I've had sellers do that to me a few times. I think it's incredibly disrespectful.
I've never bought from someone who did this.
"What's The Least You Will Take?"
- Thread starter wings&wheels
- Start date
I've never bought from someone who did this.
I don't look forward to selling my Camry and possibly xB in a month or two 
People can be miserable bastards at times
People can be miserable bastards at times
I don't look forward to selling my Camry and possibly xB in a month or two
People can be miserable bastards at times
I pick who I am going to sell to. I ignore incoherent, demanding or grammatically challenged messages. You can usually tell by their first message if they're going to be difficult or not.
It's tax season. Sell it now.I don't look forward to selling my Camry and possibly xB in a month or two
People can be miserable bastards at times
I have been on both sides of the fence. So I can understand some aspects from both.
If you are selling 'something' at least $4-5+ worth, then you should be willing to answer questions on the item, even assuming that the 'write-up' online is comprehensive. Every contact 'could' be a potential buyer. I never take it personally. I'll give them a even handed reply.
As a buyer, sometimes I will spot a nice vehicle that is maybe 2 hrs away, but which may be slightly overpriced. I am willing to drive the distance and invest a considerable amount of 'my time' but I might want to know if there is room for negotiation. I generally would ask in that case that 'hey, I'm 2 hrs away, and would be willing to come over, and would your asking price be somewhat flexible?'. A lot depends on the answer. I won't follow up if the reply is rude or snarky. With a used car, just a important as the condition of the car is the attitude of the owner. That tells a lot of how well they may have cared for the car.
Just my 2c worth.
If you are selling 'something' at least $4-5+ worth, then you should be willing to answer questions on the item, even assuming that the 'write-up' online is comprehensive. Every contact 'could' be a potential buyer. I never take it personally. I'll give them a even handed reply.
As a buyer, sometimes I will spot a nice vehicle that is maybe 2 hrs away, but which may be slightly overpriced. I am willing to drive the distance and invest a considerable amount of 'my time' but I might want to know if there is room for negotiation. I generally would ask in that case that 'hey, I'm 2 hrs away, and would be willing to come over, and would your asking price be somewhat flexible?'. A lot depends on the answer. I won't follow up if the reply is rude or snarky. With a used car, just a important as the condition of the car is the attitude of the owner. That tells a lot of how well they may have cared for the car.
Just my 2c worth.
Agree. This is a ~$60K niche vehicle, a Lotus, which attracts enthusiasts and some clowns. I didn't take this personally, other than as a bit of a waste of my time, answered and moved on. Have a few legit offers that I'm juggling.....
Seems simple to me, answer the question and move on. I don’t see a reason to be offended by this question. The individual will either accept your response or they won’t
So, what is the lowest you will take?
So, what is the lowest you will take?
Seems like an extreme way of handling a question.
On the seller's side of things I don't negotiate with anyone that's not standing right in front of me looking at my car. I try to do the same as a buyer. I just tell them I'm interested and I don't try to deal until after I've thoroughly checked it out. When I bought my current beater I spent a good hour with the seller checking it out and test driving it. I pointed out a number of relatively minor issues. Went on a test drive and discussed further some of the minor things it needed. I said that the car did need some work and that I wasn't seeing anything that would prevent me from buying the car, just some stuff that would impact how much I was willing to pay. Then I just let that stew with her for awhile as I kept driving. When the drive was done I said something to the effect of "Given the issues with the car, what's the least you would take for it?". She threw out a number and I said that seemed a little high considering the issues I had pointed out and I countered with a lower offer which she ultimately accepted. Saved myself about 25% on the price of the car and I also scored a very cheap deal on a Bluetooth stereo that she was wanting to sell with it also.
Sellers can be just as difficult to work with. Some sellers have their egos wrapped into the item being sold and any questions or attempt to negotiate are taken as an attack on their character.
The dead giveaway is when an item is posted well above fair market value and they are clear they will not even consider offers. There has to be give and take on both sides.
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Answering the question accurately is a tactical blunder in negotiating.Seems simple to me, answer the question and move on. I don’t see a reason to be offended by this question. The individual will either accept your response or they won’t
So, what is the lowest you will take?
This illustrates exactly why it's a tactical blunder to answer the "what's the least you would take" question. She answered the question and that became the new reference point for the buyer to negotiate from. There was no advantage to her in answering. She should have refused to answer and gone with "Well, what do YOU think it's worth?"
Buyers ask this question because they are baiting the seller into a blunder; they have nothing to lose and everything to gain when you drop the price before they make an offer.
Have you considered consignment? I think private-party selling is suited for cheap (less than 10k) cars and not so much on expensive ones. Not that I've ever sold (or owned) a 60k car...
The question can be answered accurately while also not losing your position at the negotiating table. I don't think you can interpret this question literally but simply as someone who may be interested in coming to the table to talk numbers.
Example:
"What's the lowest you will take?"
"Sorry, I've only just listed the vehicle and will not be budging from the asking price at this time. When did you want to come take a look at it?"
Or, in another example, say you're asking $5,000 but the vehicle hasn't gathered much interest from buyers and you really want it out of the driveway.
"I know it's worth the asking price but the absolute lowest I can do is $4,700. When do you want to pick up the title?"
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Umm...when I answer that and they come back with a lower offer, I tell them, You just asked me what was the lowest price I'll take for it and I just answered it. If they don't understand that, they are just playing games with you.
Hi, yes it is on consignment and that was my response to the inquiry...deal with them
2005 Lotus Elise w/ S/C
Great experience w/ Motorcar so far, recommended.
If I was selling a car and someone countered with, what’s the least you would take, I probably wouldn’t sell it to him/her at all. That’s just plain lazy. I already established my offer when I listed the car, so it’s the buyers turn to counter with an offer, and not an open-end question. 
Looks nice. Where did you come up with that price? I'll be selling my 06 ForcedFed Turbo soon and couldn't imagine getting anywhere near that much for it.
Research and analysis of a number of sales and talking to a few folks in the industry. Also, it is an extremely clean virtually perfect factory spec vehicle, and the factory s/c, notably dealer installed, while not as powerful as most aftermarket ones, appears to drive a premium over them. Same with the Lotus Trim Shop adds and Lotus Stage III exhaust which was not widely available.
The offers we have had so far are in the ballpark.
Didn't want to sell, but the 993 took its space....
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