Cheap neighbours

[Wongo]

My next door neighbours always ask me to do their handy work. From installing their son’s car seat, cradle, cot, tri-cycle to simple things like fixing their dripping taps, wobbly chair, bed.. etc.

Then 2 months ago, after seeing my CD rack they asked if I could make them one. So I used some 60yr old recycle timber floor and 2 weekends to build one. It is about 1.5 m tall and holds up to 40 CDs. He agreed to pay me $80 for it. A few days later, he came to tell me that $80 is a bit too much. He asked is $40 OK because they saw one in the shop for less then $50. After feeling deeply insulted I politely replied “OK! no problem”

It is now more than 2 months and I still have not received the $$. I am not bothered by the $$ but just think that sometimes people can be so cheap.
:confused:

[Zed]

Wongo,

I feel for you - I would suggest one or a combo of the following :

1 - say no next time they ask you to do something,
2 - produce receipts (spurious or otherwise) to guilt the bastard into paying you,
3 - COD,
4 - go into his house repossess it and say you've gotten a better offer for it,
5 - go into his house and repossess (and clothe it so it looks like him and burn it in your front yard while he watches),
6 - make him something at 4 in the morning in his front yard.

You pick which ones I really mean!!!!

:D :D :D :D :D :D

[clubbyr8]

It's amazing how some people rely on other people's good will. I'd go and repossess the rack and they say he can have it back for $100. I'd also never make anything for them again!!!!

:mad: :mad: :mad:

[silentC]

Zed, I have to say that:

a. I really love your work and
b. I'd hate to be your neighbour

:D

[oges]

Does the neighbour have the cd rack in possession yet?

I guess you can always ask them nicely to return it if they have no plan on paying for it.

They might have been able to find one for under $50 elsewhere but you cant compare a cheap pine cabinet with shoddy workmanship to the one you made and expect to pay the same price .. could you imagine buying a new commodore and telling them you saw an excel and could you pay that price instead.

Bloody ignorant non-woody people, may they get termites in their jocks! :rolleyes:

[rodm]

Wongo,
$80 is a cheap lesson in life. This is not about you it is about your neighbours mean nature. Hold your head up high and don't let them spoil you day. No need to get even because you are a mile ahead already.

[Zed]

Silentc, we'd be good neighbours - I'd borrow your tools and my wife would play golf with yours!

perfect solution!

I envy you living in Pambula. We have designs of moving to Milton and setting up a B&B / corporate retreat one day.....

[craigb]

Rod is right. Write it off to experience and don't EVER do anything for them again.
BTW for two weekends work plus material, $80 was WAY too cheap in the first place IMO.
$500 wuld have been nearer the mark.

Craig

[Eastie]

Before offering any immoral, unethical advice I have two questions:
1) Do they own a cat?
2) Does it roam free?

[silentC]

Zed,

Come on down mate, we've got the best 27 hole golf course in Australia (it's true!) and tourists galore! Never enough accomodation down here.

Took a lot of hard work to relocate from Sydney, had to find an employer silly enough to pay me to telecommute! Hi boss, and thanks if you're reading this. Yes I know, back to work.

mumble mutter.....

[Wongo]

No they don't have a cat.

They do have 2 cars. The wife recently got a company car and they rarely use their own cars since. May be it is 100% for personal use.

[DaveInOz]

I would ask if they still want it as you have had another offer and could sell theirs instead of building another one.
If that doesn't spur action then call it a cheap life lesson. continue to help them out - so long as you don't feel obligated to, and so long as it doesn't cost you anything.
You don't want to escalate in to a border dispute where you are unhappy in your own environment due to the bad feelings between neighbours

[Pete J]

Wongo - mate - - -

You know what is going to happen. All the damage is done and them giving you the $50 isn't going to help one iota!

One day they are going to remember and give you the cash which now is almost irrelevant. You are going to be really pleasant and say "Thanks, no problem" or other similarly insincere comments when they garble some pathetic apology for being late with the cash. Look at it this way - they have done you a huge favour by giving both you and them a well understood but unspoken reason for them not to ask you for any further favours but if they do, for you to be too busy for the rest of your life.
Enjoy the sunshine!

[Eastie]

Well I’m lost. It appears you’ll have to summon up some of that easy going nature and move on.

[ozwinner]

Originally posted by Eastie
Before offering any immoral, unethical advice I have two questions:
1) Do they own a cat?
2) Does it roam free?

Eastie.
You sound like a man after my own heart.
Meow, here puss, puss. :D
Cheers, Allan

[silentC]

I will allow this site to speak for itself: http://www.bonsaikitten.com/

[ozwinner]

Its all a hoax, I dont like cats in the least, but I complained about this so called cruelty 2 years ago to the RSPCA, and the police.
They told me the whole thing is a big hoax to get you and me upset, seems to work!
At least you wouldnt lose your cat. :D
Cheers, Allan

[silentC]

It didn't upset me at all!! :eek:

[Eastie]

Wouldn't have anything to do with the fact your one very sick unit would it? And implying that my good self would ever hurt an innocent litlle cat is ....... pretty close to the truth actually.

