A question about eBay Offers and Counter-Offers.
CaptHenway
Posts: 32,251 ✭✭✭✭✭
A rather minor legal question. I majored in Business Administration and had to take a basic course on Business Law. One of the things I learned while studying contracts was that if you have a coin for sale for $10,000 and I offer you $8,000, and you say yes, I have a legally binding verbal contract that says that I HAVE to buy the coin from you for $8,000.
However, if you make any counteroffer, be it $9,500 or $8,001, I am legally excused from being forced to honor my $8,000 offer. I can honor it if I feel like it if the guy changes his mind and says that he will take the $8,000 after all, but I do not have to. Everybody agree so far?
What happens with eBay offers? As they are set up now if I make an offer and the seller accepts, eBay automatically completes the sale. However, today I made an offer on a problem coin (I liked the die state) that had been on there for several days without anybody hitting the opening bid, and my offer was 90% of the opening bid (it's a Cent, so bullion value is not an issue), and the guy counter-offered at 95%. Can I withdraw my original offer?
It's a nothing coin at cheap money so I don't care whether I get it or not, but I am curious about the proprieties here. I did successfully make an offer on a $1200 coin a few months ago, and I am just wondering where I stand when I make an offer and the seller makes a counter-offer. I believe that offers are normally good for 48 hours. Does that hold true when a counter-offer is made?
Comments
If they don't accept your offer and counteroffer you are free of any obligation.
If the seller counters with a higher price, they are effectively rejecting your offer. You are under no obligation to complete the sale.
Dave
as he made a counteroffer on ebay, he's rejecting your offer. there is a decline button on the counteroffer page somewhere. the other option is to let the counteroffer expire. i generally take the expiry route when the counter offer is like 2% or 1%. (i just think i won't convey what 2% doesn't do for the bargaining to the person offering it. i communicate more with realistic counteroffers above mine)
Yep agree with the points made.
On eBay, the only offer on the table is the last one made. Be it the seller or buyer who makes it, the other party can then accept, counter, or decline. Accept and decline are obvious, and if it’s a counter, now the other party gets those three options with the newest offered price.
You can also make another offer (I think you get three)
Sometimes I think that animals are smarter than humans, animals would never allow the dumbest one to lead the pack
I usually just counter offer with my original offer and say that's all I'm willing to pay.
It usually works out and the seller makes a sale.
A Bird in the Hand.
I recently offered $175. on a $190. listing.
I woke up the next day and see the seller raised his BIN from that $190. to $235. without responding directly to my offer.
I thought that was an interesting strategy.
peacockcoins
A fourth option is simply to do nothing in which case the entire negotiation comes to an end after 24 hours without a sale being made. Of course this is essentially the same as a decline. I always thought that not responding to an offer was rude similar to not leaving feedback.
Worry is the interest you pay on a debt you may not owe.
"Paper money eventually returns to its intrinsic value---zero."----Voltaire
"Everything you say should be true, but not everything true should be said."----Voltaire
After you made your offer, he took another look at his coin and decided that he had initially underpriced it. I've had that happen to me. I made an offer on a coin which was accepted and was immediately paid for. The seller refunded my money and claimed that he lost the coin which earned him a negative review. I'm guessing he decided that he underpriced his coin and didn't want to go through with the deal.
Worry is the interest you pay on a debt you may not owe.
"Paper money eventually returns to its intrinsic value---zero."----Voltaire
"Everything you say should be true, but not everything true should be said."----Voltaire
To be clear, the key is that the counter has to be made officially through the ebay system. If you just message then with a counteroffer, the original offer will still be live in the system.
I am not sure I completely understand. Is this similar?
The item was in 7 day auction with starting price of $100 and no bids yet. It had a BIN of $150 and best offer option. You gave a $90 offer. The guy gave a counter offer of $95 back to you?
Yes.
Although the guy is an idiot if he entertains any offers below his starting bid. Once you do that, no one will ever bid again.
We are bound by the TOS, brother. Now, enter honor. Who is bound ?
If I remember correctly, all offers I have been involved with have a 48 hour shelf life, unless countered.
Thank you all for your comments.
Why would anyone make a counteroffer that wasn't through the eBay system?
Worry is the interest you pay on a debt you may not owe.
"Paper money eventually returns to its intrinsic value---zero."----Voltaire
"Everything you say should be true, but not everything true should be said."----Voltaire
Your offer must of expired because you cannot raise the BIN price while there is an offer pending.
Don't sellers have the 'decline' option that closes offer? Sellers used to be able to put in auto-accept and auto-decline, although I do not know what current is as programmers keep changing everything all the time to keep their jobs.
Never tried this strategy but I like it.
I get at least half a dozen weekly. Just had one last night.
There are a number of reasons.
Yes
As a seller, I will usually not send a second offer of the same amount. You wanted my best offer. I gave it. You rejected it. The negotiation is closed.
With buy it now listings on Ebay, sellers get more attention from me when there is a "best offer" included....
What bugs me is when one makes a best offer and its declined automatically (seller can set their best offer acceptance price) and its only 5 bucks cheaper than the buy it now price! I move on immediately..
You need offer and acceptance. A counteroffer isn't an acceptance, it's another offer.
Buyers and sellers have the decline option after a counteroffer or offer, respectively, is made. Sellers cannot raise their BIN price if an offer is pending.
Sellers can't change much of anything at that point. You don't know how many times a buyer I've sent an offer to requests a different picture or different shipping options. I have to wait 48 hours to make the changes to the actual listing because the vast majority of buyers don't bother to actually decline offers.
Exactly Skip
There is custom, common practice and then the letter of the law. Someone made a higher offer in the thousand dollar plus range when I had gotten a lot of slightly lower offers and counter offers on ebay before; I accepted the higher offer, expressed it to the customer and they returned it as they said they didn't care for it though the item was as described. The seller is at the mercy of the good faith of buyers. Sellers have to honor their sales once the deal is consummated.