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I hate pawn shops

#61
You have to remember that pawn shops don't make their money from selling stuff, they make money from the interest on items pawned... Apcrazy interest.

When a customer doesn't pay them back, or fails to make interest payments, the item goes up for sale. The reason for this is that if the person sees their bass for sale for $500 when they borrowed $150 against it, it motivates them to try to get the money together, or at least pay the interest so it'll come down off the wall.

It's for sale to get the person to pay up... If it's got a high price on it, it only motivates them further. If they default, then it will cost $500 to get their bass back instead of the $250 or whatever they owe.
 
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#62
There's one really good pawn shop in my town, another one that's decent and a bunch of cruddy ones. None of them get as much cool stuff as they used to.
One of the cruddy ones had a pristine early '70s Jazz Bass years ago and they had a firm price that was then on the high side. I still wish I had ponied up the $1100 to buy that bad boy! Seems like a pittance now.
 
#63
I managed a pawn shop here in L.A. for a couple of years. We had a very nice, clean, bright store with a sound room, a lounge and other nice attributes. It was very interesting.
1. They are really necessary for people that desperately need money and have no credit - they are the banks of the poor people.
2. Pawn shops do NOT want to end up with or buy the dang goods. They make most of their money on the interest on loans. Once in a while the store makes some money on an item, but usually it is break even by the time you store it for months, clean it up and re-sell it.
3. The rule of thumb is no more than half of street value on a loan and a little more on a buy.
4. Pawn shops do their best to NOT take stolen goods. EVerything gets written up and reported to the police department to be checked out. If it ends up stolen, the shop loses, except, it seems in Florida as mentioned above.
5. A good friend that had 2 successful stores said that if he would do it again, he would take ONLY Tools, Jewelry and Guns - the rest is just too difficult to deal with.
 
#65
The key to shopping at pawn shops is to carry cash, have extensive knowledge of whatever you're looking to buy, know how to negotiate and be willing to walk away. Unfortunately the days of finding a late 60's or 70's Fender for under $1000 are all but gone thanks to the internet, but I'm betting that the insane pricing bubble on vintage instruments will burst sometime soon.

I've had great luck on getting other stuff at pawn shops though. I picked up a mint 8-inch K-Bar for $30 and it's been a great knife for my hiking pack/bug-out bag!
 
#66
ggunn said:
I disagree. Whoever sells something to a pawn shop was going to sell it anyway, and if they get less for it than they would have gotten on the street, then it's their choice. They pay for not having to deal with placing ads, taking bids, setting up meetings, checks and/or credit card hassles, etc.
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Or, to buy it back plus (high) interest. Kind of a Pay-Day-Advance plus steep interest - as high as 30% APY!

:woot:

California State Interest Rates

The following is the California law on basic interest charges for pawnshops as of January 1, 2002. The actual law can be found in California Financial Code Section 21200.5. The description of the law below has been rewritten in laymen's terms. A 2.5% interest charge per month on the principle (loan amount) of the loan, including, but not more than $225. A 2% interest charge per month on a principle loan amount more than $225, including, but not more than $900. A 1.5% interest charge per month on a principle loan amount in excess of $900, including, but not more than $1,650. A 1% interest charge per month on a principle loan amount from $1,650 to $2,499.
 
#67
two fingers said:
Meh. Pretty much any business can say that. If a business never sold to those who were experiencing misfortune, many businesses would fold. Besides, lots of folks who sell to pawn shops just don't feel like messing with CL or yard sales. They just want to get rid of junk and get a few bucks for it. Watch Pawn Stars sometime. The majority of those people aren't poor or in trouble. They are just trying to get some cash for something they no longer want.
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Why am I not surprised that you are using a completely fake, phony "reality" tv show to generalize the positive aspects of an entirely bottom-feeder industry? Do you believe everything you see on tv?
 
#68
The internet killed the wholesale market. eBay auctions bring near retail and a quick Google search by any idiot can confirm rough value of anything.

Unless it is an obscure instrument or perceived to be cheap but aren't (Japanese Squiers, US Peaveys, etc.), there are no more pawn shop deals.
 
#69
Ronbeast said:
I guess you don't own any Chinese or other imported instruments or goods?
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Shame on them too. But this happens at the retail level in the U.S., near my house, to my neighbors, AND it's a long-standing practice in that business. You can't fix every wrong in the world, but you can clean up your own sphere of influence.

FWIW, when pawn shops start showing up in your neighborhood, chances are property values are on the way down.
 
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#70
I love pawn shops, because you bring your thing in there, and they tell you it's a historical artifact, and then they call they expert in, and he tells you that George Washington pooped on it, and you get to be on TV and everything. That's the way it works, right?
 
#72
Mvilmany said:
I love pawn shops, because you bring your thing in there, and they tell you it's a historical artifact, and then they call they expert in, and he tells you that George Washington pooped on it, and you get to be on TV and everything. That's the way it works, right?
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Yup. And I don't know why they are called "pawn" shops as almost nobody "pawns" stuff on the show.

"Reality show" means it is real, so who am I to question it?
 
#74
Stick_Player said:
Sad for who?

It's called: "Free Market".

