I’ve read over all material I could find and looked up forums on the matter etc, but thought I’d also ask here just to get more info and clarification. Is PayPal required? I honestly have never used PayPal when I sell my expensive stuff every 4-5 years for upgrades.....but all I could find is yes it’s mandatory....which is awful as absolutely 0 seller protection and buyers use it as a rental service. 2nd how long does an ad last since were paying to place it on site I would assume a few months, but idk. Lastly, is worth selling something on audiogon if it’s only 2200$ or so or would u only sell the higher priced items here bc of the audio community? Sorry for all the questions but I wanted to acquire more info and clarification on all these matters before I place an ad, I’ve had absolutely 0 luck elsewhere which is strange as b&w d3 series maintains its value...which is why I’m looking at audiogon as my last alternative.
thsnks and I hope I can get the info I need, will be placing an ad on audiogon most likely tomorrow once i get some more info.
There has to be a certain amount of trust involved or the system doesn't work. I've bought a sold a few hundred items on ebay and a few here on Agon. It's worked for me 99% of the time. The few times it didn't work were almost always due to conflicting information probably not deliberate scamming. Sometimes I benefited and sometimes I lost - it evened out. The one time on Ebay when it really mattered, i.e. the transaction was almost $1,000, the seller misrepresented the condition of the item and then claimed that I (the buyer) broke the item before returning it. It was an easy scam for the seller to pull off because they were in Germany and I am in the U.S., no recourse of any kind for me. With all the data in hand, Ebay resolved the issue by allowing the seller to keep their proceeds and the returned gear, and refunding my money as well. Cost of doing business for Ebay I suppose. The tax issue raised by yogiboy, stereo5, and northman is more disturbing. Sales tax is not generally due on any private party transaction of goods where a profit is not being made. The gray areas, burden of proof, and caveats would fill more space than appropriate but...on Ebay at least, the seller has the option of opting out of Ebay's automatic collection of sales tax but most don't realize it and don't do it. So when I see sales tax added automatically by Ebay on a used item listed by a private party, I exit the check-out process to stop the transaction and invite the seller to relist the item (without sales tax) privately and offer to pay the exact same price without tax.
List your item with your terms and see what happens. Insist that payment be made in bitcoin or your preferred method. Assure the buyer they don’t need tracking info because your parents trust in you is enough. Its still a free country (unless you happen to be trolling from somewhere it is not).
Note to self: Never enter into a buy or sell transaction with
tkwdv34.
There has to be a certain amount of trust involved or the system doesn't work. I've bought a sold a few hundred items on ebay and a few here on Agon. It's worked for me 99% of the time. The few times it didn't work were almost always due to conflicting information probably not deliberate scamming. Sometimes I benefited and sometimes I lost - it evened out. The one time on Ebay when it really mattered, i.e. the transaction was almost $1,000, the seller misrepresented the condition of the item and then claimed that I (the buyer) broke the item before returning it. It was an easy scam for the seller to pull off because they were in Germany and I am in the U.S., no recourse of any kind for me. With all the data in hand, Ebay resolved the issue by allowing the seller to keep their proceeds and the returned gear, and refunding my money as well. Cost of doing business for Ebay I suppose. The tax issue raised by yogiboy, stereo5, and northman is more disturbing. Sales tax is not generally due on any private party transaction of goods where a profit is not being made. The gray areas, burden of proof, and caveats would fill more space than appropriate but...on Ebay at least, the seller has the option of opting out of Ebay's automatic collection of sales tax but most don't realize it and don't do it. So when I see sales tax added automatically by Ebay on a used item listed by a private party, I exit the check-out process to stop the transaction and invite the seller to relist the item (without sales tax) privately and offer to pay the exact same price without tax.
PayPal is obligated under federal law to forward the money to whichever state they collected the tax for. Amazon always charges me sales tax since last year but never did before that. It is just a way for the States to bilk yet even more money out of us consumers
That's exactly what happened. It doesn't make any sense to me; the dealer was not in my state and the item isn't sold in my state. But--thanks for the explanation.
I had an unexpected surprise when I bought a piece of used stereo equipment with PayPal a few months ago: *after* I got through accepting all the conditions and was committed to the purchase, they added sales tax. I could see no way to go back and cancel, nor any way to have them remove the sales tax. It shouldn't have been taxed; I was buying a Bryston DAC and there are no Bryston dealers in my state. (Amazon seems to know when to charge sales tax and when not to.) I'm not even sure who got that $75 I paid; did they really send it to my state?
Has anyone else had that experience? Did I make a mistake along the way? In any case, I wasn't too pleased with PayPal about that.
I had a good experience when selling my ProJect S2 DAC and Carbon Audioquest COAX cable. However, these were both only 3 weeks old and I had to sell them for half price. I learned a good lesson. If you audition something to add to your system that does not sound noticeably better trust your gut and don't buy it. In this case, I found my new Bluesound Node 2i to sound better by itself when streaming Tidal. For some reason I liked the complete unfold of MQA. By connecting an external DAC by Coax, I was only able to hear 1/10 the unfold of MQA. Can't understand why no one else in this group can hear it? I think people do not understand how great the DAC is inside a Bluesound. They think if you spend more it is automatically better.
