Ghost Buyers in our classifieds

[GWS]

Isn't an offer the very same as "I'll take it"?

Your initial post didn't mention an offer. Nor is an offer necessarily I'll take it. An offer is just fishing.
BUT if both parties agree and you get stiffed well... poop happens. I don't get too bent unless I'm at the FFL and the buyer is a no show.

 

[Hueco]

It's not a deal to me until who what when where and how have all been established.

Who's buying: you, not your friend or family. If they're buying, tell them to make an account.

What're you buying: exactly what I'm selling, no more, no less, for the agreed upon price.

When you buying: some time we agree to on some date not more than 7 days into the future.

Where you buying: some location we agree to.

How you buying: some agreed upon method.

When I'm buying, I try to establish all this within a post or two (I'll buy for your asking price, can meet at xyz on abc, will bring cash).

I will give someone a few days between an "I'll take it" and smoothing out the details of the above before moving onto others.

If either a seller or buyer is unwilling to declare these details right away, I'm out. Was probably a scam in some way anyway.

 

[Yarome]

Your initial post didn't mention an offer. Nor is an offer necessarily I'll take it. An offer is just fishing.

Where I have a problem with that is... whenever you are wasting another man's time and potentially interferring with their ability to sell their item/s... just to fish and satisfy your own curiosity.... that's pretty much a jerk move.

Making an offer, you are implying that if the seller meets your terms of purchase, then the seller is obligated to sell to you. That means that if another potentail buyer comes along the seller is obligated to put any "late comer" on hold pending completion of the transaction with you. If you're just "fishing" then ghost the seller, you're... at least... delaying... and at worst... possibly blowing up a potential sale to a serious buyer.

Let's be real. If you were a serious buyer, a seller agrees to your offer, then sold it out from under you (as others have pointed out as being flaky for a seller to do)... you would be a litte miffed. It works both ways, but for the seller, he has property and money invested into any deal... you don't.

 

[rdb241]

Where I have a problem with that is... whenever you are wasting another man's time and potentially interferring with their ability to sell their item/s... just to fish and satisfy your own curiosity.... that's pretty much a jerk move.

Making an offer, you are implying that if the seller meets your terms of purchase, then the seller is obligated to sell to you. That means that if another potentail buyer comes along the seller is obligated to put any "late comer" on hold pending completion of the transaction with you. If you're just "fishing" then ghost the seller, you're... at least... delaying... and at worst... possibly blowing up a potential sale to a serious buyer.

Let's be real. If you were a serious buyer, a seller agrees to your offer, then sold it out from under you (as others have pointed out as being flaky for a seller to do)... you would be a litte miffed. It works both ways, but for the seller, he has property and money invested into any deal... you don't.

Which is not the case here....................................

 

[Yarome]

Which is not the case here....................................

For those just fishing... an easy fix and everyone stays happy... just make it clear... "I'm still shopping around, but out of curiosity, would you consider selling for "X" $'s?"

Good communication works wonders!

 

[DLS]

...At gun shows people will ask me to hold their ammo and they will be back to pay for and pick it up only to no show. ...

I can understand not wanting to lug ammo all over the place, but the only way I would ever ask a vendor to hold something for me is to prepay and pick up later.

 

[hongkong2]

I don't mind haggling a teeny bit but when I have something that's 400 bucks and they offer me 200 then I usually say....

If I'm the buyer and I want to haggle a bit I'll do it politly in a PM.never in public...

 

[oremike]

I can understand not wanting to lug ammo all over the place, but the only way I would ever ask a vendor to hold something for me is to prepay and pick up later.

If they pay for it I'll hold it until the end of time. Otherwise I'll hold it until the end of the show and sell it at the next opportunity. Honestly it hasn't happened but once or twice in the 6 years I've been doing this.

 

[osprey]

FULL RETAIL, transfer at BFE Firearms only.
Fee is on the buyer.

????????????????????????????????????

Bum fark Egypt firearms? Never been there.

 

[Mikej]

More of a "me me me" mentality that seems to run over into feedback too... even here. I'm typically a buyer and always leave feedback, but less than half of sellers leave feedback after they have theirs... and my money.

You see it a LOT in the Millennial's and Gen Z'ers

My first purchase here was a gun. Met at my house (I'm a pretty good judge of character, member had a bunch of feedback and was active on the board.) He DIDN'T want feedback. I DID! It went great.

