV
Cable TV might have been worth it 10 or 15 years ago when streaming services weren’t around yet, but now you’re just paying excess amounts of money to watch what amounts to bad programming and even worse, commercials.
“You can watch most TV for free online.”
Payday Loans
You might think you’re getting a good deal by getting your payday early, but remember that the interest rates that these providers charge are absolutely insane. People who get payday loans usually always end up putting themselves far deeper in the hole than they started out.
“The interest rates they charge should be illegal.”
Lottery Tickets
Sure, there may be occasional winners, but in the grand scheme of things, the lottery is one of the biggest rip-offs out there. Most people spend their whole lives burning through countless dollars in the hopes of winning the jackpot, just to never get anything at all.
“Who do you know that’s won?”
Starbucks
It’s amazing how many people are willing to pay $15 for a drink that they probably can’t pronounce. Extra pump of soy free almond foam anyone?
“I can get a better tasting, large coffee at Cumberland Farms for $1.”
They are Having a Dry Wedding and Only Serving Water. Their Family is Unhappy. There is a Wide Selection of Food and Kids are Invited But Will They Still Look Cheap?
A couple is planning their wedding for later this year. They come from large families, so the guests will be between 100 and 150. The bride is reaching out to the online community with a dilemma she and her husband-to-be are having.
People Reveal Their Celebrity “Hot in Every Era” Crushes
There are many celebrities in the industry who have been acting for decades. Their longevity continues because of their talent and the loyalty of their fans. The following is a list of celebrities who readers feel stand the test of time. These celebrities serve as a reminder that true beauty knows no era and continues to inspire admiration and awe.
People Reveal Their Celebrity “Hot in Every Era” Crushes
Popular Meals in the 1960s Women Cooked for Their Families
In the 1960s, the role of the housewife was still primarily centered around homemaking and cooking. In many households, the housewife was responsible for preparing meals for her family, often using simple ingredients and traditional recipes. Though many women were interested in making convenient meals, Julia Child’s famous cookbook released in 1961, Mastering the Art of French Cooking hit the stores and was also a major influence. Here are some of the most popular meals a homemaker would cook in the 1960s and many of them remain popular today.
Popular Meals in the 1960s Women Cooked for Their Families
She Bought Taylor Swift Concert Tickets But One Friend Never Paid Her Share. She Sold the Tickets With Her Permission But Didn’t Share the Profit. Who Owns the Ticket? Was She Wrong?
The original poster (OP) is reaching out to the online community because of a problem she is having with a friend who she planned to attend a concert with.
She Said Her Family Was Paying for Her Annual Girls Vacation But Her Husband Discovered She Was Using Their Rewards Points to Pay. He is Furious and Calling Her Selfish. Is He Right?
The original poster (OP) and her husband of nine years have four children together. OP is a stay-at-home mom whose husband makes approximately $150,000 a year. They live by a relatively strict budget.
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