bongomania
Commercial User
Yeah, it's not cut-and-dry, but I will say I very much appreciate sellers that keep a list of "dibs" and stick to it within reason.
Enjoy the benefits of a premium membership!
Upgrade Account
-
TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
Join free Log in
Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.
KNOW WHAT REALLY SUCKS ABOUT THE CLASSIFIEDS HERE?
- Thread starter Jim C
- Start date
Bryan R. Tyler
TalkBass: Usurping My Practice Time Since 2002
Staff member
Administrator
Gold Supporting Member
Supporting Member
- May 3, 2002
- 28,949
- 20,945
- Disclosures
- Reviewer: Bass Player Magazine
I also think it would be courteous for the seller to list an item as being on hold when a buyer expresses interest towards it- I do that myself. I just don't think it's cool to start calling someone dishonest if they don't extend that courtesy.
Thanks,
I knew there was a key element of human behavior that I was forgetting and you nailed it
Bryan,
I've bought items from you at asking and re-negotiated pricing where days had gone by between PM's and we both kept our word; seems like a pretty fair rule for some esoteric, silly, internet forum, but then again, it seems to be an unrealistic standard
As a buyer, I know that if I PM a guy and say, "I'll take it," I better have the funds ready and willing to go, or be ready to offer a solid timeframe for funds. When I've got the funds ready to go, I ask for a PayPal address, which is IMO the final word - that means I'm going to send the money for sure, essentially like taking out my wallet.
If someone sneaks in and offers the guy more AFTER he's accepted my offer (while I'm running out to the car to get my wallet, as it were), well that does ****** me off, but nothing is a done deal till money changes hands. So I feel Jim's pain on that point.
However, as a seller I find that there are a bunch of people, both here and on CL (and elsewhere, really) that will "commit" to buy, but then I'll never hear from them again. If someone says, "I'll take it," then they better have funds handy, or at least let me know what kind of timeframe I'm looking at getting paid.
Otherwise it's like me going into Guitar Center, picking out a MIA P-bass, telling the clerk to box it up, and then leaving the store without another word, or some vague "I'll be back in a few hours" talk. As a seller, if someone else comes in, cash in hand, and wants to buy the boxed up bass, he's getting it. I can't waste my time not knowing if you're actually coming back or not.
I can say this for sure - if everyone who said, "I'll take it" actually DID take it, I would have sold much more gear, much faster.
I will also say that it would be awesome if more people updated their threads when things sold - I assume that an item is still available unless the thread is closed, or marked as sold, and I've made attempts to buy things here that sold weeks before, but the OP never closed the thread.
Just my $0.02, and YMMV, and all that.
Also, just wanted to point out something I realized a while back - being a bass player doesn't mean you're not a ****. It takes all kinds.
If someone sneaks in and offers the guy more AFTER he's accepted my offer (while I'm running out to the car to get my wallet, as it were), well that does ****** me off, but nothing is a done deal till money changes hands. So I feel Jim's pain on that point.
However, as a seller I find that there are a bunch of people, both here and on CL (and elsewhere, really) that will "commit" to buy, but then I'll never hear from them again. If someone says, "I'll take it," then they better have funds handy, or at least let me know what kind of timeframe I'm looking at getting paid.
Otherwise it's like me going into Guitar Center, picking out a MIA P-bass, telling the clerk to box it up, and then leaving the store without another word, or some vague "I'll be back in a few hours" talk. As a seller, if someone else comes in, cash in hand, and wants to buy the boxed up bass, he's getting it. I can't waste my time not knowing if you're actually coming back or not.
I can say this for sure - if everyone who said, "I'll take it" actually DID take it, I would have sold much more gear, much faster.
I will also say that it would be awesome if more people updated their threads when things sold - I assume that an item is still available unless the thread is closed, or marked as sold, and I've made attempts to buy things here that sold weeks before, but the OP never closed the thread.
Just my $0.02, and YMMV, and all that.
Also, just wanted to point out something I realized a while back - being a bass player doesn't mean you're not a ****. It takes all kinds.
a deal is done when the terms are agreed to....if some party wants to sneak in and up the bid while party a digs out his wallet,i would question the integrity of any seller who agreed to that...
once the buyer has agreed to the terms he should arrange to pay in a reasonable time frame..... backing out at this point would bring him into disrepute
1. Not "Auctions". The seller sets a price and someone buys it. TB rules try to prevent bidding and an auction situation.
2. The seller can sell it to whomever they choose. First doesn't mean anyone is guaranteed an item until they pay and the the seller accepts. As a buyer, when I say I'll take something I do so intending to pay very quickly. As a seller I assume an interested buyer who says "I'll take it" to also pay 'that day' unless they tell me something different via PM. If they don't pay as quickly as I feel is right I'll send them a 'hey what's up message', and then resell it if I get no response. I've also allowed some people to put 'hold money' up on an item and that money is non-refundable... i've also been allowed to put hold money up on a couple items.
In my opinion that's pretty decent for both the seller and buyer. I've personally not sold a couple things to interested people just because I was not comfortable. I've also not bought things from people who have either taken to long to reply, not provided good clear photo's of things concerning me, or who seemed 'shady' about specifics.
.
