Would you pull the trigger?

I am currently negotiating with a ebay seller to buy 4 Scottsdale 10 oz stackers for $240 a piece if I pay through paypal and leave ebay out of it so he saves on the fees. His rep is perfect on 60 + sales. Should I go for the deal or does it sound to good to be true?

 

Log in or Sign up to hide this ad.

Too much dough to go outside of ebay if you don't know him. Why did he post it on ebay if he didn't want to sell it on ebay? That's one red flag. Offer to do C.O.D., I think Fed ex can do that, probably others too...

 

I think you should be fine, since the prices are inline with regular spot prices... and you still have Paypal protection.

 

Sixty sales isn't enough for me to send $960 to someone I haven't dealt with or don't know. Since it's your money, you may go ahead and take the chance. However, if you succeed in making a good purchase, you may end up doing it again based upon this particular experience. If you do, then eventually you will loose. It's similar to Russian Roulette.

 

He's already shown that he's not very ethical if he uses Ebay's platform and then tries to sell outside of Ebay in order to circumvent their fees.

 

I just made the transaction, and NorthKorea made a good point, I do have Paypals buyer protection for this transaction. Also I asked the seller to send all the items info in the description of the paypal request so he can not deny the purchase. I also have him shipping it with Tracking info and signature confirmation to protect both of us...

So 4 Scottsdale Silver 10 ounce stackers for $960. I will let everyone know how it goes.

 

This is a tough call for me on this stance. Ebay fees are very high and to behonest I can understand wanting to try to set up some sales in the manner we just did via paypal. Remember a lot of people use paypal as a way to collect payment for their businesses and have nothing to do with Ebay. So I am taking a chance, but if there is a problem, Paypal should take care of it...

 

My ebay fee is 4.8% on coins and bullion. That's not high.
But this cheater will never achieve such a fee structure.

 

Most likely you will be OK, and you do have PayPal to back you, but I really don't see the logic. Provident has 10 oz. bars for $246. Only a few bucks more and no worries....

 

Scottsdale tends to sell better then most generic bullion

 

Me - too much money to take a risk with a stranger.

 

Not only do you have PayPal buyers protection, but sometimes, it's not uncommon to deal with an ebayer outside of eBay to save on fees. While its against EBays policies, people really don't care if it means more $

 

It'll work out most likely. Good luck.

 

Sounds like you had your mind made up already? Why'd you post this question? Almost everyone who replied said they thought it was shady and wouldn't do the deal and then you went ahead and did it anyway.

I've never understood why people who already have their decision made do that.

 

Did you get close up pics of all of the bars to make sure they're all nice and pristine looking? (might be a no-return policy with bullion)

I would only use a credit card through PayPal. Have the credit card issuer as a last resort just in case PayPal lets me down.

 

Congratulations on low seller fees, however the majority of us do not have that much time to invest in ebay and may not know the tricks to get our fees down.

I have routinely been able to setup deals outside of ebays platform and have been very successful with my items. I have never had a seller mess me over and I quite like making deals to get cheaper items and save the seller money too. Its rather thoughtful and in my experience has built a better relationship with the seller. Sure you can get hosed if youre not careful, but calling someone a cheater for making a deal is ridiculous. Ebay has cornered everybody who uses their platform and makes everyone play by their rules, even sometimes causing issues between buyers and sellers, so to heck with ebay if I can save a few bucks.

To the OP, I say go for it, seems you went about it the right way and tried to place the necessary precautions.

Oh and SoDude, how do you feel about ebay sellers who maintain their own sites to sell their items? Would it be cheating to see a coin on ebay that is from David Lawrence and then going to their site where it IS cheaper and buying it?

Whats the difference? Ebay was still used to find the deal and another site was used to 'haggle' the price down (really read as saving on outrageous ebay fees even by one of the biggest sellers in the biz)

How about sellers who have their brick and mortar shop's address, name, and phone number? Is it cheating to call them up and buy directly from them?

So again I ask, how is this any different?

 

The standard fee on coins and bullion is 7% with a store and they are running a promotion right now. You don't have to invest any time for that.

Is there any cheaper auction sites?If there are why don't you use them?

