Do you get a lot of solicitors?

[MichelleCarmen]

Well, seems my new neighborhood attracts a TON of solicitors. We get one nearly every day.

They don't just come up and knock on the door, but they actually stand outside on either our driveway or grass and take notes. One day, a guy came and I opened the door and quickly said, "no thanks," and shut the door. I looked out the window 10 minutes later and he STILL was there in the driveway, standing next to my car, writing on a clipboard. Yesterday, a woman up to our house and was studying the windows.

We'll be getting a no solicitors sign, but I'm thinking the people will ignore it or not see it before looking at the house.

 

[Italiahaircolor]

I have a no solicitors sign....so no.

 

[joflier]

Wow. No. I think I''ve only had 1 or 2 since I moved there 2+ years ago. Although I did have a pamphlet in my screen door last night about finding Jesus, so I guess maybe that was # 3.

Mc - your solicitors are hardcore!

 

[MichelleCarmen]

Date: 4/23/2009 3:36:14 PM
Author: joflier
Wow. No. I think I've only had 1 or 2 since I moved there 2+ years ago. Although I did have a pamphlet in my screen door last night about finding Jesus, so I guess maybe that was # 3.

Mc - your solicitors are hardcore!

They are hardcore. We also get the ones with teenage to 20-something boys with the white button down shirts and back packs pushing religious paraphernalia on us. They are always walking up and down the streets bugging people.

Years back, I had a no solicitor sign on my door and a person came and when I pointed to the sign, he didn't know what it meant!

 

[purrfectpear]

Not since I gave up streetwalking....................ohhh, you meant...uh, nevermind

 

[DivaDiamond007]

We don''t get any.

BUT.....we live out in the middle of nowhere and the house sits off the road so it''s probably too much effort for them to find us

 

[Hudson_Hawk]

A few months ago there were a bunch of young guys canvassing the neighborhood for some environmental cause and one of them had the balls to literally WALK INTO OUR HOUSE!!! FI was home by himself and so the door was unlocked. The kid was pretty shocked/scared when a pissed off man rushed into the foyer with a handgun!

Seriously though, who does that?!?!

 

[Tuckins1]

Yes, we get a ton of solicitors. My husband will just tell them to go away or just shut the door... I have a herder time being mean face to face, so I usually let DH answer the door.

One time last summer I was outside in the backyard stripping the paint off of all of the trim and baseboards from my house. (Had a whole rig set up, had rubber gloves on, dripping with stripper, covered in melted paint and goop) This man comes to my fence and hollers for me to come over. I had no idea who he was, so I went over to see what was up. He starts giving me a shpeal about (whatever it was- I don''t remember). I just stood there thinking "really guy? I''m covered in crap, i''m OBVIOUSLY busy, and you''re asking me to buy magazines, or whatever the hell you are talking about?" I let him finish his speech and just told him i''m not interested. What an IDIOT!!

 

[joflier]

Date: 4/23/2009 3:46:51 PM
Author: purrfectpear
Not since I gave up streetwalking....................ohhh, you meant...uh, nevermind

You naughty girl! Take that little halo away!

 

[soocool]

Check with your city/township, because solicitors have to be licensed to solicit door to door. Also, I know that certain developments have rules and regulations regarding this. In my town there are no regulations regarding "religious" solicitors.

To tell you the truth, I would be afraid of opening the door to just anyone. Several years ago, in the next town, a man opened his door on Thanksgiving and the person on the other side of the door shot and killed him. Apparently, it was an ex-employee that had it in for the guy from many years ago for telling an off-color joke.

 

[MichelleCarmen]

Date: 4/23/2009 7:10:55 PM
Author: soocool
Check with your city/township, because solicitors have to be licensed to solicit door to door. Also, I know that certain developments have rules and regulations regarding this. In my town there are no regulations regarding ''religious'' solicitors.

To tell you the truth, I would be afraid of opening the door to just anyone. Several years ago, in the next town, a man opened his door on Thanksgiving and the person on the other side of the door shot and killed him. Apparently, it was an ex-employee that had it in for the guy from many years ago for telling an off-color joke.

I''m uncomfortable opening the door, but I read somewhere that burglers will go door-to-door pretending to be solicitors and use this as a way to scope out who is home during the day. If the people aren''t home, the burgler have found a target and may break in during broad daylight.

 

[MichelleCarmen]

Date: 4/23/2009 4:18:02 PM
Author: Tuckins1
Yes, we get a ton of solicitors. My husband will just tell them to go away or just shut the door... I have a herder time being mean face to face, so I usually let DH answer the door.

One time last summer I was outside in the backyard stripping the paint off of all of the trim and baseboards from my house. (Had a whole rig set up, had rubber gloves on, dripping with stripper, covered in melted paint and goop) This man comes to my fence and hollers for me to come over. I had no idea who he was, so I went over to see what was up. He starts giving me a shpeal about (whatever it was- I don''t remember). I just stood there thinking ''really guy? I''m covered in crap, i''m OBVIOUSLY busy, and you''re asking me to buy magazines, or whatever the hell you are talking about?'' I let him finish his speech and just told him i''m not interested. What an IDIOT!!