[silentC]

I didn't create the site, I just laughed at it :p

Besides, isn't it just as cruel what they do to those poor little trees, in fact as woodies, we should protest.

I used to have a cat, his name was Tiddles. I taught him to be tough and he could jump six feet in the air from a crouch. He went a bit wild in the end and used to leap out from behind the pot of chrysanthemums and attack my poor old gran. It took about 15 ticks and a fight with another cat to kill the old bugger in the end.

[silentC]

I hasten to add it was the cat that died. Gran lived a long an fruitful life and passed away peacefully, free of parasites... umm that's excluding the kids and grandkids of course.

[derekcohen]

Wongo

Love them or hate them, they're your neighbours and you will be living next door for many years yet (or unless you choose a more drastic path!). So you have to deal with them.

You cannot ignore the money and "put it down to experience". It will eat you up from the inside. You have to go and ask for it.

This can be done diplomatically. Try saying something like, "Bruce (or whatever), it has probably slipped your mind, but will you let me have the money for the CD rack please". If he gets evasive, just let him know (gently but firmly) that you laid out the $$ for the materials, $$ which you now need. If he says he does not have it then-and-there, agree on a time when he will bring it over. Don't become defensive or aggressive. I'm sure that it won't go further than this point.

In future, don't be so quick to volunteer your time for these people. They sound like users not givers.

Regards from Perth

Derek

[Christopha]

At last count there are 4 cats on my bonfire pile, and that's just this weeks tally!( True!)
If they don't have a cat do they have any small children? I have heard they are delicious roasted and served with stacks of gravy and spuds. ;)

Seriously, just don't do anything for the lousy blighters again, you have done your part, nw it is up to them to be good neighbours.

[Iain]

If you have a similar model/colour car, create a number plate and find a few speed camera's................

Don't agree with the cat theory, one killed my German Shepherd, he choked on it

[ozwinner]

Tell them you have a mate with something that fell off the back of a truck, digital camera or something that they would realy like, and its sooooo cheap.
You need cash up front or you cant get the item.
Get $100 of them, then youll be in front, them let them chase you for their $50. :D
If they come good with your $50, plus the other $100, grag it out for a while before you give them their money back, tell them the deal fell through.
Cheers, Fagen

[DarrylF]

I'd write it off an walk away - cheap lesson really. Now at least you know where you stand.

Life's too short to care about 50 bucks - and it's way too short to have anything to do with people who'd rip you off.

I have a little rule with my woodworking - I never make anything for anyone for money. If I'm not perfectly happy to give it to them for nothing, then I'm too busy to make it. This is my hobby. If money gets involved, it ceases to be fun.

[AlexS]

What Darryl said.
I figure my neighbours are tolerant of my noise, so don't mind doing small jobs for them...seems to work well.

Hate charging friends or neighbours money, so suggest they pay me what they think it's worth in red wine. Mostly find they pay more in good wine than I'd feel comfortable charging friends.

[RETIRED]

Gooday.

Has been most interesting.

I have 2 prices for friends or rellos.

Full whack at $60/hour or nothing.

The full price also means 50% up front, balance on completion before delivery and includes all the guarantees of a full retail job.

Nothing means just that.

It took me 20 years to realise that ex-friends and rellos are the most likely to "hang" it on you if something goes wrong. They are also the ones that forget that they weren't charged for that "5 minute job" that occupied 2 weeks and cost you.

I will give anyone a hand but where money is concerned it is business.

Just my thoughts.

[Geoff Sims]

Silent C

I don't like cats much either, but if the Bonsaikitten website made you laugh, you are one sick puppy.

Hoax or not, such cruelty should never be condoned or viewed as entertaining.

Don't have a problem with disposing of unwanted or unwelcome cats, but it has to be humane.

Not funny at all!! Its sick!!

[DarrylF]

Guys,

I use three different outfits to service my cars, depending on what needs doing & where I want it done etc. Two of them charge $75 an hour, the third $95 an hour. Sure they got some guys who've racked up 20+ years, but it costs the same for the apprentice to change the oil.

[silentC]

Hiya Geoff. See, I can tell the difference between a joke and reality. Some folks can't.

Did I mention I had a cat once?

[Kev Y.]

silentC.. I found your lost cat............... under the back wheel of MY CAR!

as for the original post, why not send in the DEBT COLLECTOR, if they are really cheap bastard neighbours, you deserve to be compensated for your time and talent.

