tee_tz

Hmm... well I don't think Ralph Lauren is a trust fund baby, and he certainly didn't win the lotto. I mean, I guess it's just different personalities of rich people, some are like that, some aren't. Hey at the end of the day, that expression did come from somewhere (and it does have some kind of point).

And those restaurants do exist -- in fact in any normal restaurant usually the most expensive item on the menu, Lobster, is often listed as MP (market price). A rich person with money who is dying for lobster doesn't need to know how much (based on previous experience of ordering lobster), a person who isn't willing to pay a 'certain amount' or doesn't really generally know the price will likely find out how much because if he's told $150 he might say 'no thank you'.

I don't know how to explain it better. Okay -- a rich person is flying from New York to Switzerland, likely to take Swiss Air as it offers direct service. Okay, he KNOWS he's flying first class (nothing else is good enough) so what's the point of asking the price? First of all, he'll probably have a secretary call and do the reservations, so it's kind of like if the price is $3500 return or $5000 return, he's still going to take the flight.


Tee_Tz.

NY C32

I'm not saying that wealthy people aren't willing to spend money on a particular lifestyle but that saying is more commonly spoken from a snooty Louis Vuitton salespersons mouth rather than a wealthy person mouth.

The examples you give aren't in line to what you've previously said. MP on a menu is market price because they differ day in and out and that isn't exclusive to 5 star restaurants. Red Lobster does that for gods sake. Even then, there is a range...I know there will never be a time when I'll be charged $50 per lbs for a lobster...so I don't bother asking. There isn't a 5 star restaurant in NYC that I haven't been and every one of them have prices. I've been to several all over the world and its the same. In fact, the only place I know of that don't have prices printed on menus are at a few country clubs where the member/signer of the bill has prices on their menu.

Everybody, both rich and poor, have a perceived value of everything...$3500 suit may be normal to some but a rip off to others while a $50 video game may be a fair price to some while a complete waste to others.

I've never flown nonstop to Switzerland nor have I ever priced it out but I can guess that it shouldn't exceed $10k each way (first class/full fare). So the guy flying first class to Switzerland probably has a number in his head and may not ask how much the ticket will be because he knows the price range. If his Amex bill came it he was charged $50k for that flight, I guarantee he'll not only notice, he'll be pissed.

Bottom line is that I understand what you're saying but I don't think the traditional wealthy think the way you're saying.

tee_tz

I agree. And let me just say, I would always ask the price too, except for minor things -- like things that even now I don't ask (got a bagel and cup of coffee this morning and I didn't ask the price, just assumed it'd be $5 or so); but whatever, back to the point of Mercedes Benz S-Class Owners...


Tee_Tz.

xecution

If you know and understand the tax loopholes financing and leasing is always a good option, unless you plan on keeping your car for 4 or 5 years leasing can be the best way to go. Since cars are usually the second biggest investmant after a house yet they depreciate and homes tend to appreciate depending on where you live. Personally I enjoy owning brand new cars, one car I own and two I don't because I know I'll be upgrading to newer models when they arrive. If you are a car person like me, and have the money to burn then go for it, Isn't the luxury of a mercedes an unnecessary expense anyways .all expensive cars can be considered a waste of money, but we drive them for two reasons, because we want them and because we obviously have the money to burn.

xecution

It all depends on what someone considers rich. I consider myself a Smart money man, since I built a multi million dollar enterprise in 10 years from 50 bucks and a lot of ingenuity and perseverance. But yet I don't consider myself rich just well off. Rich to me is a prince of Arabia or Bill Gates. All people ask for price depending on what they are buying. Bill Gates may not ask for the price of a bag of chips, but you bet he asks the price of a multi million dollar yacht. The reason financing and leasing can the best choice is because although you are paying interest, you can easily earn more than the interest you pay off of 150 grand in your pocket if you use it for smart investments. OK back on topic I think the point of the poster is that although he probably could afford the vehicle, with the wife making less income lets not forget there are other bills that exist in a household.