2. The seller can sell it to whomever they choose. First doesn't mean anyone is guaranteed an item until they pay and the the seller accepts. As a buyer, when I say I'll take something I do so intending to pay very quickly. As a seller I assume an interested buyer who says "I'll take it" to also pay 'that day' unless they tell me something different via PM. If they don't pay as quickly as I feel is right I'll send them a 'hey what's up message', and then resell it if I get no response. I've also allowed some people to put 'hold money' up on an item and that money is non-refundable... i've also been allowed to put hold money up on a couple items.
In my opinion that's pretty decent for both the seller and buyer. I've personally not sold a couple things to interested people just because I was not comfortable. I've also not bought things from people who have either taken to long to reply, not provided good clear photo's of things concerning me, or who seemed 'shady' about specifics.
.
EXACTLY!! I'm with you 100% man, maybe we're just grumpy mean people or something. I've had more than a few deals fall through. One of them I tell the buyer I'll buy his pickups and to send me his paypal address and I'll send payment ASAP, I send the payment later that day, as soon as possible for me as that's when I saw his PM. I see that payment has been returned. The seller- "yea sorry, I didn't get payment ASAP so I sold them to someone else". If you're going to be an idiot in your dealings atleast use some sort of communication.
I don't think it should be acceptable that a seller can do whatever the hell they want with the buyer saying "how high?" when the buyer asks us to jump.
I guess I like to think that people are cool...not always true!
oh please! bass players are the biggest ****s out there. at least guitarists and singers are honest about their ****ness. bass players are sneaky. they put on a friendly front, then they trash you because you don't play the same gear they do or have the same tonal standards as they do. i got wise to that game really early on.
That's it for me, too. I sold a bass here to a guy that couldn't pay me in full right away - He sent me half of what I was asking, I shipped him the bass, and then I let him make payments because he seemed like a straight-up guy. And he did, and we're both very happy with the deal.
There are people here that I wouldn't buy anything from - long lag times between PMs, vague descriptions, no profile information, no feedback, no posting anywhere but in the Classifieds - those are all things that raise flags in my head, and that's after being a member here for only 2 years.
But I digress. Jim, I guess what I'm getting at is that it depends on the amount of communication between buyer and seller, and the time between the agreement and the payment.
Too much coffee Jim? You hate people? You must hate spell check, too.
Woohoo, we have the human spell checker in here! Now we can all make stupid grammatical criticisms about conversational text without fear of saying anything with substance!
I hardly think it's about "satisfying themselves" or some sort of selfishness. If I was the seller, it's about "my item" and what "I feel like doing with it".
Must be it was a good deal for the OP to get all bent over it.
In short: C'est la vie when one surfs the internet classifieds.
The internet isn't like a real live transaction. Yeah, sure..if someone bounced me out in front of a checkout counter I'd be fuming. But internet transactions aren't a 30 second counter deal: they take hours and even days to manifest. That's the problem, but the solution is to realize it's a different game with different rules.
Then I guess I'm a grumpy old man too because I'm with you guys. Realistically, not every buyer is going to buy what they say they will but until the tell me that they can't buy whatever item I'm selling, if they sent me the first PM they have dibs. Call it a code of honor, or whatever but I value honesty above all else even in online transactions. As a buyer if I say I'm gonna buy something, I buy it flat out.
sorry pal.....once you have agreed to terms thats it.......if you expect people to trust your word on anything you must make sure that your word actually means something....
telling one guy yes while holding on for more bids is just plain wrong.....
On the flip side, as a seller, I've had folks make an offer I accept, then they wait until I email them the next day to say it's not going to be possible, or to try to negotiate shipping after my other offers have left.
I'm willing to wait for people I know and trust, because it's a better way to sell. If all the offers are from folks I don' know, however, whoever puts the cash up first gets the item. It's the only way to ensure that I actually get paid, which is rather the point of the whole endeavor from my side.
Of course, once I get an okay, I don't say yes to another offer. I do put people on hold, however.
I'm willing to wait for people I know and trust, because it's a better way to sell. If all the offers are from folks I don' know, however, whoever puts the cash up first gets the item. It's the only way to ensure that I actually get paid, which is rather the point of the whole endeavor from my side.
Of course, once I get an okay, I don't say yes to another offer. I do put people on hold, however.
Thats how I lost out at buying a 2010 Camaro.
I set up a fast escrow with my credit union and they sold the car before I got back a few days after handshaking. The parts manager whom I deal with often told me that they upped the sticker price (5000) before I got back and someone bit. Nothing was signed, just credibility. I understand the legalities and how their sales system works, but I was really disheartened.
sadly.....it seems to be a trend these,and if you have even a passing relationship with a tv set you can see where it comes from...the hero is always the guy who gets one over on the honest guy.
....mind you i have talked to a lot of car salesmen who will tell you "if i had a nickel for every one that said they'd be back to buy,i wouldn't need to sell cars".....there is even a method by which a customer can use a low deposit on to lock one dealer in while he shops for price at others.....not implying that these apply here,but trying to understand the dealer's pov...having said that the dealer in this case should have asked for a reasonable deposit and allowed a reasonable escrow period....
as i have said this tb thing is a small community,an maintaining a reputation as a trustworthy member of it requires that one honor his word
