"Pete C." wrote in message
ster.com...

SteveB wrote:

"Nate Nagel" wrote in message
...
Ed Pawlowski wrote:
wrote in message
...
i wonder if thats like renting appliances,it ends up costing 3 times
more than if you just bought it.


That is one of the things that keeps the poor people poor. No cash,
no
credit, so they rent for the same monthly (or weekly) payment forever.

You can buy a new refrigerator for about $450 today. In the same
building where I worked was a used appliance dealer that preyed on the
low income families. He'd sell a used model for $300 with weekly
payments at 22% interest. Miss a payment and he'd repo it and sell it
again.

you'd think that people would clue up and go to the library and search
craigslist and/or just go to the salvation army. Heck, I do that
(well,
craigslist, not SA) for non-essentials and I'm not poor. All you need
is
an old pickup truck and you can get all sorts of stuff for cheap/free.

nate


--
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I seriously doubt that's what keeps poor people poor.

Anywhere in the US, used washers, dryers, and fridges go for around $50.
More if you have to have newer or side by sides. What keeps poor people
poor is having to have that $600 fridge, pay 22% interest, and not paying
the payments when they could have owned one for less than the down
payment
on the new one.

Actually, it all comes down to parental apathy and failing schools. The
ranks of the poor are rapidly growing not just due to the economy, but
due to the lack of education in basic life skills like balancing a
checkbook or budgeting.

I think it's lots of other things. If many of these people were suddenly
thrust on an island, ala Robinson Crusoe, they may work out just fine. Or
maybe they'd be dead in a couple of days. My brother in law is illiterate,
and his construction company did $12 million last year. Go figger.

Steve