negotiating tips

Negotiating is tough, especially when you're inexperienced. It seems like most of us are afraid to try simply because we don't know the ins and outs. Lucky for us, our partner site DailyWorth has some tricks that could help you land an excellent deal!

My husband was on the phone with a nursing home he and his siblings had chosen for their parents, when I heard him ask, “Can you do anything for me on the price?”

My jaw dropped. My husband — who’s a nice guy, by the way — has a mantra: everything’s negotiable. But really, a nursing home? I was shocked that he took on a big company like that — but I can’t quibble with the five percent discount he got on the room rate.

Many women (like me) recoil from negotiating, whether it’s big-ticket items [i.e., $200 and up, from necklaces and cameras to couches (and nursing-home rooms)] or their own salaries. You’re either afraid of looking like a tightwad or haggling seems too mysteriously hard to do. Right?

Read on for more.

Even though you might not like to do it, negotiating can help you save money on everyday expenses. LearnVest shares a few tips on when and how to negotiate.

When we talk about negotiation, we ask two central questions:

1. How do we do it well?

2. When is it appropriate?

We’ve got #1 covered with our start-to-finish negotiating 101 guide for asking for more at work, and 11 tips from experts and readers on bargaining at stores and on the phone.

Related: Paying $40 For Breakfast and Other Money Mistakes I've Made

That leaves us with #2: Most of us know we’re supposed to negotiate when it comes to buying a house or a car, but how about at the dry cleaner? Or when we’re on the phone with our cell phone provider?

Hesitate no longer.

Read on for five unexpected costs you should negotiate, and how:

It's a fact: women get paid less than men. Although the gender gap is narrowing, there are still leaps and bounds we need to take to even out this unfair discrepancy. We're obviously not going to be handed what we deserve so we need to start asking for it.

A grave mistake women make that hurts them later on is that they aren't negotiating their first salary. This will set them back in the long run, because if a woman starts off her career track earning less money than men, it will be harder to narrow the salary gap and catch.

What's the solution to this? Well, we need to start negotiating for the salary we deserve. The first few steps to earning our worth, includes researching the pay. Here are some tips to help you get started:

• Go to your college career center: Take advantage of the resources your expensive tuition provides you, and ask the counselors at your school to give an estimate of what your fellow classmates are making in a particular field. Schools tend to regularly poll their students for salary statistics and the information they give you will give you a more accurate amount of what someone with your profile can expect to receive. They may also be able to share personal anecdotes of what other students in similar situations are making.
• Check out online salary tools: There are a ton of helpful online salary tools that can give you a rough gauge of how much to negotiate for. Take a look at Indeed.com to see what figure their salary search comes up with. What I like about Indeed's salary tool is that it's very simple, so it's a good website to start with. If your company is big enough, you may be able to find out the pay of employees through anonymous salary quotes at Glassdoor.com.
• Ask your employer for the range: When your employer asks how much salary you're expecting (remember don't ask them about pay if they don't talk about it in your interview!), respond in kind with, "What's a fair range that someone at my position is making?" Take in that information and tell them you'll get back to them after you sit on it for a while.

It's a new year and a new you! We're kicking off a short series detailing 12 helpful tips to start off the year right, whether it be to advance your career or increase your financial cushion. We've already given you advice on kicking your daily deal habit and quitting caffeine, so here's another way to start afresh in 2012.

If you've been putting off calling your provider to negotiate lower rates, stop procrastinating and pick up your phone! Remember, the worst thing that will happen is just hearing the answer "no." Consider calling these companies to negotiate with:

• Cell phone provider
• Credit card companies
• Cable and internet providers

Apart from negotiating better rates and plans, also consider asking to waive any fees or penalties that you've recently been charged with. Now that you're ready to make the call with a list of companies in mind, here are tips on how you should approach the call:

• Do your research. Do your research of what their competitors offer so you'll have more ammunition for your phone call. You'll also have more of a gauge of what's considered a good rate.
• Be nice but assertive. Don't dance around the issue but be nice when you're explaining the situation to them. Don't get upset if you can't seem to be getting the response you're looking for. You can always try your luck with the manager or call back again.
• Ask for options. Tell the provider that you can't afford the current prices and ask them what can they offer to you to help with the situation. Asking an open-ended question is always better than a "yes" or "no" because it'll be harder for the rep to refuse you.
• Threaten to cancel. And of course, you can always threaten to leave the service. They'll probably transfer you to a retentions department when you bring up the topic of leaving and those representatives have more authority to offer better rates.

My friend is currently over the moon because she just managed to snag what in her words is an "optimal interest rate" for her new home. She shared with me a couple of tips, which I thought were extremely helpful. For those of you looking to haggle the best rate, read on for some helpful guidance, which may very well save you thousands of dollars:

• Check the Market Rates: Do your research on what mortgage rates are like in the market right now. This way you'll have a better idea of a realistic rate to negotiate for and it'll be good ammunition to use when you're haggling. Check out Bankrate.com to look up the rates in your area.
• Use a Financial Calculator: Compare how much you'll be paying monthly to get a sense of how much you'll save with different rates. This might incentivize you to haggle for a better rate and shop around more. Bankrate has a good mortgage calculator.
• Know What Will Get You a Good Rate: The best way to get a good rate is to have a good credit score, a big down payment, and consistent employment history. This is so the lender will know that you're a low risk borrower, and will be willing to let you have a lower rate. Take all these factors into consideration and see if you can work on some of them. Give yourself some time to boost your credit score if you can.
• Comparison Shopping: Shop around! My friend did the savvy thing by approaching her bank and finding lenders through zillow.com and bankrate.com. This information will help you negotiate a better rate. Lenders are required to give you a “good faith estimate” in three days after you submit your loan application so get your GFEs in order to use it for pitting lenders against each lender.
• Haggle, Haggle, Haggle: A lower mortgage rate means that the lender will be getting less commission, so you need to find a way to convince them using the tips I just mentioned. It's never fixed so don't feel like there is a standard rate or feel bad about haggling. Remember that lender fees are also negotiable so keep that in mind, too!
  

Do you have more tips on getting a better rate?