Archive for January, 2007

I normally don’t like to write posts to criticise establishments but I’m rattled so here goes….

Bad encounter #1

I wanted to buy some bulky items at Ikea and have it home delivered. However I was not very sure of the procedure. I thought that for home deliveries I had to pay for the items first then inform home delivery that I wanted those items delivered. I did not know that I had to pick up the items first, pay for it, then go to home deliveries and asked for those items to be delivered. While I was pondering about what to do, I approched a bored looking Ikea staff to ask. He gave me a scornful look and said “Most people who are here come here all the time so they know what to do already.”  before he proceeded to help me pick up my items.

My thoughts: Well, Mr bored looking gentleman. I don’t come here all the time because I don’t buy furniture everyday and besides its your job to assist me. You must be either underpaid or a not very happy employee to behave in this manner.

Bad encounter #2

So I paid for the items and took them to home delivery to arrange for a delivery time. I stressed that I wanted them delivered at 6.00pm on the date we requested because no one was home before that. On the date in question, the delivery man rang at 12.00pm and said, I am in your area, can I come now?

My thoughts: Not very nice of them to change timing last minute but they were just trying their luck since they were “in the area” so thats forgiveable.

Bad encounter #3 

Eventually they came at 1.00pm, not in a nice Ikea truck I had envisioned but in an old open top red and brown lorry. One of the items was chipped so the delivery guy said we had to call customer service to arrange for a replacement. Calling customer service is a pain. The phone would ring endlessly till it gets cut off. After I finally got through we fixed a date but was not allowed to fix a time for delivery. “Wait for home delivery to call you” I was told.

When home delivery rang me they told me, “Your delivery is slotted for 4-5pm on this date.” I tried to change the time to a later time because no one was home then but was told “Cannot. We’re full.” I tried to change to another date and was told “Cannot. I don’t know. You have to speak to customer service” then the line was passed to customer service and it rang till it went dead.

I called up customer service again and got another date but when I tried to arrange the time I was told “Cannot. You have to wait for home delivery to call you one day before the delivery date.” I asked if they could put a note there to inform delivery of my preferred time since I would not be home at certain times. “Cannot, you have to wait for home delivery to call you.” I then asked them what would happen if they called and they can’t give me a time which is convenient on that fixed date? “Well, then your delivery will be postponed.” they said.

My thoughts: Everyone from the staff at the store to the delivery call center and even the customer service person was not very helpful and sounded rude. I know they had certain procedures to follow but they were not willing to discuss anything beyond that. I was met with a “cannot” answer with no other solutions being offered. They were allowed to change the timing of delivery at their last minute whim but we the customer are only allowed to fix a time convenient to us one day before delivery and if that time was not suitable we had to go through the hassle of calling the customer service staff and repeat the procedure all over again! The staff must be very unhappy to work there or underpaid. Shopping at Ikea has been a rather unpleasant experience for me. I’ll try to limit my shopping there in the future thats for sure.

 

It is good to start having an investment plan from an early age. However most people start planning only when they become parents and realise the importance of keeping a nest egg for their dependants. Its not too late but now that you realise the importance of saving and investing to make your money grow, what do you invest in? 

Investing in gold has been a smart investment method passed down through past generations. Besides, it is wise to spread your investments into various instruments and not put all your eggs into one basket. In order to diversify your investments you can consider investing in gold bars.

When you include “gold” in your investments, you can decide to either “buy and hold” or trade but before you do, it is best that you discuss your specific gold buying strategies with a professional in the trade.

I put up the “Apartment for Sale” sign on a Sunday. By Wednesday I received my first offer for it at my asking price. By Friday I had received a second counter offer for it.

This time the lady who called sounded young (probably my age when I bought the apartment) and eager. She told me “I’ve just been to the outside of your apartment and I really like it. Can you show it to me please? I’m thinking of buying it as a surprise for my parents. Its perfect for them. Its very near my brother’s office and its near facilities.”

I told her that I was about to receive a deposit for it the next day and that she’d have to view it that very evening and pay me an immediate deposit to confirm the deal if she really wanted to buy the place.

