Frustration with buyers who make offer, then don't

The mystery of the disappearing "buyer" or "seller." It's one of the few "pains in the butt" of our hobby. But it's worth putting up with.

Not to much to add to Driver, Cornfedboy, Rosstaman. It comes with territory. Upside is the net lets you buy at 50% of retail. You have to live with the downside. Its a pain that not everyone is courteous, but a deal that falls apart with a jerk is probably better than a deal that you think went thru with a jerk.

I must AMEN what glen said! I suspect you're not in sales? If you've encountered what potential buyers (and even sellers from buyers stand point) can be like over time, you'll know exactly what I mean! You come across all sorts for sure. Trust me, don't sweat the small stuff!!...and this is definitely small stuff! People are fickle, hesitent, unsure (about a lot of things), intimidated, insecure, moody, flakey, and on and on (of course, they're a lot of nice things as well, it's just all mixed in!...people!). When you consider that that person on the other end of the email has all these questions and instabilities about a given large dollar transaction to begin with, it's really to be expected (IMO) that you'll get people changing there minds, and swaying back and forth on purchasing decisions. And yes, even after they said, "I'll take it!!!"...Been there a few times.
Hey, let's face it, on the internet, where people are sight-unseen, if you didn't get taken, and you eventually got what you wanted, you shouldn't even bat an eye at all the rest. Just consider you're self fortunate. There is a rather diverse and large mix floating around out there, just expect all the unexpected's and consider it the norm.
In the end, it's reall simple, a deal isn't a deal until it's a done deal, and the money has changed hands! So expect to see it all if you stick with this selling stuff long enough...it can get weird.

Gerryn,

It's funny, but I had to re-read this thread a couple of times to have it sink in. It's about frustration not bad buyers. I suggest you look at what frustrates you, not other people.

You say, "I always try to operate in good faith".
You might have said that you always act in good faith.
I get the feeling that you're working way to hard on how you feel while for me the issue would be, how do I sell my extra piece of audio equipment?

Yogi said it all. It ain't over, till it's over.

Bill E.

Gerryn: I sense and can well appreciate your immense frustration. Albeit, IMHO, if in the ultimate your desire is to have fun with this "thing" of ours, you would be much better served to say to yourself, "I'm going to adopt a lighter attitude from here on in." Fact is, the likes of your experience is merely (however unfortunately) par for the course/goes with the territory/is nowhere more evident than here on the Web. So long as you haven't been burned for any appreciable bucks, consider the notion of your taking these various individuals who've rubbed you the wrong way to task, batting heads with them, holding them accountable or up for public scrutiny, etc., as altogether more trouble than it's worth. Rather than allowing yourself to get upset, feel sorry for these folks whom for whatever their shortcomings, fail to take the high ground.