PayPal has protection for the buyer and seller these days, it’s not like the old days. I’ve been a top seller and buyer for five years and never had a problem. There appears to be a fair amount of paranoia about PayPal.
Also I’m not misinformed kid, a buyer can return a item months after the return for no reason. If done correctly item is returned if not they can keep the item and money.
So if I differ in opinion I get blasted by people like you interesting, also buyer feeeback would require me to sell things which I rarely do..guess I’m out of luck then.
I have done over 130 transactions here and every one with PayPal and never had a problem. You are way off base regarding PayPal and frankly most of us here wouldn’t purchase items if PayPal was not used. You are not only a misinformed individual, but someone I would never purchase from (no feedback and no PayPal). You don’t trust PayPal yet you want would be buyers to trust you? Not going to happen.
Too many easy ways for buyers to steal commit fraud and I rather not waste time dealing with such issues to begin with, there’s already so many dishonest people and PayPal Gave them a legit way to steal.
tbh this thread has gone beyond what it was intended for, I got my answer PayPal isn’t the only method on audiogon. At this point it’s a battle of opinions...which we are all entitled too. I could see myself selling things with PayPal below the 100$ mark but won’t sell speakers 2000$ plus when PayPal treats the return period like a rent it then return it or keep it and chargeback.
Buyers obviously like PayPal bc of the entitled protections, sellers who don’t sell in bulk but once or twice every 2-3 years...it doesn’t give me any interest as it’s plain and simple....buyer bias 120%
Have no feedback as I have never sold on audiogon, and I rarely sell things. I’ve sold many things on usaaudiomart avsforums audioholics emotivaprolounge. I rarely upgrade, and I will never use a method that basically lets buyers rent products and return them or chargeback within the given time frame......takes only once for a individual to steal or commit fraud, as a seller I have never used PayPal and won’t, as a buyer I’ve used it many times as it protects me
I have used PayPal to buy and sell on Audiogon at least 3 or 4 times in the last year. Per PayPal’s advice page - you need to protect yourself from scammers by taking lots of pics, and control the shipping. You protect yourself by being able to prove delivery of an item. You need to photo your items well, photo your packing to prove the condition when shipped, and you control proof of delivery by doing the shipping yourself.
I sold my LUMIN D1 on Audiogon last month in 3 hours! No issues via PayPay at all. Speakers are harder as they are bulky and cost more to ship but it is doable - you can get your ship cost before you list the ad. You can limit your customer to USA only. I did the above and had a seamless transaction and found a home for my D1 in the northeast. It paid for 1/3 of the cost of my new LUMIN T2.
Why
would I choose a method that basically tells me as a seller to F off,
and let buyers commit fraud and steal 24/7 without consequences.
Has that actually happened to you? As a seller, I suggest you vet your potential customer. For example, you may want to avoid any buyer who doesn't have feedback if he'll be relying on Paypal. I do the same thing as a buyer. For example, I'm reluctant to engage with a seller such as yourself: No feedback at all; a refusal to accept Paypal; an apparent distrust of the process.
There are a few reasons I say that about PayPal, 1 being they are 120% buyer bias and buyers utilize that to steal/commit fraud while sellers get zip and fend for themselves, 2 they hold funds....I have no interest in a person handling or playing with my 4000$ speaker while my funds are in limbo and I can’t utilize them, 3 it’s a rental service for buyers bc they can chargeback or return anytime they want...and if they do a chargeback months afterwards they can usually keep the item while they commit fraud with their cc company and get their money back as well. I won’t use PayPal or even give anyone a chance to pull something like that on me....I’m too busy to deal with such issues and honestly rather not even chance it....that’s why I asked if there were alternatives to PayPal on audiogon as I will be putting my ad up for my htm2d3 b&w tommorow afternoon and I would rather not lose the item or money by using PayPal as the method....since it gives me absolutely 0 protection against all the dishonest people that take advantage of PayPal’s love for buyers who scam with 0 consequences.
I too am curious about the allegations towards PayPal. I admit, I don't buy much merchandise using PayPal and I've never sold anything where that is the payment serviced used. So, @tkwdv34, what are the issues you are describing? I'd appreciate the education on the topic. Thanks.
"PayPal is scampal for sellers so buyers can rent gear or steal it." What on earth does this even mean???🙄 I have used PayPal since 2004 and have not had an issue ever. I sell here and on Ebay and again, no issues. PayPal is great...oh, and Tammy is the Best! Always helpful!
That’s perfect! I emailed Tammy, but knowing PayPal isn’t the only option for a private seller not a business etc is great. I know buyers love PayPal as it’s bias towards them and they can get away with pretty much anything, but hopefully the alternative methods work too..
@snapsc, +1 Tammy is the go-to person here on Audiogon. You can research prices on Hifi Shark (just apply the filters). So, you don't need the Bluebook. Bob
Email Tammy at audiogon and she will explain how it works and your protection. Here is her email.
support@audiogon.zendesk.com
My advise... detailed pictures, full disclosure, accurate descriptions, reasonable pricing, good packaging...and take pictures of your packaging ... inside and out...and ship fully insured ( I like fedex ).
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