I then consulted my lawyer who told me that in order for me to break my verbal agreement with the first party, I would have to receive a substantially higher counter offer for the place. I would then have to inform and offer the apartment to the first potential buyer at the new counter offer price and if she declined then it would be safe for me to proceed to close the deal with the second party.

Phew! I was in a dilemma. I so wanted or preferred to sell the place to the second young lady. I was completely taken in by her story about buying the apartment for her parents. I saw myself in her back in those days when I first bought the apartment. I pictured how happy her parents would be at the surprise. (She had been paying rental for her parents to live in rented houses but now she felt it was time to buy). My dad had enjoyed living there and I imagined that her parents would too. Yes, I was in a dilemma.

To cut a long story short, she did make me a counter offer and I informed the first lady about that counter offer and offered it to her at that price. Understandably the first party was very upset by the turn of events. She told me that her aunty sobbed the whole night because she was all ready to buy the place and she had withdrawn money to pay the deposit etc.

They took up the counter offer so I had no choice but to sell it to them and turn the second lady down. I felt really bad about making an old lady upset (her aunty who seemed nice and the quiet sort who said yes to everything but not she who was also elderly but worldly wise, very money minded and shrewed) so I reduced the price by half the counter offer amount and they paid the deposit and that was that and now a few months later, the deal is done.

I suppose I was just lucky to have sold it so quickly. I had prepared myself to put up the “Apartment for Sale” sign for up to 6 months. Or perhaps that place had its own niche. I noticed that all the callers were either elderly folks or younger children enquiring for their parents. Lol! I lived in an old folks home!

I guess the fact that its the 1st floor of a walk up apartment helped plus the fact that it was near to ammenities ie walking distance to bus stops, bank, wet market, coffee shops etc. It was convenient for the old folks but the younger ones are not interested. With so many cheap apartments with facilities available (if you are willing to stay very far out of town that is) most younger folks want something newer and preferably with some facilities.

I put up my “Apartment for Sale” sign on a Sunday and by Wednesday, I received my first offer for it.

The lady who called said “Sell it to me. Please reserve it for me and don’t show it to anyone else” I told her that if she wants to do that she’d have to pay me a deposit.

Later after viewing the place, she informed me that she was helping her aunt to buy the apartment. “My aunt lets me handle everything and she doesn’t know a thing” she told me. And then she made an unusual request. “Could you raise your asking price to my aunt by RMXXX and after you receive your payment, could you pay me that RMXXX amount? This way you will still get your asking price” This lady was not young herself. She was probably about 50-60.

I was of course happy to get my asking price but hubby and I deliberated over what she asked of me. We were not happy to raise the amount to her aunt because it made us feel like partners in crime to cheat her aunt and so we being rather honest and perhaps too straight people told her “We will not raise the asking price to your aunt but we will still pay you the RMXXX that you are asking for. This will mean that we will get the asking price less RMXXX.”

Maybe we were a bit silly but it made us feel better. But you know what?!!! To my shock, she then told me “Oh! In that case, can  you raise your asking price to  my aunt by RMXXX and pay me RMXXX times  2?” Oh my goodness the cheek of the woman!!! So unbelievably greedy! I mean I was willing to get paid a lower amount so that she didn’t have to cheat her aunty and she took advantage of that fact and wanted to ask for more $$$ or get more out of the transaction! So unbelievable!

Anyway, we made an appointment for her to pay us the deposit the next day.

Oops! This post is getting long. I’ll talk about the counter offer in another post.

I’m lousy at shopping for gifts for the opposite sex. I don’t know why but I always end up buying things like towels, T-shirts, mugs and neckties, year in and year out. Whether the gift is for my father, brother or husband, its towels, T-shirt or shirt, mugs and neckties. LOL!

I’m thinking aloud. Neckties don’t make such a bad gift do they? The choice of the right necktie will make the wearer stand out among the corporate crowd and look more professional. I like those in classic red or dark blue.

The neckties on Belisi.com look sophisticated and classic. I think they’ll make a great gift. So who says ties are boring gifts?