What have we become???

Things are only worth what someone is willing to pay. Many sellers need to come to terms with that. Nick

Greed and Stupidity!

Simon

Two things.......

Most sellers get a number of 'free' no fee auctions a month...so they throw out wild prices and hope they find a idiot.

Folks have no idea what they have. They look on ebay for something like it....can't find a match but see all these $100 Lionel plastic box cars......well the older metal Marx MUST be worth more....so $200 is their start bid.

Asking and SOLD prices are VERY different on ebay.

It is my understanding that if your item on eBay does not sell, you get re-listings free until it does sell. Most days I look for 3-D photo slides that were taken during the 1950s. I have seen slide "A" relisted about 8 times over a year, for the past 3 years. This just junks-up the process of finding new stuff. Please comment if I'm wrong about this.

Popi posted:

... Do people really not know what they have and think that the toy train market is a GOLD mine and they are panning for the precious metal?

Yes.

Phineas T. Barnum said it best!

It's often not intentional, but if some person is willing to spend that much, why not sell for that?

Go to old car auctions and you often see cars go or way much more than they're worth, because the person has money and likes what they see. Who can blame the sellers for asking what they ask?

     I am into several collecting areas or categories. Some people who find a Beatles item think they have gold! They do no research and put an astronomical price on it. It's the same for Lionel. Oh, it's Lionel it must be worth a fortune! It looks old! Again, they don't do any research and their item sits and sits with no bids. If they took a little time to do some research, they might find that the item could fetch $50.00, instead of the $500.00 they put on it.

    The "research" is quick and easy. Put the name of the item into the search bar. Then go to the left side of the screen and look for "Show Only." Then click the "Sold Items" box below. That will show you the prices people are actually paying for that item for. This process takes the place of price guides because it shows what people have been paying for an item recently, for the past several months.

John

Popi posted:

I just looked up a Marx locomotive on an online auction site. Listed in the same venue were some Marx 6 inch tin 4 wheel freight cars. I usually see these cars at shows and online for anywhere from $5-$20 each. These were al listed at a starting bid of $200-$300 EACH. I looked and I looked and I looked again. Do people really not know what they have and think that the toy train market is a GOLD mine and they are panning for the precious metal??? I am at a lose for words!!!

You think that some thing.I was at a train show and saw a vender with some standard gauge.I looked at the trains chipped paint rust spots to the point of holes.The price $1200.00 to $1500.00 dollars.Are you F^&king kidding me?!!What are these people thinking or what the heck are they drinking?!!

Simon Winter posted:

Greed and Stupidity!

Simon

Very true, somewhere they heard toy trains are worth a lot of money. I hate them guys.

Thanks for this thread. I've often wondered how sellers can afford to keep listing items at outrageous prices for months or even years. I was under the assumption they were paying listing fees each time.

My wife told me to go to “Filters” at the top of the Ebay home page for the item you are looking at and then go down to “Sold items”. This will pull up all of that item recently sold and the winning bid. 

When looking for actual values on Ebay, best to check the Sold list,not the live auction asking price to find the most real going price for something. 

Joe Hohmann posted:

It is my understanding that if your item on eBay does not sell, you get re-listings free until it does sell.

You can set it up to automatically relist several times, don't remember if it's two or three.  You get 50 free listings a month.

There is another possibility.  They may have originally listed it at some low price and then sold it locally for more than the starting bid.  Since they no longer have the item in their possession they change the price to something absurd knowing that no one will bid and then when the auction is over the item is not relisted.

Seems to me that folks should be able to ask what ever they want for their possessions.  As potential buyers, we can partake or just walk away.  

I do not see why we should "hate" them or call them "greedy" or "stupid"!

Happy railroading,

Don

Joe Hohmann posted:

It is my understanding that if your item on eBay does not sell, you get re-listings free until it does sell. Most days I look for 3-D photo slides that were taken during the 1950s. I have seen slide "A" relisted about 8 times over a year, for the past 3 years. This just junks-up the process of finding new stuff. Please comment if I'm wrong about this.

Joe,    Wasn't like that when Feebay first came about. Listing fees were based on the "starting price" of the item, with the higher the start price, the more the listing cost. That eliminated some of the silly/ridiculous pricing.

Doesn't take Albert E. to figure if I start it too low and the item sells, I can't relist it, but I can always drop the price if I start high and  it it doesn't sell! No rocket science there, so HIGH starting prices proliferate with free listings.

You can search by price ranges using the "Advanced Search" option. Just make your high the Max you would pay.  Hopefully, that should solve your problem.

Simon

DGJONES posted:

Seems to me that folks should be able to ask what ever they want for their possessions.  As potential buyers, we can partake or just walk away.  

I do not see why we should "hate" them or call them "greedy" or "stupid"!

Happy railroading,

Don

Don,

Never said I hated them! LOL! That was John P. and he's a GOOD guy! That said, some are, in fact, greedy and/or stupid. They waste a lot of folks time with ridiculous prices hoping some fool will pay their outlandish requests. Caveat Emptor!

Happy Holidays,

Simon

I've been told on occasion that some of the dealers with astronomical prices aren't really interested in selling, but can tell their partners/accountants/whoever that they're "trying to sell things but it's not working out"...   

Mitch 

That's why my sister keeps sending me links to "click bait" articles saying beanie babies are still worth a fortune by showing listing prices on ebay.  I've tried to explain to her that people can ask whatever they want, you need to look at the sold (as most of you have mentioned).

