Even Multi-Billionaires Think It’s Stupid Not To Negotiate Your Cable Bill

Ken Langone, the co-founder of Home Depot, might be a multi-billionaire (he is worth around $3.3 billion according to Forbes) but that doesn’t mean he likes to pay more for things than he has to. During an appearance on CNBC, Langone revealed that he makes it a point of negotiating his cable bill when he thinks it has become too high. “I won’t spend money frivolously … Yesterday, I happened to challenge my cable bill for my apartment,” Langone told CNBC. “It looked to me like a staggering amount of money and — it was a couple of hundred bucks — but I was just thinking, ‘My God, I watch one television in the bedroom!'” said Langone. “The point I’m making is it’s not that I’m cheap, it’s just that I want to make sure I don’t squander money,” Langone said. It’s a piece of advice that you can apply to just about anything in life, whether it is your next vacation, the car you buy, or how much you are spending on clothes — don’t overpay! It’s also a wise piece of advice in dealing with some of the bills you receive each month –like your cable, phone and internet bill — that you probably just accept, even as they are increased in increments little by little. Here’s the thing, those bills can all be negotiated (just as Langone did), and you can even use services to do the negotiating for you. Trim, for instance, will act as a virtual assistant, negotiating down your various bills for you. The folks at BillShark will even get on the phone for you to negotiate your bills down.  So heed the wise words of this billionaire, and don’t pay more for things you don’t have to. Photo: Fordham