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“I’m looking to get back what I paid”.

My best effort was on my 1997 E36 328i convertible. I bought it for £750 with 142k miles on the clock and sold it 4 years later with 173k on it for £950. Other than the usual running repairs such as tyres, brakes etc it only cost me £300 to replace the radiator a couple of years after I bought it. Lovely car to drive as well but I moved on to an E46 330Ci which was a polar opposite to the E36. I got rinsed hard by that damn car (nearly £3k in repairs in the first year and £2k loss when I sold it having had it 14 months - I bought what I thought was a great example from a dealer and sold privately).

Decided that if I was going to spunk £5k a year down the drain on a car then I might as well enjoy it a bit so I bought a new Golf R which, I'm pleased to report, has been great.

On the subject of selling stuff in classifieds, I do wish people would read the damn adverts. I'm fed up with the same stupid queries which are already answered in the ad. I also don't need to sell the stuff I have so I'm also getting fed up with stupid offers from people for it. I'd rather wait and get a fair price rather than giving it away. Not so fussed about 'getting back what I paid' as I am for getting a sensible, realistic figure based on what others are selling for.
 
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I buy a s/h CDP for a sensible price today, run 10 CDs through it over the next 2-3 weeks, decide it isn't to my liking and want to move it on.

How much per CD do you reckon I should plan to loose on the operation?

I would say that so long as you haven't been suckered on the purchase and the time between isn't beyond months, it is normal to expect and get what you paid, it certainly is for me. I just loose the p&p.

CD players don't like being send around the country, and Naim for instance recommends avoiding sending them back to HQ for service unless they are actually broken. So yes, CD players depreciate every time they change...
 
Just shows how audiophiles are so very deep into alternate reality.

I also love people who tell you how much an old product would be today if you factor in inflation at some general index over thirty, forty years. Washing machines for example have not necessarily followed any such index. So, basically, audiophiles will believe and say anything and deny they do based on some arcane knowledge of woo.

At any rate It is what the market will bear and I never reply to any advert that makes it sound as though the seller is still in love with whatever component has to go out the door.
 
Somehow saying I want back what I paid for it seems like a smart arsed thing to say. It takes away any chance of negotiation, any give and take. It says all the wrong things about you.
When a potential customer approaches you its better to give him something. Even if its just a bit, even if you really dont want to. Actually its fine to say that:

".... I really dont want to reduce this, but to please you, I'll do it at..."

In this way everyone's pride is kept intact.

Bruised egos mean no sale and if you are wondering what ego has to do with selling you've never been in retail.
 
Whilst it would be nice to get back what something costs it not always a realistic notion, maybe with classic kit, or if you buy cheaply and are prepared to pass the bargain on, then again sometimes there is 2nd hand stuff forsale at more than its original new introductory price.
 
At any rate It is what the market will bear...

Indeed, and if you buy really good stuff well you will never loose. My best example is obviously buying a TD-150, SME3009, Quad 33, FM2, 303 and a pair of 15” Tannoy Monitor Golds for £135 the lot. Needless to say I am not ‘looking to get back what I paid’!

PS I’ve done this countless times over the years with vintage synths, records, guitars, hi-fi etc. I will always buy stuff that is marked up way below its value. Anything is worth what you can personally get for it, and not a penny more!
 
... It always strikes me as a particularly dumb thing to put.... I guess that the people who write this stuff are trying to make it clear that they aren’t aiming to make a profit (as such),...

Agree. The seller naively tries to show that he's not profiteering. Potential buyers immediately think " Ah, that's what he paid; I'll offer a lower figure". A definite case of opening your mouth and putting your foot in it.
 
The moog prodigy I cleaned up got back what I paid and a bit more for my time. Pfm is famous however for the lowest of low ballers.
 
FWIW I don’t haggle. I’m either interested or not at the asking price. I don’t make contact if the price is more than the thing is worth to me. I also use an auction sniper, leave bids at the local auction etc, just what its worth to me, if it goes for more it is no loss. I just don’t enjoy any ‘negotiation’ phase at all either buying or selling.
 
CD players don't like being send around the country, and Naim for instance recommends avoiding sending them back to HQ for service unless they are actually broken. So yes, CD players depreciate every time they change...

First off I don't believe a word of that. How about delivery from new? Do we have to send it straight back, and after it is overhauled and delivered again, send it back again? Could the comment not to send back have anything to do with, just possibly, a pet gripe here on PFM - couriers and liability?
Second, I only ever buy used hifi from the next-door neighbour but one and it is transferred to my place supported on a water-bed.
Thirdly, who in their right minds says or knows how many times anything is sold/shipped?

Sometimes the complete lack of logic applied to some posts really ………………………………………..

Maybe state something like "allowance has been made in my asking price for a small financial loss to myself, commensurate with usage, period since I bought it and the fact that it has been shipped"?
 
FWIW I don’t haggle. I’m either interested or not at the asking price. I don’t make contact if the price is more than the thing is worth to me. I also use an auction sniper, leave bids at the local auction etc, just what its worth to me, if it goes for more it is no loss. I just don’t enjoy any ‘negotiation’ phase at all either buying or selling.

Ditto, absolutely spot on. It just saves a load of hassle and potential ill feeling.
 
I can't remember when I last made a purchase which I wasn't afterwards happy with (except in two cases of not working properly, which was sorted) for a long time. There are those, like me, who research everything to the last detail and then hold back for the right moment and there are 'box swappers' who have stuff passing through on an almost endless conveyor belt. It takes all sorts and the market is better and more interesting for it.

However, whether higher end or lower end, if you buy something which has had depreciation drop to near its lowest, you're not going to lose a fortune. In some cases, Early Naim and vintage gear being prime examples, depreciation has turned into appreciation.
 
I have bought equipment here and down the road sold on eBay for a profit, nothing intentional. I likely offered the item up for sale here and didn’t get a bite.

I always offer items here at a lower rate compared to eBay as I have always found selling here more a pleasurable experience and trust is higher tbh.

Anyone want to buy a AVI S2000 FM tuner?
 
I just don’t enjoy any ‘negotiation’ phase at all either buying or selling.

I certainly don't enjoy this aspect and I wonder if many actually do. However, it's a traditional bartering tool between your wanting something at a 'discount' and the seller resisting further reduction from a perceived market value. A happy compromise is usually arrived at, though. I can never understand tyre-kickers; why bother if you don't have a keen interest?
 


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