Quote:
Originally Posted by edjs
Slightly off-topic, but why do sellers on e-bay raise the price on items that didn't sell? I have been following one item (auction only with an assigned minimum bid) for about 6 weeks or so, it was doing fine, $79, didn't sell, re-listed for $65, didn't sell, re-listed for $59, didn't sell, now I am thinking "perfect, just what I was wanting to pay for it, about $45-50!" Seller re-listed today, $79! Ugh. I don't know the fair market price (very obscure item, nothing to compare to), I only know what my budget is, and what I am willing to spend on something I like but don't really need. I just don't understand why after lowering the price twice and not selling, then raising the price back up. Can anyone explain this? I understand when sellers re-list at the same price, but why raise a price on something that didn't sell?
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There are a bunch of different reasons why a seller might raise prices on items that didn't sell. I wouldn't know the specifics for this case, but here are a few possible answers:
(1) Even though this card didn't sell, the seller believes the price for this card is going up. For example, the seller lists this card for sale for $50. It doesn't sell. However, at the same time, this same card in the same condition sells for $60 from another seller like PWCC or Probstein123. Seeing this, the seller raises his price to $60 to match what it recently sold for.
(2) The seller is raising the price so that he can lower it again later. The card price has gone from $70 to $50, but hasn't sold. Rather than drop it to $40, the seller raises it back to $70. Since potential buyers have seen that the card is not going to drop below $50, when the seller lowers the price in the future, the buyer will just grab it at $50.
(3) The seller is pushing for an off-ebay deal. Similar to the last one, the seller has already hinted at what his lowest price is. He has raised the price back up. If you want that lower price, or even lower, contact the seller for an off-ebay transaction.
(4) The seller no longer needs the money. Sometimes, ebay sellers need cash immediately, whether it is to pay off a large purchase they made personally or for the business. They slash the prices on a lot of their ebay inventory, even selling cards for a loss or below what they would usually accept in order to raise cash. However, once they have raised enough funds, they can bring the prices back to their original price.