Brian_I.

I would never buy anything that I didn't think I could afford on my income alone. My wife hasn't worked for years and we have been doing just fine. When she does decide to work again it will just be extra money to go into the bank.

As for leasing/owning I have three cars and I am leasing one and the other two are paid off. Each has its purpose and its own different financial benefits as to the type of transaction that took place during the acquisition. There really is no reason to debate one over the other. Since everyone has different financial situations, one solution will almost never work the same for the next guy over. The important thing is to really understand your own situation, whether that means consulting your CPA or pulling up last year's Turbo Tax software and crunching the numbers for yourself. Once you factor in all the available options, make a decision based on solid numbers - not on what some Joe Blow on an internet forum thinks is the "only way to go".

As for the whole "if you have to ask..." phrase, here's my take... I agree with NY_C32 that the phrase is just something that some snob somewhere came up with to make the average person feel like they would be frowned upon if they displayed any sort of remote curiosity to the cost associated with a particular product, whether it be an LV purse or fresh Lobster.

The way I see it, I want to make sure I'm not over-paying for something unnecessarily when I ask for a price. If I am going to buy something, it is because I either need it or I really want it. In either case, I am going to get it no matter what the price but I will still ask how much to make sure I can't get it for half the price at the place down the street. And in the case of designer items, I won't walk into a store unless I know I can afford to buy anything in there. Not to say I spend money frivolously, but I know how much things cost so I know what I am going to spend. A good example is when I went over to Gucci last December to buy my wife a purse. I knew the price was going to be anywhere from $800-$1500. When I found the purse that I thought she would like, I asked the price to make sure it was in that price range and then I bought it. If the sales lady would have said $2000, I would have had to look at it twice and really make sure it was something I thought my wife would like. Otherwise, I didn't think twice at all. You could apply the same principle to anything you buy regardless of the price. If I go into a snack shop and buy a pack of gum I am expecting it is going to cost me between $1-$2. If the clerk rings me up for $10, I will kindly ask him to go ahead and take back the gum and I will leave his shop and never return.

The bottom line is this, do what you feel comfortable with. If asking a price makes you feel like less of a man for some reason then don't ask. Just don't go home crying because you just bought something that was way overpriced and now you can't afford it. Anyone who has the mentality that if you ask you can't afford it is probably just a snob. And most of those people that work in high-end retail shops that act like rich snobs obviously have no grasp on reality. Sometimes you have to remind them that you are the paying customer and they are just the hired help, they tend to get it confused sometimes.

naijaman

Interesting topic. I guess I've been lucky so far....I bought my W220 cash using some equity in our home back in 2004, and all 3 of our cars are paid off. We are not rich or even wealthy, just middle-class folks who happen to have zero debt (barring the mortgage), so we can afford at least the Benz while socking away money in savings/401Ks etc. We also got lucky in that we purchased the house for $120,000 in 2002 and it is currently worth $305,000.

I guess if we were to go down to one income, things would get a little tighter, especally in terms of how much we can save, but we'd stil be ok.

I plan to buy the new S-class only after my current one keels over and dies...not a day before. The fact that I have a daily driver for workdays (hence I drive the Benz only on Saturday nights) means it will be a long time before I get into the W221...but so be it.


** The wife is getting tired of her Acura and is looking at the BMW X3 for the baby we hope to have in a year or two, so watch this space....

Ferri

I was at a high end store recently, as I was looking to buy a suit. One of these snooty salespeople, fortysomething male, came asking if I needed help. Instead of simply telling him about the suit, i decided to ask him about some Armani linen pants I had seen in one of their outlet stores, where they usually ship their clearance items. I had liked the pants very much and was hoping if they carried them in size 32--the outlet store carried size 30s. His helpful demeanor immediately turned into a high browed look as he told me that they don't carry clearance items in this store. After an obligatory "is that all?" to which he did not even wait to get an answer, he moved on. So did I, to the other salesperson who turned out much nicer and proceeded to purchase the items I had planned all along, all the while enjoying the dumbfounded look on this schmuck's face as he was seeing a nice piece of commission fly out the window. Icing on the cake was when the valet of the store pulled up in my S600 Sport--about the only time I had used the service at that shopping collection, it had been a very cold day--and I could feel his eyes burning a hole down my back while he cursed himself for ignoring the seemingly "member of the unwashed masses" 27 year old.

