Selling Expensive Items

[Anonymous]

Hello, I’ve never sold anything on EBay before but I got my hands on two custom professionally made light up signs which cost about $8,000 to manufacture. Was thinking of reselling them on here for around $4000 since the signs are used but they are very large, heavy, and expensive. With me never using eBay before i’m wondering if this is a good place to sell something like this. Seeing a lot of stories about scammers and eBay’s charge on items you sell being as high as 15%. What does everyone think? 

[12345jamesstamps]

New sellers will wait 30+ days for sales funds...so you will not receive your payments for 30+ days and you will have to use your own money to ship out items before you get any funds from the sales.

There's a lot to do even before selling here and suggest you read up on it all.

I suggest not selling them here as your first items for sale.

[luckythewinner]

Hello, I’ve never sold anything on EBay before

Every eBay transaction carries the risk of fraud.

Was thinking of reselling them on here for around $4000

IMHO you should not sell anything you cannot afford to lose.

they are very large, heavy, and expensive

If the buyer claims they are not as described, you will have to (a) pay return shipping to get your item back, and (b) have to refund the buyer in full including shipping costs.

eBay’s charge on items you sell being as high as 15%

eBay's fees are generally 30 cents plus 13.25% of the buyer's total payment, include shipping and sales tax

What does everyone think?

I have sold here for 20+ years and would never consider selling something like that here.

[dbfolks166mt]

    Not sure how "very large, heavy" the signs are or what they look like exactly but eBay may not be the best venue for this unless you are going to do local pickup. Shipping cost could be excessive and if they have any glass or breakable pieces parts there may be a high risk of shipping damage. 

     You are also looking at over $500 in eBay fees depending on what category you list the items in and how you handle the shipping i.e. calculated or free. You may want to try some local forums/venues to see if you can sell them that way first. If you want to provide some additional information or pictures of the signs others may have additional input. 

[jerseyboymusic]

My advice... sell locally on FB Marketplace, or get an auction service to sell them for you

[mr_lincoln]

Hi @Anonymous 

-I think you should read and consider all the replies you have gotten thus far

-If it were me I would sell them on eBay for Local Pick up ONLY and accept cash at Pick up.  eBay still get's their fees that you have to pay but you get cash avoiding a return claim through eBay.

-Since you have not quantified "large" and "heavy" they may have to be shipped via Freight if you sell them with shipping PLUS it sounds like a crate (at your expense) would be required to protect them.

[nobody*s_perfect]

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@Anonymous wrote: ... thinking of reselling them on here for around $4000 since the signs are used but they are very large, heavy, and expensive. With me never using eBay before i’m wondering if this is a good place to sell something like this....

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Absolutely not.

Even a very experienced eBay seller would probably not consider selling those on eBay. Between the value, the shipping cost, and the risk of damage, it's just not a promising situation.  Furthermore, most new sellers have strict listing limits and wouldn't be allowed to list a $4K item in the first place. You can see your limits here:

https://www.ebay.com/help/selling/listings/selling-limits?id=4107

[biggymoe]

Bad idea...........new seller, heavy expensive item, probably fragile..............recipe for disaster.

Sell locally

[fab_finds4u]

They can't  ask for cash. Items for local pickup must offer are least one electronic payment method.

[Anonymous]

Thank you. I won’t sell them on here. It’s tricky I know the signs are something people would want as it is a very recognizable company. It is two large scale Barstool signs. One being the logo one being a verbal BARSTOOL. Hard part is finding the right area to sell this sort of thing. 

[mr_lincoln]

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@fab_finds4u wrote:

They can't  ask for cash. Items for local pickup must offer are least one electronic payment method.

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@fab_finds4u 

I probably should have clarified that more and how I have done it accepting cash at pick up which is a selection on the Payment flow in the listing tool.  Auctions or items without immediate payment required (like Offers or other) can be "purchased" by a customer but NOT paid for through eBay.  The pick up can be arranged and the Buyer pays with cash.  The Seller then goes back and marks the item as Shipped-pick up for eBay processes the FVFs on the transaction. 

[duffy4444]

   Ebay is NOT  the place to sell and ship expensive items, especially by a new seller with 0 feedback. You have a target on your back that scammers see as they scan eBay for sellers in your situation.

   "Selling 101" here and anywhere online emphasizes that a seller should NEVER, EVER  list any item that their business model cannot afford to lose, along with their payment for it by one of the many successful scams out there. The ultimate scam is a credit card chargeback, nearly 100% successful for scammers and opportunists after-the-fact.

   As a seasoned online seller with 26 years experience, I would suggest selling such a high value item locally or on a site like Craigslist for CASH, where a potential buyer shows up with you at a safe pre-determined place, sees the item, asks any questions about it, accepts it, pays CASH for it, shakes your hand, and drives off with their purchase. This is what I have successfully done with my expensive, heavy, or large items, from small custom jewelry to stud tires, an electric range, and even a sheetrock lift, etc. The scams on Craigslist are a lot easier to see and to avoid when local pickup and cash are your requirements. It may take a little longer to sell them, but you'll have better peace of mind and a totally finalized sale. (My sheetrock lift sold locally to a building contractor within 3 hours of being listed). 

    Also, please educate yourself on the many, many scams out there by reading down a few hundred posts here. You will see the anger and heartbreak of those sellers who did not educate themselves, but instead lost their expensive item as well as their payment for it.

   Use common sense with an understanding of human nature and the known pitfalls of online selling scams, shipping scams, and return scams... and give yourself some time to get a positive feedback history and experience by starting out with less-valuable sales. Learn to walk here before getting into a high-stakes race.

Cheers, Duffy

[ckimodog]

@Anonymous 

As a new seller, you are setting yourself up for possible dismay if you want to sell expensive things.  Something like what you mentioned should never be sold here on eBay.  Expensive shipping, possible damage that can happen during shipping, etc. Not to mention new sellers who start off selling expensive items can raise red flags.  eBay may very well ask you for receipts for those signs.

  Sorry, too many scammers and dishonest people on the internet looking to rob you.  Sell them locally on CL or perhaps to a collector.  

Good luck to you

[dbfolks166mt]

Thank you. I won’t sell them on here. It’s tricky I know the signs are something people would want as it is a very recognizable company. It is two large scale Barstool signs. One being the logo one being a verbal BARSTOOL. Hard part is finding the right area to sell this sort of thing. 

     Not exactly sure what area you are located in but if it's a large metropolitan area, or close to one, CL or FB market place would be a viable option. You may also want to check with some consignment auction houses. Their fees may be a bit high but actually comparable in total cost to what your expenses would be if you sold these on eBay. 

[ittybitnot]

@Anonymous 

You just registered this ID today (1/10/24).  Newbie sellers are basically a scam magnet.  Have you completed the requirements for Managed Payments? I would wait to sell ANYTHING you can't afford to lose until you have more experience.  You need to educate yourself about the typical scam attempts that seller's face so you don't end up in a situation you could have avoided had you known.  

Reading here is a good place to find out about many of these. 

In the meantime, cash for pick up on a local platform is your best bet.