eBay

bghunter916 · ‎02-20-2020

O.K. Just gonna vent a lil here, I just got my recent invoice and as I went through each sale, shipping etc. it has become completely clear that selling to pick up a few extra dollars, no I don't do a business, I'm retired and just like to make a lil fun money but feebay is killing us on fee's, my god can you cut a brother a lil slack, its complete bull ship, by the time they fee everything im getting less than feebay takes, **bleep**. What a bunch of criminals, all I am trying to do at this point is clear stuff I don't want "old inventory" or odds and ends round the farm so I can close my account but with current sales I'm more likely to die of old age first and to top it off I'm basically paying feebay to sale my ship.. I hate feebay, I'm really close to just saying forget it and move on with life cause this is more of a headache than its worth. O.K, I vented.. Feel better now..lol

gwzcomps · ‎02-20-2020

I imagine the fees are rough for small time selling. It gets better if you do enough volume to justify paying for a store subscription. Otherwise there are always the free alternatives elsewhere.

m60driver · ‎02-20-2020

Ebay final value fees (fvf) fees have been pretty steady for awhile now at about 10%. And most of the other Ebay fees are optional such as sponsored listings and other voluntary nonsense. The fvf has included postage for many years now. It is USPS that has been raising rates due to (1) a decrease in 1st class mail (letters) and (2) the ridiculous debt burden placed upon USPS by some evil doers in Washington DC whose sponsors are salivating at the chance to profit from the privatization of USPS. And as a fellow retiree just trying to make some lunch money I do understand your frustrations but I don't see Ebay as the main culprit relative to fees. I do see them as a bit of a culprit in lower sales as a result of their corporate ineptitude.

mam98031 · ‎02-20-2020

I get it that in your opinion you are not running a business, but there are NO personal transaction on Ebay. Every single transaction on Ebay is a business transaction no matter if you have 1 transaction a month or 100.

IRS would also view this differently than you are apparently. If you are drawing social security, you have a certain amount of money you can earn each year without it affecting your benefits. Judging from your sales, you are well under that threshold, but still you need to track your sales and your expenses so you have the information available to report as needed.

When you create a listing, just before you click enter to post the listing, right above that button it tells you how much it will cost you to list that item. If it seems high to you, you should check your listing BEFORE posting it as you may have selected some option within the set up that you did not intend to or want to pay for.

As to FVF, Ebay's at right around 10% in the categories you sell in. You absolutely should be making money on what you have been selling. Ebay provides you with a service and gets your items seen around the world.

Here are a couple links you can review as you might be able to save yourself a little money on fees.

https://pages.ebay.com/seller-center/get-started/seller-fees.html

https://www.ebay.com/sub/subscriptions

I hope you are having great fun being retired !!!!!

mam98031 • Volunteer Community Member • Buyer/Seller since 1999

the*dog*ate*my*tablecloth · ‎02-21-2020

Why would fees be any rougher for small time selling? They’re selling things they already own. They essentially have no acquisition cost like other sellers do. Even paying the fees they hopefully earn more than they would by donating their used item.

coolections · ‎02-21-2020

You should have checked the fees before getting into selling here. With that said, if your just trying to rid yourself of old stuff it cannot be that much of a loss like you're thinking. At the same time if it is too much work for you and the return doesn't meet your standards then yes, think about doing something else. There is very little chance of finding a place to sell for less.

trader.jack · ‎02-21-2020

So yes, I think the FVF is a little high, but that is what it is and has been for a while. You just have to build that into your asking price. What annoys me is FVF on Shipping. Why are they charging me for shipping, as having to pay a fee on it means I am paying for part of it.

The E-Bay section on FVF for shipping says "Final values fees on shipping are based on the cost of the shipping service the buyer chooses. However, if you offer 1-day or international shipping as well as a cheaper or free option (like domestic shipping), the final value fee is calculated based on the cheapest domestic option you offer." So can someone tell me what the "FREE option (like domestic shipping)" actually is so I can start using it ?

And E-Bay makes it sound like they are giving you a deal if you use USPS, but if they are charging you FVF, is it really a deal? I always offer Local Pickup just to be able to avoid the fee. And since E-Bay (Fee-Bay, I like that) is not going to change it's ways, I have started adding a Handling Fee and explained that it is purely to cover the FVF shipping fee.