People are always posting about high ebay fees. In reality, ebay is not only the low cost leader but it is also the best. Go figure, you usually have to pay up for the best, but here you get it at a discount.

It is against ebay terms and conditions, so yes it is cheating.

That practice is not against ebay T&Cs.

If you think it's cool to find buyers and sellers on ebay and then complete a deal offsite, why don't you just go to your local coin store or pawn shop and try selling your coins to the customers? I think you are too scared. I think you might leave with some broken bones. You re a big man when you can get away with stuff anonymously on the internet but not so much in real life huh?

 

Actually the anonymity is working in your favor, since you know nothing about me. I am 6'5" and a SOLID 240 pounds. I have been trained my whole life in sports and martial arts and hard work, so i doubt i would be leaving anywhere with any broken bones, especially from the typical store owners of these establishments. Now thats not to say I cant be beaten or get a butt-whooping, but I also do not engage in those type of things out of respect. I respect my local guys but i have NO love for ebay as business entity. They are dishonest, corrupt, and havent EARNED the respect they demand.

In fact I have my own self to look after and that includes spending my money wisely. I dont care about ebay, actually i do, about as much as they care about me, which is none. So same difference.

You also realize this is America where I can stand on any public sidewalk or road and offer my items to anyone of my choosing, even right in front of any of those places you mentioned? They cant do anything about it except ban me, and maybe call the cops, but the deed may/may not have already been done.

Anyway, worst care scenario ebay bans me, SO WHAT?....im not scared of big bad ebay, sure i use them to buy coins, but coin collecting existed LONG before ebay.

Oh and how do you know how SCFY contacted the seller? He may have sought him out through a number of ways up there, including a personal email or phone call, which is NO different than someone putting their store number or email on ebay and receiving a call to make a deal. Yet you straight called him a cheater without knowing the details, that says alot about you and who and what you respect, as well as your deductive reasoning skills. With ZERO evidence about the seller having a B&M store or other website, you just ASSumed he cheated, yet you state that if he does have a store its not against ebays T&C, make sure you have enough info to make an argument before jumping to conclusions.

As for the fee structure, its 7% (ebay) + 2.5% (paypal) and thats if you TAKE TIME to make a store. Some of us just use ebay as is (9%) until we can build up to that point or are too inexperienced to have a store. Either way in a tight economy people always look to save money, and i have no fault with anyone about doing that....its simply called BEING SMART.

Anyway, stick up for ebay all you want, but it doesnt change anything. I will still try and make deals as I see fit, and you can continue to claim the high ground by following 'ebays rules'.

 

Again, insert foot into mouth. I will give you an example of my last deal i made in such a way.

I noticed a 1931-s Wheat cent for sale. In the description it had the name and number of the B&M store. Now I was interested in the coin, but I was also interested in trading for it plus a little cash. I called the number, described my items (all were graded), added the cash needed and shipped out. A week later I had my coin in hand, no fees, no ebay, and I was happy and so was the dealer. Nothing wrong done ,even according to you, but I am sure ebay would be miffed for missing out on that $20 they lost.

Another point i would like to bring up is all of our ebay sellers who purposefully post in the auction or for sale section of this forum. They are circumventing ebays rules by soliciting offers off site to avoid fees. Alot of them do NOT maintain their own websites and they also do not have a traditional B&M, how do you feel about them? Its the same principle, except the seller is soliciting the deal instead of the buyer, how does this differ? Ebay still loses.

I also just completed another deal with an actual member here. I seen his coin on ebay, noticed he was a member and asked to make a deal. This time it was a large purchase and I needed some breathing room to get the money so we did it as lay-a-way type plan. (ebay doesnt do that either) I just sent final payment on Friday and expect my coin this week. So no, not every circumvention around ebay is illegal or bad and I think it was unjustified to call out SCFY as a cheater when there are plenty of us who practice this very same technique as needed.

I also use ebay as they intended, but I am not above utilizing every option available to me to get the best deal.

 

Well, apparently you have never invested in or built anything and never created anything innovative. It's not important. If you can save yourself a little pocket change by using the producers, that's fine. They won't miss it. But it also won't get you very far.