I figure that means someone got cash into his hand before you did. I've had people tell me they would hold an item for me, only to drive an hour there to hear "yeah, sorry that's sold" or no answer.

^^^ Dick move = negative Feedback!

 

[pharmseller]

Recent experience in the classifieds was hilarious and scary at the same time.

I had a buyer politely bust my chops over the 160 gr Partitions I was selling. Partitions come in 50 count bags, he claimed he bought 100 count bags (so twice as many) for less than I was asking for 50. Minor dig at pricing but nothing unusual.

Wow, I didn't know they came in big bags, I've never seen such and they're not listed on the website.

He responds kinda huffy, I'm not a liar, responds with a pic of his purchase. Yep, 100 count bag all right.

But not Partitions.

Those are Nosler Custom Competition 168 grain HPBT bullets.

Part number 53418. Hollow points, boat tail.

Who doesn't know what they buy? And a handloader at that.




P

 

[Flopsweat]

...

^^^ Dick move = negative Feedback!

I would but I haven't had it happen here yet. Probably because I haven't done a lot of transactions here.

 

[DLS]

...More of a "me me me" mentality that seems to run over into feedback too... even here. I'm typically a buyer and always leave feedback, but less than half of sellers leave feedback after they have theirs... and my money.

It's just the world we seem to live in these days. "As long as I get mine... I can't be bothered about yours".
...

This drives me nutz too! Only about one-third of my transactions (both buying and selling) have had feedback left, while I ALWAYS show the curtesy of leaving feedback. It's a benefit to the site to have a vibrant feedback system and, in my opinion, shows respect to the other person.

There are a number of folks here with very high feedback numbers on themselves who never (or exceedingly rarely) return the favor. I say, "shame on you"!

One fellow in particular, a long-time member (with very high feedback benefiting him) with whom I've done a number of transactions could not be bothered. He ignores any communication other than what deals with getting what he wants. So now I show him the same level of respect, in that I don't bother with him. He has reached out several times trying to purchase from me and I just ignore the communication. I'd rather sell to someone else, even at a lower price, than to honor this type of behavior.

 

[Mikej]

I would but I haven't had it happen here yet. Probably because I haven't done a lot of transactions here.

What?!? An up standing, contributing member like you hasn't done hardly any deals in all these years? Say it ain't so!

 

[DLS]

While we are ranting ...



There have been several time sellers here have flaked on me. After I message an "I'll take it", when it comes time to connect and receive the items they come back with a "sorry dude, someone beat you to it".

No honor
No class
No longer on my "view" list

But they don't care, otherwise they wouldn't act with no class or honor.

 

[Mikej]

While we are ranting ...



There have been several time sellers here have flaked on me. After I message an "I'll take it", when it comes time to connect and receive the items they come back with a "sorry dude, someone beat you to it".

No honor
No class
No longer on my "view" list

But they don't care, otherwise they wouldn't act with no class or honor.

In my time here I've met some real salt of the earth people. When I first came here my standard response to an ad would have been, "I will take that ****** for $**.** cash moneys." and then follow through.

I still feel a twinge of the angst I had a few years ago when I seriously mis-judged what traffic could be like and left a good member sitting in a parking lot for 30 minutes on a hot summer day, waiting for me.

 

[raftman]

My personal favorite was a user who quizzed me about all sorts of highly specific details over the course of several days for something I was selling, which I dutifully answered. He concluded our interaction by openly admitting he never had any interest in buying and was just curious.

 

[Member 53328]

While we are ranting ...



There have been several time sellers here have flaked on me. After I message an "I'll take it", when it comes time to connect and receive the items they come back with a "sorry dude, someone beat you to it".

No honor
No class
No longer on my "view" list

But they don't care, otherwise they wouldn't act with no class or honor.

Who's to say someone didn't send them a PM BEFORE you said "I'll take it." Not everyone posts in the ad itself.

 

[TTSX]

Who's to say someone didn't send them a PM BEFORE you said "I'll take it." Not everyone posts in the ad itself.

It's true. I recently sold a gun to a guy who didn't comment or "like" my post. He claimed it while others were still asking questions

 

[Alexx1401]

On Craigslist dealing with the general public, fine. But another member on a private web site?

Sadly seems all too common. Have had it happen here a few times. Anymore I just expect a certain amount of this.