Love the B&S forum here, and I recommend it to so many people who don't even know it exists. I've noticed something over the past year or so, and wondering if others have noticed it too. There seems to be way more sellers than buyers now, and heaps of stuff goes unsold. Is this a sign of the economy? Something else?
Leica M cameras are the canary of a slowing economy. Over the years I have noticed the more M camera that show up on various sites often indicates they're being sold to raise funds. Conversly, when times are good, availability shrinks and the price rise.
madNbad wrote:
Leica M cameras are the canary of a slowing economy. Over the years I have noticed the more M camera that show up on various sites often indicates they're being sold to raise funds. Conversly, when times are good, availability shrinks and the price rise.
Makes sense, are you seeing a lot more of that over the past year?
mattpayne11 wrote:
Love the B&S forum here, and I recommend it to so many people who don't even know it exists. I've noticed something over the past year or so, and wondering if others have noticed it too. There seems to be way more sellers than buyers now, and heaps of stuff goes unsold. Is this a sign of the economy? Something else?
Anyone else noticed this, or is it just me?
Since FM has become a GREAT place to sell your equiptment, there have been WAY more sellers(sales ONLY) than buyers.
Look at the "profiles" of many of the sellers....No photos just merchandise!
That is fine because it brings in money for Fred to keep the site "alive".
B&S used to be a place where members "unloaded" their gear to fellow members who were very pro active in photography and posting.
Scams of ALL types and forms started to become evident!
Buyers became more "aware" of who was selling what.
The prices on B&S were most times were not "fair market value". You could buy the same item from 1 of the top companies/sellers AND get at least a 90-180 day warranty. And just for the same or a tad more denaro.
Part of my buying and selling comes in the form of comfort. Ease of sale or buy. No "acid indigestion" worrying about the sale or buy.
I dont mind paying more if the item it get has some assurance that it works correctly!
Just some insight!
When I first joined FM, many members would ship the item and allow the buyer to "check it out" before they bought.
My 1st few lenses(500, 600mm) were bought this way. High dollar bodies also.
Not any longer unless I know the person.
The US economy is not in good shape, in my area, IMHO, despite what the politicians are telling us.
Danpbphoto wrote:
When I first joined FM, members would ship the item and allow the buyer to "check it out" before they bought.
Not any longer.
Hey Dan, all good thoughts and I've had a singular bad experience here myself where I was selling a very old and tired Nikon 24-70 f/2.8 that I had taken on countless mountain climbing adventures. I listed it for like $600 even though at the time it was still selling for around $1500 new. I explained in my listing what was wrong with the lens (the classic tight zoom) and even had a buyer call me to ask more questions. They ended up buying the lens from me and then like 3 months later decided it wasn't working the way they expected and demanded they return it to me. I lost the PayPal dispute even though, like I said, everything was disclosed to the buyer PLUS the delay in wanting a return was wild to me.
Anyways, yes, I think the economy is not great, as you mentioned, and I think a lot of people are wanting to sell gear to make ends meet at the moment. I also noticed that a lot of the regular sellers are just camera stores looking to offload extra inventory at a very slight discount.
mattpayne11 wrote:
Hey Dan, all good thoughts and I've had a singular bad experience here myself where I was selling a very old and tired Nikon 24-70 f/2.8 that I had taken on countless mountain climbing adventures. I listed it for like $600 even though at the time it was still selling for around $1500 new. I explained in my listing what was wrong with the lens (the classic tight zoom) and even had a buyer call me to ask more questions. They ended up buying the lens from me and then like 3 months later decided it wasn't working the way they expected and demanded they return it to me. I lost the PayPal dispute even though, like I said, everything was disclosed to the buyer PLUS the delay in wanting a return was wild to me.
Anyways, yes, I think the economy is not great, as you mentioned, and I think a lot of people are wanting to sell gear to make ends meet at the moment. I also noticed that a lot of the regular sellers are just camera stores looking to offload extra inventory at a very slight discount....Show more →
Agree!
That is why "due diligence" is warranted when buying or selling.
If a problem arises "down the road"......not to sound nasty, but longer than a week or so? .."tough munchies"! Crap happens.
If you sold in good faith, then your conscience should be clear. I quit PP unless absolutely necessary. My last few purchases have all been by personal check. I have NO problem with a seller keeping my check past the legitimate 5-7 day "clearing" time. But there is really no guarantees.
Have a great day!
Dan
mattpayne11 wrote:
Makes sense, are you seeing a lot more of that over the past year?
The amount of M cameras (both film and digital) in the B&S is fairly stable and most of the members are either upgrading, clearing out unused gear or moving to a different system. Sites like MBP or KEH have far more available than a year ago. They attract a broader segment of users giving a better look at how many are for sale.