All that said, I will continue to sell on E-Bay as it is the best platform for doing so. And yes I'll continue to complain about the fees, but as long as my stuff keeps selling, I'll live with it.

the*dog*ate*my*tablecloth · ‎02-21-2020

The final value fees have nothing to do with where your print your postage. They are calculated on total revenue, postage is an expense. You will be charged Fvf even if you use fedex.

would you rather pay 15-20% on item price only? This is the most fair way to calculate fees. Free shipping sellers include shipping in item price so they pay Fvf on it. Why do you want free shipping sellers to pay higher fees on the same total?

gwzcomps · ‎02-21-2020

@the*dog*ate*my*tablecloth wrote:
Why would fees be any rougher for small time selling? They’re selling things they already own. They essentially have no acquisition cost like other sellers do. Even paying the fees they hopefully earn more than they would by donating their used item.

Depends on how you look at it I guess. They still had to pay something for their items I'm sure. It is rougher because smaller sellers have to pay the full fee amount since in most cases it isn't justifiable to pay for a store subscription.

luckythewinner · ‎02-21-2020

@bghunter916 wrote:
feebay is killing us on fee's, my god can you cut a brother a lil slack, its complete bull ship, by the time they fee everything im getting less than feebay takes, **bleep**.

For a domestic sale, eBay's final value fees are generally 10% of the total payment from the buyer.

In order for the final value fees that eBay collects to equal the amount the seller receives from the sale, the shipping cost charged to the buyer would have to be 4 times the selling price.

For example:

The fees on a $50 item with $10 shipping are $60 x 10% = $6, leaving $44 for the seller.

The fees on a $50 item with $50 shipping are $100 x 10% = $10, leaving $40 for the seller.

The fees on a $50 item with $100 shipping are $150 x 10% = $15, leaving $35 for the seller.

The fees on a $50 item with $200 shipping are $250 x 10% = $25, leaving $25 for the seller.

If after deducting eBay fees you are "getting less than feebay takes" then you are either

(a) paying fees you don't need to (listing upgrades, store subscription, sponsored listings, etc.);

or

(b) your definition of "what you get" is also subtracting things that eBay does not take;

or

(c) your definition of "what feebay takes" is wrong.

mtgraves7984 · ‎02-21-2020

Yes, eBay will charge a 10% fee on the shipping method you have in your listing. Not on the actual postage price you pay. Your handling fee (just added) will take care of that.

I choose to set my s&h at more (than 10% more) than the shipping's actual cost.

mam98031 · ‎02-21-2020

@gwzcomps wrote:
@the*dog*ate*my*tablecloth wrote:
Why would fees be any rougher for small time selling? They’re selling things they already own. They essentially have no acquisition cost like other sellers do. Even paying the fees they hopefully earn more than they would by donating their used item.
Depends on how you look at it I guess. They still had to pay something for their items I'm sure. It is rougher because smaller sellers have to pay the full fee amount since in most cases it isn't justifiable to pay for a store subscription.

That is over simplified. Certainly what you say is true, however they had use of that item for however long they had it, so that has value. So the their use of that item for however long they had it has value too.

I don't think it is any harder on a casual seller any more than any other size seller. It isn't like the fees are different due to seller size or something. They are as stated.

Store vs no store, the difference in FVF is 0.85%, which should be a very easy about to add to their price if it is of concern.

IMHO the OP is not looking at things correctly. Either they aren't pricing their items correctly or they are looking at the fees paid incorrectly, or maybe a combination of both.

mam98031 • Volunteer Community Member • Buyer/Seller since 1999

mam98031 · ‎02-21-2020

@mtgraves7984 wrote:
Yes, eBay will charge a 10% fee on the shipping method you have in your listing. Not on the actual postage price you pay. Your handling fee (just added) will take care of that.
I choose to set my s&h at more (than 10% more) than the shipping's actual cost.

@mtgraves7984

You may want to change that handling fee slightly higher as you need to account for PP fees or MP fees. So consider adding another 3% so you cover your shipping costs for the literal cost of shipping and fees associated with the cost of shipping. Just a suggestion.

mam98031 • Volunteer Community Member • Buyer/Seller since 1999