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Posted by David Sherman on Friday, August 07, 2009 at 18:24:24 :
In Reply to: I've stepped in that before. posted by OleManIdaho on Friday, August 07, 2009 at 10:23:12 :
... of guy who likes to have things for sale (usually big things like a house or truck, but it could be anything) but doesn't want to actually sell anything. I think they do it because they're lonesome and they want people to come and visit. If they can get mad at the visitor and tell them off, it's even more fun.
Sometimes they like to tell you that if they don't get their price they'll crush it. Another common line is there's a guy coming from [name your far away city] next week who thinks the asking price is cheap. But somehow next month and next year, the thing will still be "for sale". A faded "For Sale" is one clue that he really doesn't want to sell it.
But there are also the people who really don't know what their thing is worth, have no idea how to sell anything, have no negotiating skills, and just want rid of it. The antique world is full of stories of low-ball offers that were accepted gladly by grieving widows and kids who just wanted the "junk" cleaned out of the house.
The only way to approach the "make an offer" sellers is with a thick skin. Once you start thinking, "If I offer him too little, I'll p*ss him off." you're already hooked and you want to buy it. At that point, you're already emotionally involved in the deal. If you really don't care, just make him what you think is a reasonable offer, and if he blows a gasket, walk away. You'll probably never see the guy again anyway, so who cares what he thinks of you? No harm done, and maybe you gave some bitter old loner something to be happy about that day.
I'm not saying anything about this particular ad, just commenting on the never-ending debate about "do I make him a low offer and risk him getting mad". Personally, I don't take any offense at all at lowball offers. A guy recently offered to trade me a very ratty old 410 shotgun for my Honda car. I said no, but I'm not mad at him. It never hurts to ask.
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