If one needs/wants more money... go and get more money. Otherwise...

freelove3.jpg
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As I said, sad for those of us who just want to enjoy things for their own sake: but it's what it is.

Free love and less expensive beer wouldn't be a bad thing, though, would it? :)
 
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#75
generally i find an old g&l bass on LA cl that's at a pawnshop for way more than i'd like to pay for it, then i try to wait forever and ever until it comes down to a more reasonable price, some of the basses on there have probably been posted for almost two years
 
#77
bolophonic said:
Why am I not surprised that you are using a completely fake, phony "reality" tv show to generalize the positive aspects of an entirely bottom-feeder industry? Do you believe everything you see on tv?
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Nah. Don't be so dramatic there, sweetness. It'll be OK. Too close to Christmas to be so stressed out.

My point was that there are many industries that could be interpreted as "preying on those in need or in trouble".

Restaurants and grocery stores "prey" on those who are hungry. (How dare they turn a profit for FOOD of all things??? GASP!)
Gas stations "prey" on those who have to get somewhere and are out of gas. (Big oil is the devil! Transportation should be FREE!)
Drug stores "prey" on those who are in need of medication. (AND they charge $1.75 for a 20oz Diet Dew, which should carry with it a mandatory jail term.)
Hospitals "prey" on those in need of treatment. (I'm in this business. Don't even get me started.)

All parenthetical phrases typed with tongue firmly implanted in cheek.

I don't believe any of that melodramatic horse poop myself, of course. I'm a free market guy through and through. However, pawn shops have been around for centuries. Everyone who goes into one knows what he is in for. With just the tiniest bit of effort, anyone who gets "ripped off" by one could find other ways to make a buck in a real emergency. I would argue that the vast majority of those who sell to pawn shops are not in a real emergency at all (other than perhaps running from the law). If you think that the majority of them scrounged up anything they could find of value so that they could feed their hungry families or keep their heat on you might just be the most naive person I have ever encountered. The only reason that pawn shops are a "bottom feeder" industry is that the majority of people who sell to them are the bottom of the barrel with regard to humanity itself. And then some of the people (not many) who deal with them are just people who would rather sell at a loss something that is cluttering up their attic rather than go through the hassle of dealing with CL flakes or yard sales. Are there exceptions? Sure.

(Honestly, I would rather take a bullet to the face than ever have another yard sale. The people who frequent those things aren't much better than pawn shop regulars. Sure, they might look like sweet old ladies, but they are evil I tell you. Pure evil. Negotiating with the devil himself would be a more polite exchange.)

Short version: There aren't many "victims" in the pawn shop business. Nobody ever forced anybody to walk into one in the first place.

Glad I could clear all that up for you. I'm here to help.
 
#78
Doctor Hugocat said:
So it's sad that those of us that have a love for something get priced out by those looking for to make a cheap dollar on eBay. It's a fact of life but still sad.
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"Have a love for something" is simply a touchy feely way of saying there's a demand for it. There's a love for Corvettes. That's why they sell for 60 grand. There's a love for good wine. That's why it's a car payment per bottle. There's a love for diamonds....

Musical instruments are no different from any other commodity. They are inanimate objects. They are things that some people covet. I care exactly zero for inanimate objects. That's why I can flip them without writing a poem about it or going to see a therapist.

So, are you saying that one's affection for a given object should have an effect on the price one pays for said object? I reeeeeeally love Corvettes so I should get a vintage one for less than some evil Corvette collector who only buys them to look at and sell for a profit????? Geeeeeeez. Where's that planet?

A '59 P bass is a thing. It's an object. It's not a holy relic.
 
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#79
mactac said:
You have to remember that pawn shops don't make their money from selling stuff, they make money from the interest on items pawned... Apcrazy interest.

When a customer doesn't pay them back, or fails to make interest payments, the item goes up for sale. The reason for this is that if the person sees their bass for sale for $500 when they borrowed $150 against it, it motivates them to try to get the money together, or at least pay the interest so it'll come down off the wall.

It's for sale to get the person to pay up... If it's got a high price on it, it only motivates them further. If they default, then it will cost $500 to get their bass back instead of the $250 or whatever they owe.
Click to expand...


Except you are wrong. Once an item goes up on the wall for sale, there is no "catching up on the interest" to have it taken down. Once it is for sale, it is for sale.
 
#80
Justice said:
Except you are wrong. Once an item goes up on the wall for sale, there is no "catching up on the interest" to have it taken down. Once it is for sale, it is for sale.
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+1

Pawn shops have multiple ways of screwing you, firstly and foremostly is not giving you anything approaching fair value for your merchandise in the initial "loan", sometimes just pennies on the dollar. Then, you have to pay the usurious monthly service charge just to keep them from selling your stuff. Then, lastly, to heap insult upon injury, they sell your stuff for many, many times what they have in it, whether you pay in or not, and they don't waste a moment. It's really a sucker's bet from the get-go, but to hear the pawnbrokers tell it, they're providing a benevolent service, when in reality they are piling on when a borrower is typically at a low point in his/her personal fortunes. And let's not mention all the dubious goods they handle.

To each his zone, but IMO those places just ooze with bad karma.
 
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