According to hiring managers and recruiters, more than half of tech professionals fail to negotiate a higher salary when offered a job, accepting the first offer quoted.

Since the national average salary for technology professionals is currently $85,619, that means that in year one, not haggling costs $4,300 on average. In Dice’s latest survey, only 18 percent of hiring managers said companies rarely or never change their initial offer. That compares to 33 percent of hiring pros that reported upping the ante is at least a frequent or a very frequent occurrence.

So why the reluctance to ask for more? Fear. After all, we’re constantly being told that there are lots of qualified candidates out there for every IT opening. But if you’ve gotten as far as a job offer, you should be able to negotiate with some confidence. Some people are afraid of a lasting stigma if they ask for more money and it is denied.

But, really, it’s not that unusual of a request. And if your counter-office is denied, it’s denied. You can always cite another other company-offered benefits as to why you accept a salary, if you’re concerned with how it might look.