[Wongo]

Thank you for your feedbacks. It has been interesting.

Please don’t get me wrong, I am not angry at all. May be I didn’t express myself correctly and I apologize for that. As I said, I am not bothered by the $40. In fact I am quite happy to let them have it for free.

It bugs me because they are so unappreciative. I have built a dozen of items for friends and family and they are very thankful. It is another lesson in life really.

This thread is now closed.

Have a good day.

[Neil]

Got to stick in my 20 cents worth.

23 years ago I sprayed a friends car for him. $150 worth of auto paint and 4 days work, all I asked for was $200. He took the car and said he would be back in a day or so with the cash. We were desperate for the money at the time as we were about to move back to Vic from WA and needed every cent we could muster.

4 weeks passed and not only was there no money forthcoming but he wouldn't reply to phone calls, avoided me in the street and pretended not to be home when I called on him.

3 days before we left for Vic I finally collared him on the phone. He said he had decided not to pay and what was I going to do, repossess it.

The next day I took a very large can if paint thinners and visited his house while he was at work. I spoke to his wife who screamed that weren't going to pay and had spend the money on a new TV instead, and as I was leaving WA in a couple of days there was nothing I could do about it.

She slammed the door in my face and closed all the blinds. I had given them every opportunity. There and then I repossess his paint job.

He has never spoken to me since. Not even to complain about the gooey mess of repossessed paint I left all over his driveway and car. The stripper cost me about $40 which I could ill afford at the time, but believe me the satisfaction of the repossession was well worth the money.

I often think of what would have happened when he saw what I had done and chuckle to myself. I only wish I had a few photos of his reaction.

With friends like that one doesn't needs enemies.

Cheers - Neil :D

PS This was a guy I went to school with and had known since I was 10 years old. He had a reputation for doing to others what he did to me. However this was the first time he had ever done wrong by me.

I believe he underwent a bit of an attitude change some 23 odd years ago and has been pretty square in his dealings with others since then. At least that is what I have been told.

[Iain]

Remind me never to get on your wrong side Neil, I don't think I owe you money as the cars are still intact:D

[JDS]

Judging from your original post it seems as though they are always asking you to do / make things for them.
$80 is cheap if it gets them to stop!

[Wongo]

This is precious.

Almost 2 years after we sold the property today out of nowhere his wife rang. The wife chatted with her blah, blah, blah. Anyway, they just bought a new window blind and the husband has no idea how to install it. She asked if I have time to go over there and do it for them.

2 years 1 phone call and we are not even good friends.

Unbelievable

[Ashore]

This is precious.

Almost 2 years after we sold the property today out of nowhere his wife rang. The wife chatted with her blah, blah, blah. Anyway, they just bought a new window blind and the husband has no idea how to install it. She asked if I have time to go over there and do it for them.

2 years 1 phone call and we are not even good friends.

Unbelievable
Quote them $40 per hour + travelling cash in hand in advance , tell them you now work out of home and they will still pay cause anyone else will charge $80 Rgds

[Greg Q]

This is precious.

Almost 2 years after we sold the property today out of nowhere his wife rang. The wife chatted with her blah, blah, blah. Anyway, they just bought a new window blind and the husband has no idea how to install it. She asked if I have time to go over there and do it for them.

2 years 1 phone call and we are not even good friends.

Unbelievable

I'd be over there in a flash to totally bugger up both the blind and the CD rack. Then shrug my shoulders and offer them the original $80.00 price of the rack against the bargain price you saw the blinds for at the $2.00 shop.

[Buzzer]

Hi Wongo,

*&^% neighbours.

If it was me I would agree to come over and fix the blind with no intention of doing the job, letting then hang out for a while. With a bit of luck they might get the idea.

Good luck and cheers.
Buzzer

[Phil Spencer]

My next door neighbours always ask me to do their handy work. From installing their son’s car seat, cradle, cot, tri-cycle to simple things like fixing their dripping taps, wobbly chair, bed.. etc.

Then 2 months ago, after seeing my CD rack they asked if I could make them one. So I used some 60yr old recycle timber floor and 2 weekends to build one. It is about 1.5 m tall and holds up to 40 CDs. He agreed to pay me $80 for it. A few days later, he came to tell me that $80 is a bit too much. He asked is $40 OK because they saw one in the shop for less then $50. After feeling deeply insulted I politely replied “OK! no problem”

It is now more than 2 months and I still have not received the $$. I am not bothered by the $$ but just think that sometimes people can be so cheap.
:confused:

I think its time to get new neighbours.

Phil

[Wongo]

I think its time to get new neighbours.

Phil


I do have new neighbours. They are called father-in-law and mother-in-law.:D

Anyway I am not good at telling people to bugger off. If they do call again I will tell them that I am busy and hopefully they will get the message.:o