Thierry Roge/Reuters

Many personal finance experts will tell you they subscribe to the belief that everything is negotiable. It certainly doesn’t hurt to ask, at least.

This tactic can often result in small savings, for things like utilities or gym memberships, as we’ve discussed on Bucks before. Many people are successful in negotiating rent, prices of cars and other big-ticket items.

But it can pay off to ask for discounts and deals in other places.

During one of several visits to our bank branch when we were in the process of renting a new apartment, I discovered that my husband had been paying for cashier’s checks while I have not, even though we have
the same account there. When he is asked to pay the $8 fee, he pays it. I ask for it to be waived, and I’ve never been refused.

Sometimes the amounts are trivial, but a good talker can score significant savings in circumstances where prices appear to be fixed. A kind professor once secured tuition for me for a full semester of graduate school, after nothing more than a casual conversation.

Do you ever ask for deals in unconventional places? Have you ever gotten something for free or at a tremendous discount just by asking for it?

Article source: http://feeds.nytimes.com/click.phdo?i=8159117fb1adb9b6babc987db96fac18