And as someone else touched upon, condition is everything.  I recently helped a friend sell most of his collection since he was moving.  He had a nice collection including some, let's call them "medium rare" postwar items. However everything had been put away dirty and stored for 20 years in a damp basement.  I could clean up the dirt, but the rust on some items was beyond repair and the mold and mildew sent many boxes to the trash.  I got him some money, but not nearly what I could have had they been in better condition.  My point being, I had to explain all this, so if I wasn't there, they would have been listed at prices for the same train in new condition and they'd probably end up on this forum under the title "what's this guy thinking?!?!"

M. Mitchell Marmel posted:

I've been told on occasion that some of the dealers with astronomical prices aren't really interested in selling, but can tell their partners/accountants/whoever that they're "trying to sell things but it's not working out"...   

Mitch 

Hence why they call it a train "show", right?

I just went to my local show weekend before last.  I had missed the past two, but I saw some tables I recognized with the same stuff

I go straight to a guy who's got projects.  He's got a bunch of postwar engines and cars wrapped up with notes telling you what is missing or what needs to be done or at the very least what state it's in now.  ex. "2046: lights up, runs, needs new smoke element, and E unit cleaning".  with prices to reflect that.

Meh..., prices are all over the place, always have been.

I used to go to train shows when I was younger, and openly comment about outrageous prices, sometimes overheard by the vendor who often made some snide response. I don't do that any more.

I have an idea of what I want to pay for an item, and if it's too high, I move on. Other fish in the sea. I don't care if the same vendor tries to sell the same stuff, year after year, it's on him. No use complaining about it. Better deals out there.......

CJ Meyers posted:

Meh..., prices are all over the place, always have been.

I used to go to train shows when I was younger, and openly comment about outrageous prices, sometimes overheard by the vendor who often made some snide response. I don't do that any more.

I have an idea of what I want to pay for an item, and if it's too high, I move on. Other fish in the sea. I don't care if the same vendor tries to sell the same stuff, year after year, it's on him. No use complaining about it. Better deals out there.......

been there done that, I also noticed that the dealers that have things priced to sell always have a crowd around their tables. the dealers that have items priced for the rich and famous have NO crowds and people tend to steer clear of their tables.

when I am at train shows. the first thing I do is check several prices on tables. if prices are way out of this world, I move on and usually most others do the same. Although on two occasions, two different dealers had items that I really would like to add to my collection. In both cases I offered the dealers about half what they had listed, and in both cases they took my offers. I don't think that would work everytime, but in this case I had nothing to lose, because if they didn't except my offer, I would simple move on.

Well with the holiday season coming up I have noticed that prices on eBay have gone up. Probably looking to cash in on holiday sales. 

And to think, my first train set was a Marx that mom and pop bought for ten bucks at Two Guys discount store in Baltimore. Man if I would have saved it I would be retired on easy street.  

I am sure by now that very set is worth at least fifteen bucks today!

I drive a '61 Chevy Biscayne 4 door as a daily driver.  People often ask me why I drive such a "nice, expensive" car in the snow, rain, sun etc.  I do not have the heart to tell them that on a good day I might be able to get $8500 for it, far less than most really nice used cars today. They see TV shows and think all '61 Chevrolets are worth the $50k selling price they see the special SS 409 or 348 Impala coupes and convertibles are going for.

I have found vintage toy trains to have the same misnomer attached to them...old = valuable.  Sorry folks, some things are just old....

Dave Warburton posted:

My wife told me to go to “Filters” at the top of the Ebay home page for the item you are looking at and then go down to “Sold items”. This will pull up all of that item recently sold and the winning bid. 

When looking for actual values on Ebay, best to check the Sold list,not the live auction asking price to find the most real going price for something. 

Dave,  I have emailed sellers who have loonie prices on items with just what you suggest and in each and every incident been told where I can go.  It goes to time invested by the seller. Say I have a regular job and an expensive hobby which I support by buying and selling. I have limited time to get these ads listed on the site so rather than research the value of each and every one I start with a price where I am certain that I am not giving a Picasso away for pennies on the dollar. We've all heard that story.  The market is doing the research for me.   I am guilty of doing this, if it doesn't sell this WEEK, MONTH, YEAR I will at some point lower the price. Just think how great it is that you know better than to pay their price and are free to move on. I will concede that this selling tactic makes shopping for your deal of a lifetime a little slower with all these sellers fishing for a LARGEMOUTHBASS.     j

 It doesn't cost the seller more than a few minutes to put up the listing  and  if it doesn't sell, just drop a couple $ and go again.  On a few rare occasions I have advised a seller on what they have (or haven't) and if I get a response, they are grateful. 

And out of curiosity I have followed items over many weeks with the price going down each time it is relisted.  There is a seller with an Overland O scale engine that was listed originally at $1999,  It is down to $1400 and I think he;ll have to drop a few more times. 

CJ Meyers posted:

 

I have an idea of what I want to pay for an item, and if it's too high, I move on. Other fish in the sea. I don't care if the same vendor tries to sell the same stuff, year after year, it's on him. No use complaining about it. Better deals out there.......

CJ;

You and I are of like minds.  I don’t care what “the book” says or what selling prices are on eBay.  It’s what I personally believe an item is worth to me.   If a seller is too high above what I am willing to pay; I won’t even bother them.  If they are fairly close however; I’ll try to negotiate to what I believe the item is worth.  And if they refuse to budge; then I make a quick decision whether to say “oh, what the heck” or thank the gentleman for his time and move on.

Curt