Final Value Fees are Insane

[the24-7shop]

I usually don't post on the public forums at all. But  I have been selling on Ebay for over 23 years and just

recently I sold a Sirius boombox  with the receiver in great condition. Was listed for $35.00 after the fees were taken out my pay to me was $21.40  **bleep**  am I not seeing something is wrong here??  I really am thinking outside the box here and is it worth my time and energy to let these people make actually more than I do ... I don't think so  I will reconsider my selling options moving forward

[yuzuha]

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@stainlessenginecovers wrote:

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If a label cost $10, seller needs to add at least $4 ($14 total to the customer for shipping) to cover 14% ebay Fees, cost of box, bubblewrap, tape, label, ink etc. 

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Exactly. Shipping is more than just the cost of the postage itself.

[inhawaii]

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@hartungcards wrote:

"Half of those eBay cheerleaders don't even know themselves that 13.25% in fees often ends up costing sellers twice as much as 13.25% or more."

This must be some of that "new math" that I don't understand.

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My 13.25% in fees comes out to exactly 13.25%.

I must be doing something wrong.   😉

[coastaltechsolution]

You are correct

Material and time need to be considered in the equation

Also sellers should also be keeping track of supplies and mileage for taxes  

[adkhighker]

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@toysaver wrote:

I estimate selling fees before I list and pass it on to the buyer.  

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The more you put onto the buyer, the less they'll pay, so it evens out either way.

[adkhighker]

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@inhawaii wrote:

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@hartungcards wrote:

"Half of those eBay cheerleaders don't even know themselves that 13.25% in fees often ends up costing sellers twice as much as 13.25% or more."

This must be some of that "new math" that I don't understand.

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My 13.25% in fees comes out to exactly 13.25%.

I must be doing something wrong.   😉

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Anyone who can't figure out that there's  a difference between 13.25% fees and what it actually costs to sell something here, then yes, they're doing something wrong, lol.

[tobaccocardyahoo]

On any site, the more your item weighs, the more the shipping costs, and the higher you pay in fees on the shipping. Whether it is a FVF or a credit card interchange fee.

The higher the sales tax rate is in the destination state or city, the more you pay in fees on the sales tax.

Whether it is a FVF or a credit card interchange fee.

If you calculate the fees as a percentage of the actual sell price, your percentage paid will always be higher than the calculated FVF rate.

No deception is required.

I often see listings on Ebay which are economically unjustifiable. It is reflex to assume that those who discover they are selling items which make no business sense, to complain about Ebay fees.

Some of us make our decisions what to sell on numbers other than percentages. My minimum price is based on a dollar margin target. Sell price - fees - cogs. If it does not meet the goal, it is not listed. There is usually a little extra in the price to support a small discount for sale events or accepting offers.

As for being an Ebay cheerleader. At this moment in time, Ebay is the best venue on the Internet to sell what I sell. It wasn't a few years back, but other venues made it harder to list what I want to sell there, and buyers decided it wasn't a good place to find it.

Ebay varies as a venue to sell on, based on what you want to sell, how competitive with the entire world you are, and who the buyers for the item are.

Some Ebay sellers are not important to Ebay because there are few buyers for what they sell, or the buyers for what they sell have higher standards than some of the Ebay sellers.

[adkhighker]

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@laststopgeneralstore wrote:

That's your fault. Seeing as you've been on here for 23 years that means you've accepted and read the updated terms and conditions and seller updates roughly 46 times. Looks like you also charged the exact amount in shipping that it costs to ship out the item which means right off the bat you lose almost $4 in fee's just to shipping, not including fee's taken out of the item price & taxes. Next time calculate what you actually need to charge so you come out on top instead of ending up with less than expected and proceed to blame eBay for your lack of due-diligence even though they lay everything out very clearly for us.

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Why is it the OP's fault? What did they do, other than realize it costs too much to sell an item in that price range that requires a high shipping cost? That's their fault for seeing the writing on the wall? And where do you get that the OP was blaming eBay? I didn't see them blaming eBay. All I saw from their post is that they are smart enough to reconsider their selling options moving forward. I don't blame the OP at all for reconsidering their selling options when the cost to sell here in nowadays is obscenely higher than it was more than 20 years ago for them. 

[meme6253]

I do the same, But the more we have to keep adding, The tougher it is to get that sale!

[fern*wood]

They seemed angry that "these people" were making more than they were.  I assume they meant ebay, which seems to blame ebay.

[coastaltechsolution]

True as prices rise and of course buyer looks for best value

All we can do is source for best price

Tough for sure 

[adkhighker]

Yes, I believe that "these people" meant eBay, too, but I didn't see the OP blaming eBay.  It looks pretty clear to me that the OP was just saying it was wrong for them to continue selling something like that if it was going to cost that much to sell it. It wasn't like they said eBay were crooks or anything. 

[soh.maryl]

So your previous 23 years of experience selling here gave you no insight as to what the final value fee would be? How about the information that eBay offers about various fees? 

[dbfolks166mt]

"Half of those eBay cheerleaders don't even know themselves that 13.25% in fees often ends up costing sellers twice as much as 13.25% or more."

This must be some of that "new math" that I don't understand.

     You are 1/2 correct. There is an effective FVF percentage that is slightly higher than the 13.25% stated by eBay. This is due to the FVF's being applied to the sales tax, which eBay clearly states. Generally the effective eBay FVF %, when the stated rate is 13.25%, comes out to actually be between 13.25% for states with no sales tax and 16% for states that have 10% sales tax. The exact percentage of course depends on the price of the item but it is twice as much unless the seller is promoting their listings or has other self imposed fees. 

[dbfolks166mt]

     Looking at your sold item if I had purchased the item the shipping cost to me would have been as shown below. Virginia has a 6% sales tax in my area so assuming your shipping cost was actually the same as what I would have paid yes the effective eBay FVF % is a bit above what is stated in the policy. 

     As for how much eBay makes I never really worried too much about that I am more focused on my ROI. EBay is a business just like I am the major difference is eBay's responsibility is to maximize their value to their shareholders. For me I am the only shareholder. Like any business eBay has expenses just as I do so what they are making is all relative. I fine eBay's fees to be one of the smaller of my selling expenses. COGS and taxes are generally at the top of that list. 

[ebeths_eclectic_collectibles]

And some items are not with selling due to price/weight consideration and are better off sold for local pickup on FB marketplace. Of course sometimes you just have to bite the bullet, pay the fees and earn some money