isn't the seller supposed to wait till the offer to insult a prospective buyer?

[hp2]

Exactly. It doesn't have to be a huge confrontational issue, but a little give and take and maybe some banter along the way.

I tried to impress this philosophy on my son a couple weeks ago while we were at a swap meet. He found a bag of Legos he wanted, price tag said $15. He only had $10 so he asked me for $5. I said no. He was bummed that he didn't have enough. I took a few minutes to explain to him that he should take the bag up to the lady selling it, explain to her that there are some good pieces in here that he wants, but there are a lot of other pieces he doesn't need and it is a mixed bag of stuff that he can't confirm what exactly is in it and ask if she would take $10. If she said no, he should then offer $12, and I would spot $2 for it. If he couldn't get it for $12, he was SOL until he earned some more money.

He gave it a shot and ended up with a bag of Legos for $10 and a big **** eatin grin for the rest of the day that he saved himself $5 simply by asking.

Hope the lesson sticks.

[snappytravis]

Originally Posted by hp2

Exactly. It doesn't have to be a huge confrontational issue, but a little give and take and maybe some banter along the way.

I tried to impress this philosophy on my son a couple weeks ago while we were at a swap meet. He found a bag of Legos he wanted, price tag said $15. He only had $10 so he asked me for $5. I said no. He was bummed that he didn't have enough. I took a few minutes to explain to him that he should take the bag up to the lady selling it, explain to her that there are some good pieces in here that he wants, but there are a lot of other pieces he doesn't need and it is a mixed bag of stuff that he can't confirm what exactly is in it and ask if she would take $10. If she said no, he should then offer $12, and I would spot $2 for it. If he couldn't get it for $12, he was SOL until he earned some more money.

He gave it a shot and ended up with a bag of Legos for $10 and a big **** eatin grin for the rest of the day that he saved himself $5 simply by asking.

Hope the lesson sticks.

That's great! Welcome to the world of good business little buddy, Sounds like maybe you should have him start making your deals for you. lol

[Z06vette]

My favorite when selling on craigslist is the text. I receive a text " whats the least you'll take?" Thats it. Have no idea who it is or what item i have they are interested in. They dont state their name or what they are inquiring about. Seriously? I usually reply- Who is this? Having a little fun with them.. What ad are you referring to? ... I have a few things for sale. (even if I dont). If I still have them at this point, I tell them - Come by & actually take a look at it. If after seeing it, if you don't think my asking price is fair, you can make me an offer. 9 times out of 10 there is no response. I really enjoy the negotiation part, both buying and selling. Now if I can just figure out how to build cars, part them out, & buy/sell parts for a living I'd be happy. For now its just a part time hobby. Great thread, I enjoyed reading all your responses.