Anyway, sorry for the OT story, but the comment of the snooty LV sales peeps aroused kind recent memories.

tee_tz

LOL, that's a good one.

Yeah, those people are very snooty sometimes, they don't realize that they just work their not shop from there/live that lifestyle.


Tee_Tz.

mbnj

There was a great Janis Joplin car story along the lines of the "armani pants". Janis was living in SF and went down to the local Jag dealership because she finally could afford her dream car. Janis looked like... well, Janis, all frumpy and hippy carrying her big knit bag. She says the first salesman took a look at her and was barely civil and advised her to take a look around if she wanted and never came back. A second salesperson walked over and treated her like a customer and was astonished when she opened up the big hippy bag and paid for a new Jag.

xecution

Being that I am the type who likes to dress down, not the dress up type. Years ago went to a Dealership and tried to tell a salesman I would like to see him when he was done with the customer he was helping, and before I could even say it, he told me he was busy right now (right in front of the customer he was helping) so I went to find another salesman, bought the most expensive car they had on the lot and drove off the same day, and his customer didn't even buy a car at all. Now every time I go there he try's to speak to me and I basically ignore him.

zam2000

Talk about affordability, between my wife and I, we pull in about $250K/year, yet we know we can't afford the S class (heck, can't even afford a house here ). The secretery of my company, however, is driving an awesome W220 S500. Last I heard, she got some great finance deal from Mercedes of South Bay, but still, we can't figigure ....

In Kalifornia (especiall SoCal), there are plenty of people who live as if they're rich , or as the saying here go "buy what you want, not what you can afford".

As for being mistreat by saleperson, my brother and his friend was cold turned down by a guy at Fletcher because "he's busy", in front of another customer (who turn out didn't buy crap, just talk big and dress nice). Later on, when he saw that that they were buying an E and S car (at the same time), he came back and said he had free time now, booooooo. But then, it's pure luck for saleman too, hard to tell who walk in the door would end up buying the car. Nevertheless, I agree that if they treat everyone nicely (instead of treating nice to those who they think will buy soon), they only have more to gain.

pmb600

Lol, as I read this I'm watching that real housewives of orange county show...lol

JP465NY

Well I'm single and about to lease a new E63. When all is said and done the car will be paid for via interest income. If I follow the 10% rule stated earlier in the thread I am a little over that, possibly closer to 15%. However I do not take the food out of my mouth or the roof over my head. My house is paid for and I have no debt. I have an E500 that I pay $860/month for now so I am uneasy about adding $400/month to my payment. It's just because I am laying out the extra money. Mind you I overly exceed my contributions to a 401K and save 50-60% of my take home pay.

JOE

IanGreening

I forgot I even started this thread. Seems like everyone on this BB is doing "just fine". Have a good one, dudes.

vettdvr

I don't consider myself upper class but based on income middle class. My wife doesn't work and I got her a new Mercedes for valentines. Ok so she calls me tight. I ask every detail question and compare every option and price on ANYTHING before I buy. But since she doesn't work and didn't quit her job,, I just wrote a check and she drove it out. So the fact she doesn't work made me no difference. And even though I had no monthly payments. I still ask detail questions. I didn't get to my $$ position by giving $$ away or buying dumb stuff. Every item should have a $/mile usage and how that value depreciates either by selling and returning some $$ or by reducing the $/mile by driving more miles. I really expect value when I spend the $$.

