Posted By:
JoannIt seems to me that the seller should give the poster first shot at it, as a courtesy, but this is up to the seller. Awhile ago someone posted a WTB, and somewhere in the thread someone else also posted that he would also like to buy the same cards. It didn't take long for several new posts to appear, all saying the second poster should not have jumped the tread to hijack cards.
I've also seen several instances where another potential buyer will post after a seller has responded to an original WTB. In many cases I'm very impressed that these second buyers are clear in saying "I'll take it if so and so passes" - making it clear that their interest is only after the original person has a shot at the cards.
Other times I see similar threads but it looks like the seller is playing the original poster against subsequent poster and setting up a bit of a free-for-all.
So to answer the question - my opinion is that sellers should give original posters first shot. But again, that's completely up to the seller, and the ice gets thin quickly when you try to tell anyone who they can and can't sell to.
And all of the above is based on the assumption that no one is abusing the BST by posting WTB's every week for the same broad categories of cards and then claiming they should therefore be first in line for any that become available. If I hop on every Monday and post that I am looking for Detroit cards in each of the categories, does that mean I have shut out all the other Detroit collectors and get first grab at any and all? No, it doesn't.
If there is an unwritten rule, desire, whatever that someone posting a WTB gets first crack, it says a lot for this forum that no one really abuses that custom. We did have someone a long time ago that used to post WTB's for the same card on a weekly basis, but that has since stopped.
Joann