I use to have a hard time being mean face-to-face, but after being nice one time and *letting* a guy into my home (what was I thinking - to scared to offend him). . .I was stuck listening to him for 1/2 an hour. After that I learned my lesson and actually now enjoy slamming the door on them.

 

[LadyBlue]

We don''t, because we leave in an appartment, but when I walking at the street I get that i lot, I just walk fast and say no thanks.

 

[onedrop]

We get them in waves. Mostly they just leave pamphlets or flyers. Sometimes they are trying to sell us a service and want to come in and demonstrate vacuum cleaners or carpet cleaners and such. It''s is extremely annoying!!! A couple of times I have opened the door for them and had to firmly turn them down after they try to "sell" me. However, I don''t trust even opening the door for strangers these days. So I don''t even answer the door anymore when I am not expecting company. This stuff happens all the time even though we have a "No Soliciting" sign at the entrance to our community.

 

[vespergirl]

Yes, and I''ve started to resort to being rude, since a lot of these people don''t go away at a polite, thank you, we''re not interested. I need to get a no solicitors sign.

 

[MichelleCarmen]

Date: 4/24/2009 10:03:17 AM
Author: vespergirl
Yes, and I''ve started to resort to being rude, since a lot of these people don''t go away at a polite, thank you, we''re not interested. I need to get a no solicitors sign.

So, your community doesn''t have a sign? Maybe you can talk to the HOA about that. . .in our condo that we moved from, they put a sign up and we never got any solicitors because of that. We''d get the occasional pizza joint flyer hanging from the door knob, but that''s about it.

Now, I''m not sure where to put the sign. I don''t want to attach it to my front door and if I put it near my door, the person won''t see the sign until on my property. . .that is part of what I want to avoid. Nobody even walking onto my driveway.

 

[VegasAngel]

Yes we do well we did. I had a regular no soliciting sign but it didnt stop people from ringing my doorbell. So, I typed up a no solicting sign using bits & pieces from funny/mean no solicting signs I found googling cut a hole in it for the doorbell & put it up-that way they can''t miss it. Anytime someone I''m expecting comes over they say no one probably knocks on your door huh & asks for a copy.

 

[Tacori E-ring]

Not too many. We used to get a ton in our old neighborhood.

 

[AmberGretchen]

That is super creepy MC - I would put up a large "No Loitering" sign and possibly also some kind of neighborhood watch sign - that''s just not OK.

 

[MichelleCarmen]

Date: 4/24/2009 2:57:58 PM
Author: AmberGretchen
That is super creepy MC - I would put up a large ''No Loitering'' sign and possibly also some kind of neighborhood watch sign - that''s just not OK.

Yeah, I would like too. Maybe I should use one of my kids Nerf blaster guns and pummple the next solicitor with foam darts! lol

 

[redfaerythinker]

There was a man who came to our door last week. I only opened it because I thought he was the UPS man. But he asked me if I had found Jesus. I just looked at him and said, "No, I went to Catholic school and they found him for me." then I shut the door.

 

[bebe]

I have my fair share, 2-4 a month.

The ones that I have become very wary of are the magazine sellers that claim they have been released from rehab and need to sell
a certain amount of subscriptions to finish their program. (right) They dress up and force their life story on you, (if you are too chicken to slam the door in their face)
I fell for it a few times, but then wised up when I never got the magazine. I get tons of mags and honestly forgot about the door salesman. But the last dude who showed up
really ticked me off. He said your neighbor Mr.----- around the corner is supposrting me and knows I''m a good guy, just need to get back into society, blah blah...
I immediately told him there is not a Mr. ----- around the corner, I knew them all. (don''t) He got a little flustered, so I knew I had him! These guys are relentless, they will knock
forever til you come to the door. From my front door, you can see a long way into my house, which bugs me. If they see me, just don''t go away easy! One guy asked me for life advice, what should he do. I told him to get an education and quit knocking on doors.

 

[Linda W]

We have a sign on our door and we Still get a few. Geez, can''t they read!!!!!!!!

 

[sunnyd]

I don''t answer the door to anyone I don''t know, some religious guys used to come by often with their kids

though.

One time FI opened the door to a guy, listened to his spiel, told him no thanks, started to close the door, but the guy stuck his foot in the jam so he couldn''t close it!!

FI looked at him like ''I know you didn''t just do that''. The guy promptly left.

 

[Tuckins1]

It''s funny... When younger people come to the door and my husband answers, they ask "are your parents home?" He just says "no, not now" and they go away. He looks pretty young, but not THAT young! (He''s not lying though- his parents really AREN''T here!)

 

[HollyS]

Haven''t had one in my current neighborhood.

My rules of engagement with solicitors:

1) Neighborhood kids selling ''junk'' for their school, etc. "Okay, put me down for some hideous item I''ll never eat or use."

2) Religious zealots. As a Christian, I find these particularly appalling. I don''t know why. It''s just crass. I have *cough* been somewhat rude to some of them.

Those poor Mormons.

3) Poll takers, peddlers of wares - - I don''t even open the door.