BTW I don't work either. Jim Corvette Nassau Blue

Big_Bruce

As

As the Bootsy Collins song goes: "The answer to your question is.......... very no, very no"!

blessed

Big Bruce what do you know about Bootsy?

I can't stop lovin you because I don't want ta.

Yaba daba do baby buba.

csumt76

You talking payments/gas/insurance total? I guess that would put me at...
around 11-12% on my E class. I also have a bike and a truck, yikes!!!!! Time to sell them all and get a hoopty.

RBP

Wealthy people with any amount of class do not talk about their wealth.

Dema

My spouse never worked however I can afford two. What's your point?

scriber

This is a topic that has been on my mind for a while because I have been wrestling with whether or not to purchase a new car.
i am fairly young, under 30 and am somewhat neurotic in making the correct financial decisions. My fiance and I in the past 3 years have just started making some real money after college and grad school. Earlier this year we purchased a home in Manhattan NYC because we thought it was the safest investment. Keep in mind, property value in manhattan is at about 1,200 per sq feet last I checked so we spent close to a million dollars on our home. Now that things have settled down a bit, I am getting an itch to be the typical American over consumer and purchase a new luxury automobile.
I guess it really boils down to a persons definition of being wealthy. I'm still unclear on which definition I should adhere to. Some consider owning high priced items as defining their wealth. Others like those in the aforementioned article are defined as rich because they can sustain their lifestyles for a longer time without income because they are frugal and have less expensive lifestyles.
I guess I must weight whether being financially secure without income is more important or purchasing things that make me happy as a reward for my hard work. Put that way, the obvious decision is to not purchase a new vehicle. However, this is harder to do than it sounds when you see everyone driving around in a nicer car than you when they are probably making 1/4-1/6 of your salary. I always ask my fiance the question, how do these people do it? If you must know I drive an 8 year old accord that I purchased when I first went to college.
If i were to adhere to the 10% rule, I'd have to almost double what my household income is before I can afford an S class due to the fact that on top of the vehicle cost and higher insurance cost I'd have to pay for a parking spot in a garage which in my neighborhood costs upwards of $600 a month. On top of that, we plan on starting a family after we are married next year so all things considered; I think the likelyhood of me purchasing an S class is getting smaller and smaller.
Excuse the long post, like I said I have been wrestling with this for several months.
All said and done, I find myself constantly stopping and admiring every S class I see on the street. It really is a great car and I admire everyone on this board that drives one.

pmb600

Congrats on your purchase in NYC. Honestly, I think stretching yourself to buy a luxury car would not be the best idea since you live in Manhattan. How many times a week would you actually drive the car? You menion that you are neurotic about your finances, as am I, and you probably take good care of your stuff as well. I never know how people take care of their cars in Manhattan, they get banged up all the time and I guess the only way to wash them is to take them to a car wash which is bad for the paint.

If you lived anywhere besides Manhattan I would say if you really really want it, maybe get it. But what is the point of over extending to have a car there?

Chucky300

If I lived in Manhattan, I'd take a look at how my business was doing, and just sit down and do a projection to see if its workable to spend another $600per month to keep the car parked in the garage monthly.

I'm not embarassed to say that I HATE taking trains and busses. I know its the fastest way to get around the city, but I just DONT like it. I have no problem with car service / taxis. For that reason, I dont think its really important to keep a car in the city - except for the weekend drives out to other locations, whether its brooklyn, Long Island, or wherever.

Its a REAL luxury to keep a car in the city monthly.

scriber

Very true, we only take the car out on nice weekends when we want to get out of the city. Sometimes the car doesn't get touched in the winter for several weeks. I know I have said to my Fiance more than once that it would probably be an easier decision if I spent more time in the car; if that were the case I probably wouldn't have such a hard time deciding.
The other issue that you mention regarding car care is very true. Before I moved to the city, my car was in perfect condition. No bumper dings/scratches and always spotless. Nowadays, that has gone down the drain. On the upside though, I'm less neurotic on where I will park the car now since it's already all banged up.