selling stuff hypothetical
 

Ok, bass selling etiquette hypothetical. Seller has their only 5-string bass on TB classifieds for sale. Sits for awhile then a buyer from another country is interested. Says he'll be in the states in a couple of weeks, can he see it and buy it. Seller says ok. Buyer then asks seller to knock a $250 off the asking price (and about $1200 less than original purchase price). Seller says ok. No deposit, no other contact. In the mean time seller picks up some gigs where B-string really would nail it. Tries it and it does. Since this is an ongoing gig seller decides to keep the bass. Notifies the buyer and he's bummed, says he stopped looking for other basses, wants seller to go through with deal. Seller has given many deals in the past (e.g.) but doesn't want to have to hunt around for a replacement bass.

So...should the seller go through with the deal and end up burning through even more money to replace? Or is he more in the "annoying but sometimes that's the way it goes" area since no money has changed hands. Or ?

Annoying, but sometimes that's the way it goes.

Todd, I think you should keep the bass.

No money changed hands, Id say you are in the clear though Todd. If he wanted to secure it he should have coughed up some dough!

Yeah, that's my rationalization. If he really was so dead-set on buying my bass, then he should have:

a) paid asking price

and

b) sent a deposit

He didn't do either. If I were him I'd be bummed to, but I've been a nice guy seller too many times.

Since he is in another country, and not familiar with the market here (I guess), perhaps you could point him toward alternate choices....

Just a thought, I agree you are not under any obligation to sell. If he was so set on your one, he should have locked it down.. Stuff happens.

It's a risk-reward thing. Apart from the "Keeping Your Word" principle, how likely is it that he will go ballistic and try to kill you while he is in the US? :)

hmm, he is from Korea and didn't specify North or South. Perhaps I should reconsider my position...

If I were buying the guitar, I wouldn't expect a seller to knock $250 off the asking price -AND- hold on to it for a couple weeks with no cash down.

If he's from Korea he knows the deal. They are cutthroat. He'd burn you in a second if the shoe was on the other foot.

Don't lose a wink of sleep over this deal, do what works for you.

rjp

PS - Let this be a lesson in negotiations-

Never give anything away, if the buyer asks for a concession, ask for one back. Prevents nibbling and situations like this. A discount requires an immediate payment, period.

rjp

I sent an email back saying, "sorry, but I need to keep it" with links to three other similar used instruments and five new ones. That's the best I can do - I can't afford the time/money to hunt for a replacement if I sold it now. If money was put down it would be a different story. In the past I've had guys actually pay in full and then have me hold it for a few weeks until they could pick it up.

No money, no deal.

Chances are he only plans to flip it over there anyway.

Just explain to him that the wife found out what you were up to and she won't let you sell it :)

That made me hypothetically laugh :D

I didn't know Lil' Kim (Jong-il) played the bass.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1410810740.jpg

tell him this...
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1410820535.jpg

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Agreed.
No deposit, no handshake, no deal.

selling stuff... "hypothetical???"
 

Sir Poopyhead, I fail to see why you used the word "hypothetical" in the title and in the text of your OP.

There's nothing hypothetical in what you are bringing to the board. You listed the bass for sale. You agreed to a buyer's price and proposal to delay the sale.

Then you "changed your mind."

A better title would have been "Whether to renege on a mutually agreed upon deal to sell stuff," don't you think?

Does the use of the word "hypothetical" help ease your conscience? How do you think most people would feel if they were in this buyer's shoes?

Something to think about.

Of course, the buyer could have gone ahead and paid in full. Of course he could have changed his mind after inspecting the item and you could have lost that sale as well as others who might have offered to buy it while you waited for him.

But still... "hypothetical???"

:D

Yeah; this is pushing it a bit

I think he should drop the bass

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Guessing RJP and I might work for the same Korean company. Spot on.;)

Dude, I worked for a few Korean small businesses for like 10 years. Seen 'em literally kill each other. Lost some friends just by being there.

rjp

I literally quit 90 days before **** hit the fan. People thought I got whacked. Was a nice Korean national named Joon Kang who got killed. RIP Joon. Lee was a good guy, his SISTER was in debt to Korean Mob and this is what they did when she didn't pay. Another buddy of mine was the one who discovered 'em and he would've been dead too except it was Chinese New Year so he cut out early.

Local News | Renton Police Seek Man In Double Slaying | Seattle Times Newspaper

On the other hand, nostatic, maybe you'd better just give him the bass--along with a public apology! :eek:

As I see it there are two things at play here.

1. no deposit or even guaranty that the buyer is going to go through with the deal.

2. Is the sellers word any good (seller agreed to sell and agreed to discount). As men, how much weight do we put behind our word whether it costs us money or time or we have sellers or buyers remorse?

Hey, who knows, maybe Karma would win out and seller would say, ok, fine, I said that I'd sell it to you, so I will. Then maybe the universe will step in and cause some issue that keeps the buyer from following through.

If, hypothetically, you would have NEEDED rather than wanted to sell it (money for food or debts to Korean national mob figures) and then suddenly some other money appeared to satisfy that need, would this transaction feel any different to you?

Or, with the above in mind, take it one step further, if it was a heirloom handed down for generations, would that addition to the scenario make stepping back from the deal still feel sketchy?

That wouldn't really change things. I feel bad for canceling the deal, but in the 3+ weeks since the prospective buyer said he wanted it I had a shift in some gigs and how I'm approaching things. I pulled the bass out of the case and it started working for me. So at that point I have a dilemma - I can sell it and then turn around and try to find an equivalent instrument (pita and a lot of "devil you know" - I've cycled through a lot of instruments), or I can back out of the deal. I have sold a lot of gear over the past few years at a loss as I've sorted through what tools I want/need. And in many cases cut people really good deals. Some of those were instruments that in retrospect I should have kept.

I think musicians likely understand this dynamic. Sometimes you get tools that work for you, then don't (and vice versa). And gigs/circumstances can change as well. And sometimes your mind changes - it is a creative endeavor, not a math problem.

Give me the bass. Problem solved. :D

Done - just send me your shipping address. I'll forward to the Korean guy...

Bass in question

http://nostatic.com/photos/ks11.jpg

that has too many knobs....it must be defective....send it to me...

This one has less:

http://nostatic.com/photos/d4-3.jpg

Trouble is, you're a nice guy and no matter what, you're either going to feel bad for the buyer, or bad for yourself.

Empathy! Who needs it?

(Your penance will be 3 spontaneous acts of kindness.)

Good luck, Todd.

Oh I feel bad about lots of things. There is a fine line between empathy and guilt (thanks, mom!) and I routinely trod upon it.

Spontaneous act of kindness - we adopted a cat from the local shelter on Sat. That count? There is another one that I'd like to save but not sure we can be a 3 cat household...

For some of us, it's also "Thanks, Vatican!"

If you're going to feel bad either way, then keep the bass.

If I may ask, as you may know I'm trying to sell off some musical stuff (and still want to buy you tech amp but need to sell my bassman 100 to fund that purchase)

What is TB classified?

talkbass.com

So basically You reneged on a

NO DEPOSIT
hypothetical
future purchase
from an
unknown foreign buyer who
(sight unseen)
lowballed you.
(well probably not Lowballed but offered a substantial amount less out of the gate, for no reason.)

how dare you sir!!!!

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1410895702.jpg