mises.org — Many self-described advocates for the poor must believe that the poor are helpless imbeciles incapable of making sensible decisions. The new target: Rent-to-Own stores, which stand accused of preying upon residents of low-income areas.
Aug 3, 2006 View in Crawl 4
dtraczAug 4, 2006
Our economy is based on consumer spending; Telling poor people to save money and wait to buy stuff means that many of them will live for years in lousy apartments with no creature comforts. I say drink Mad Dog and go rent the big screen! Keep the economy going!
dickeytkAug 4, 2006
GREAT article, I was a little apprehensive at first, I never really liked the rent to own stores, but after reading that article, the author made some great arguments, and I agree 100%
antechronosAug 4, 2006
"I said I'm considered poor (for the sake of the article) because I ruined my credit, therefore, despite the fact that I make a pretty decent living, I'm "forced" to shop at RTO places."You're not "forced" to shop at RTO places any more than people with good credit are "forced" to carry a balance on their credit card. I have fairly good credit, but not a whole lot of money. So do I go and put a $1500 TV that I can't afford on my credit card? Hell no! I either save up for it and buy it when I can afford it, or I simply do without. No way in Hell I'm going to line some credit card company's pockets at my own expense just so I can brag about my giant TV. I'm neither insecure enough to need to brag, nor do I such a sense of entitlement that I think I should own stuff that I can't afford.Really, people are only "forced" to shop at RTO places (or use credit cards) when they insist on living outside of their means. What most of them ignore is the fact that doing this results in reducing their means even more.
tony23Aug 4, 2006
You know, I make a pretty good living as a programmer, and my wife & I watch our favorite shows on a 24" TV that we've had for years. Someone who "needs" a huge TV THAT badly actually needs to get a life.
Closed AccountAug 5, 2006
"It is good business to exploit people." Only in the short run. Businesses, (without the government's grant of monopoly privilege), live or eventually die by their reputations. RTO's are a good example. Look at the huge market share of creditworthy, intelligent potential customers, that they deny themselves, simply because we recognize their bad business practices.
striker840Aug 8, 2006
My wife and I used a local RTO a few times to rent bunk beds when my kids came up from Florida until she got her profit sharing check and then we went out and bought one. I also know of a few people that will rent a big screen for big football games like when Ohio State plays Michigan or bowl games and the super bowl. They don't need the big screen for everyday use just when they hold the parties.They serve a purpose for a quick rent but to go thru the whole RTO contract you end up paying 2-3 times the initial price for the item.
wakerunnerJul 10, 2008
To anybody who wants to say that rent to own is unfair or predatory:Is renting an apartment or renting or renting a house unfair or predatory? Of course not, and if it is then you should be targeting apartment complexes.Renting to own is no different than that except with one great exception, in rent to own they tell you "We will rent this tv to you for $15.00 a week... and if you rent it for 1 year, its yours. Show me an apartment building or rental landlord that will tell you if you rent this apartment or house for 30 years its yours... yeah right!! In an apartment they will raise your rent every few years and you will never own it.If the current attitude about rent to own continues its only going to hurt the consumers because guess what... if they outlaw rent to own then the rent to own stores will become just like your landlord, rent to you, raise your rent every few years and you will never own it.
wakerunnerJul 10, 2008
To anybody who wants to say that rent to own is unfair or predatory:Is renting an apartment or renting or renting a house unfair or predatory? Of course not, and if it is then you should be targeting apartment complexes.Renting to own is no different than that except with one great exception, in rent to own they tell you "We will rent this tv to you for $15.00 a week... and if you rent it for 1 year, its yours. Show me an apartment building or rental landlord that will tell you if you rent this apartment or house for 30 years its yours... yeah right!! In an apartment they will raise your rent every few years and you will never own it.If the current attitude about rent to own continues its only going to hurt the consumers because guess what... if they outlaw rent to own then the rent to own stores will become just like your landlord, rent to you, raise your rent every few years and you will never own it.
wakerunnerJul 10, 2008
To anybody who wants to say that rent to own is unfair or predatory:Is renting an apartment or renting or renting a house unfair or predatory? Of course not, and if it is then you should be targeting apartment complexes.Renting to own is no different than that except with one great exception, in rent to own they tell you "We will rent this tv to you for $15.00 a week... and if you rent it for 1 year, its yours. Show me an apartment building or rental landlord that will tell you if you rent this apartment or house for 30 years its yours... yeah right!! In an apartment they will raise your rent every few years and you will never own it.If the current attitude about rent to own continues its only going to hurt the consumers because guess what... if they outlaw rent to own then the rent to own stores will become just like your landlord, rent to you, raise your rent every few years and you will never own it.