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Joined:
September 2003
Posts: 9301
Location: south east Michigan | My Elite LX Cherryburst is going to be paid for by my new PayPal account. I am cleaning out the closets and bookshelves. Currently I have sold $200 worth. E-bay does seem to have everything and sometimes that is the problem. I thought I had something pretty unique and collectable only to find the same item for sale by four others. I am starting out with small, easy items to build up feedback. If others are selling the same item, I add couple "Extra Bonus Items" to make it stand out from the crowd. So far it has gone very well. It's hard to let $200 worth of books and tapes go for $25 but I probably would get less if I had a garage sale.
I had one glitch....I put an item up for sale and my wife said, "Don't you remember that I bought that for you with the first paycheck I got when I went back to work after the having the children?"......ahhh....mmmmmm...no.... I don't remember.
Brad |
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Joined:
December 2003
Posts: 420
Location: On the beach in Southwest Florida | Well I have emptied my place of a lot of stuff that was just sitting around & so far have been able to buy 2 guitars with the proceeds. I'm working on the third as we speak. |
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Joined:
August 2003
Posts: 396
| I've been thinking of doing this myself. I know the seller pays a fee to payapal, but if you decide you want paypal to send you a check once you get up to a certain amount is there another fee? |
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Joined:
June 2002
Posts: 6194
Location: Phoenix AZ | I accept paypal for a lot of the stuff I sell and yes they take their fee off the top. I then have PP make a transfer directly into my bank account and I know there is no fee for that. If you actually want them to mail you a paper check there is something like a 7 day delay and a small fee. Maybe $3 or so. But the electronic transfer works perfectly. Why hastle with the check, post office, etc. I set up a bank account that only gets used for the PP stuff. Once the transfer arrives, I move it into my real account. That way there is no risk of PP or anyone else having access to my real account and the Witko fortunes (ha ha). Same thing with credit cards. I have a no fee credit card with a very conservative limit that only gets used for online stuff. It someone hacks it, no major loss. I've never had a problem, but just for peace of mind having the dedicated bank account and credit card is a good idea. Dave |
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Joined:
November 2002
Posts: 1300
Location: Madison, Wisconsin | I use the On-line ideas as well. I have an account that comes with a visa/check card and the only time I use it is for "on-line" transactions includeing PayPal or credit purchases. |
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Joined:
July 2003
Posts: 1922
Location: Canton (Detroit), MI | Brad, this is exactly what I've been doing to fund my guitar purchases...I have an "advantage" in that I have a huge collection of unbuilt car and airplane model kits (gathered over a period of 30 years)to sell!!! I have been putting 6 to 9 on a week and they almost all sell. I have been doing this for a couple of years(with breaks). I've purchased 3 guitars doing this, and have a good start on the next one.
My wife has agreed that all the proceeds from this can go to buying guitars for the time being(as long as I dispose of one guitar as well---I am at the "one-in, one-out" point).
I just started taking PayPal a month ago. I only have a "personal" account, so I restrict the buyer's use of PayPal to bank transfer only (stated as "NO CREDIT CARDS, PLEASE").
I also do the eBay-only bank account. Periodically I clean out the PayPal account to the bank account, although last month I ran into the $500 max and had to leave some for this month.
My eBay selling is only my model kits, extra unused bicycle parts(another hobby), and old photo equipment. My wife loves seeing all of this stuff disappear, so there is no problem!!!! :)
Roger
1976 Applause AA14-4 6-String
1981 Ovation 1118-1 Glen Campbell 12-string
2001 Adamas 1598-MERB Melissa Etheridge 12-String
2003 Ovation 1777-NAT Legend 6-string |
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Joined:
July 2003
Posts: 1922
Location: Canton (Detroit), MI | Brad, forgot to add.....hope you guys have a good time at Now and Zen tomorrow night!!! I'll be along next month..... :) :) :)
Roger
1976 Applause AA14-4 6-String
1981 Ovation 1118-1 Glen Campbell 12-string
2001 Adamas 1598-MERB Melissa Etheridge 12-String
2003 Ovation 1777-NAT Legend 6-string |
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Joined:
December 2003
Posts: 420
Location: On the beach in Southwest Florida | It helps that the wife is pleased when junk leaves the house & is replaced with a beautiful guitar. |
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Joined:
January 2004
Posts: 338
Location: SE Michigan | I think Ebay is the best thing since sliced bread. It used to be if you wanted to sell something the best market you could hope for was your local community. Now the whole world see's your stuff.
I have about 48 ebay transactions under my belt with no major hassles. I have built up what I call my "toy" account that my wife doesnt much care what I do with it. In the last year I have bought and sold a Martin DC-16, a Stratocaster Deluxe, and a Ovation Longneck. It is a great way to "test drive" a guitar for a few months to see if you really like it (I dont see how you can really check out a guitar in a shop in a few minutes time, especially with crappy strings). I usually break even or sometimes make or loose a few bucks. but I really got to check out those guitars. Other things I have sold include amplifiers, effects pedals, a leather chair, a drywall screw gun, a telescope, binoculars, and many other things. If it ain't nailed down and I havent used it in a while it is potential Ebay fodder. Now my wife is selling stuff to start her own "toy" account.
A couple words of advice, good photos including a good gallery photo make a huge difference. Also taking the time to write a good discription helps alot. Be honest and ship things quickly when people pay you, work hard to get that good feedback racked up. Also I only sell to U.S. buyers, there are too many pitfalls and scamms with international buyers.
Also I only work through Paypal. Bottom line -Paypal protects you from getting screwed. I know it costs a few bucks but it's money well spent. Also never ever deal with someone who sends you an email and wants to make a deal outside of a regular auction. Ebay is great and I look forward to trying out many more guitars. |
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Joined:
September 2003
Posts: 9301
Location: south east Michigan | Thanks for the support & advise everyone.
Brad |
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Joined:
March 2002
Posts: 1380
Location: Central Oregon | About PayPal- As long as you have a "Personal Account" there is no fee, however, you cannot accept payment from anyone with a credit card based account. To do that they make you "upgrade" to a Premier account, that's when it starts costing you. I can understand them charging for any transaction involving a credit card because it costs money to go through the credit card company. The bad part about the Premier Account is, they charge you even if the person paying you has a checking account based PayPal account which would normally be free & doesn't cost them anything. I fell for that one once & made 'em put me back into a personal account. I always state "I CANNOT ACCEPT PAYPAL FROM A CREDIT CARD BASED ACCOUNT" in my auctions.
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eBay Newbie
