Selling used equipment and nasty/agressive buyers

[Oldtom]

I recently sold a well maintained MTD riding mower for $350 on Craigslist. I priced the mower at $350 firm to keep away Pawn Stars wanabees who want to buy it for ten dollars. I was amazed by the nasty, entitled attitude shown by people who called up. Some of the questions/statements appear below along with my thankfully UNSPOKEN response.

I am a single mother, can I buy it for $300? Not unless a DNA test proves the kid is mine.

What is the lowest price you will take? I will take $350 unless you want to pay more.

The eventual buyer showed up and whined seemingly endlessly about the motor not idling down well ( 16.5 horse Briggs single cylinder ) I finally lost my patience and told him it never idled that well, even when new. I also told him I usually started the engine, fast idled for a minute, and cut grass at full throttle, and the quality of the idle never mattered.

The guy eventually handed me $350, saying he was only buying the mower because he had borrowed a trailer and driven 50 miles to see the mower. I took his money and was glad to see him leave.


This brings me to my question: Have you noticed people are nastier, more aggressive, and more insulting nowadays? It seems that people assume everyone is trying to rip them off. I honestly think the buyer will get great service from the mower if he does minimal maintenance. The parting shot about only buying the mower because of the distance driven and borrowing a trailer was uncalled for IMHO. Maybe I am becoming one of those nasty old pharts who endlessly chant "GET OFF MY LAWN"

 

[Rand]

Its a craigslist thing.

 

[hatt]

Originally Posted By: Rand
Its a craigslist thing.
Or yard sales. People know they can usually get stuff for less so they give it a try. If you want firm just put that in post along with hagglers will be told to leave or hung up on. Then follow through.

 

[xshoex]

I had a 91 miata with 300k on it. Ram great but rough body and the top leaked. I wanted 1500 for it. It is 25 years old and 300k and $1500 and people were complaining about it. One Guy just kept making dbag remarks I told him get off my property. A $1500 car not 15000

 

[WANG]

I don't call on ads where I presume the seller to be delusional about the value of the item that they are selling, rather than contact them and offer what the value of said item is to me. It's their stuff, after all.

 

[KrisZ]

If I see a price and it is indicated as firm, but I do not agree with it, I simply do not call.
People that low ball what I have for sale are told that the item can wait for another buyer.

 

[cptbarkey]

Well Oldtom, you are $350 richer and they are $350 poorer. Customer service is a thankless job, has he called you back yet and complained about how dumpy his mower looks?

 

[Olas]

If you don't like people's tendency to haggle, throw away instead of selling.

 

[IndyIan]

I just sold some the alloy wheels, wheel cover, and running boards off my CRV with no issues. I got a few low ball emails, but I just replied that I'm not ready to drop that much yet.
Eventually someone serious came through and we basically negotiated abit on the phone, and then agreed on a price if the items were as pictured and described. They were, and buyer paid what we agreed upon.
I think adding a little buffer (10%) on the asking price helps everything go better.
If you have Kijiji in your area, use it to sell stuff. Its atleast easily searchable so everyone can figure out what the going rate is for something.

 

[Alfred_B]

Price it at $450 and then let them convince you to let it go for $350.

Classic sales method.

 

[Eddie]

If someone is polite, I have reduced prices slightly but, if a chiseler type low-balls me, I will not budge a penny, but will reduce it to the next customer IF the Chiseler is within hearing. Ed

 

[Oldtom]

I have not heard from the buyer, so, I assume the mower is running fine. I even gave the guy my cell number in case he had a problem. I need to stop being so trusting.

 

[4wheeldog]

I do not list stuff on CL simply because it attracts the worst type of folks. There are good folks as well, but I refuse to spend time sorting them out.

Plenty of idiots selling on there as well......Sometimes the ad gives them away, but other times it isn't obvious until you actually go to look.......Which is stage 3 of the vetting process, for me.

So.......There are very few things I would consider shopping for on CL, either. Great concept...But the faults in human nature screw it up.

 

[CharlieBauer]

I've sold a handful of items on Craigslist. I've got the person figured out before agreeing to let them come to my house.

Certainly there are wackos that you have to sift through on email. Most are easy to spot but I had one or two people who were just time wasters - one of them was a teacher in a great school district.

What I learnt is that since 95% of people live beyond their means, and these people are already looking for a bargain (otherwise they wouldn't be on Craigslist), they are already price sensitive regardless of what price you put up. So they're going to be unhappy if they feel they didn't get a deal.

Since I don't want drama when they turn up, I confirm the price is firm before agreeing to sell to them. Since my descriptions are accurate and my communication is clear and friendly, and the products I've sold are a bargain due to no shipping and having originally been high value when new, as well as large items, if the buyer is too short sighted to understand they are getting a good deal, then I'm not interested in selling to them.

 

[andyd]

My last 3 mowers and a few sno blowers from Craigslists Free Stuff. All transactions were friendly. Guess I'm just lucky

 

[HTSS_TR]

Originally Posted By: Alfred_B
Price it at $450 and then let them convince you to let it go for $350.

Classic sales method.

Agree. That is the way how it works on Craigslist.

OP should list it at $400-450 then accept $350.

over the years I bought few things from Craigslist and I almost always had some discount.

 

[AuthorEditor]

I always price stuff low for the market and will even take lower offers. My time is worth a lot to me, and so is my peace of mind. Once I'm done with something I move on and don't try to maximize the dollar return, but I maximize my peace of mind--got rid of it and a few dollars to boot. In other words, if your expectations are low, you are more often than not pleasantly surprised. In general my buyers are happy they got a great deal and I am happy I sold the item.

 

[Ethan1]

I've had very positive experiences, but *always* expect to get less than the asking price. I've finally given in and started over-pricing things so the buyer can feel like they got a deal.

 

[Donald]

People on Craigslist expect a bargain. Many ask on the phone what the lowest price I will take. To which I say, your welcome to come over and take a look and make an offer.

As a buyer I sometimes ask what is the lowest price someone will take.

The best advice is to always get the other guy to name his price first. You can still go below. But if you say a price first above the sellers bottom price, it's sold for your price. I usually ask "whats your best on this?"

 

[dishdude]

I price it right, post lots of pictures, make them email from the ad using the CL email link and add "if this ad is still up, item is still available".

Anyone that asks for a discount, delivery or if it is still available I ignore. Someone always comes along pays asking and they always seem to be the easiest to deal with.