Deluded sellers

flibbage0

flibbage0

flibbage0

Soldato
Joined
6 Jun 2010
Posts
5,160
Is anyone else encountering a high amount of delusion amongst private sellers and some dealers?

Example 1- Private sale £18k has a book price according to HPI valuations of £15k in excellent condition if being sold privately. Even on Autotrader when you type in the registration and mileage in the create an advert section, it states £14k for a private sale. I tried to negotiate and inform him that both HPI valuations and Autotrader value the car at £14-15k for an excellent condition car. He wasn't having any of it and the lowest he would go is £17.5k

Example 2- Trade sale- £18k car again, has been on sale for over 4 months on Autotrader, AT even indicates it's overpriced (£2.4k more than the market value), the dealer would not budge a single £ when I saw the car.

Maybe it's anecdotal but when I see threads on car forums of people struggling to sell their car, it's usually two reasons:

1. Your advert is rubbish
2. DROP the bloomin price! You are not a dealer so stop trying to sell your car at dealer prices
 
Always gonna be folk who will ask stupid prices.

I just scroll right on by, if they've set the price that high to begin with then trying to haggle with them is just gonna be trying to get blood from a stone.
 
The second hand market is all over the place at the moment so I'm not surprised more people are trying it on in the hope somone desperate takes a bite.
 
flibbage0 said:
Because it is in excellent condition so it does deserve £15k, in fact I was willing to go up to £16k
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Can’t force someone to accept a lower price than they are asking for. When I sold my 2007 107 in June 2015 I had it up for £3000 but accepted an offer of £2800. I just couldn’t be arsed rejecting it and waiting for another buyer.
 
I had similar experience hunting for 360's.

The one I purchased the seller wanted 77k for and stated his reasoning was because other cars of similar age/miles and condition were at 80k.
Of which I pointed out two things, most were at dealers and your not a dealer so why would I pay you the same and second those are advertised prices and they are not selling. Told him those same dealers will give you 65k to realistically sell around 75k so lets both be 5k better off essentially.

I offered him 70k and I never changed my offer, we went back and forth nearly a week, every time I just stated I will pay 70k, I am a cash buyer and you never have to meet me, I can have it collected from the specialist and the 70k will go into your account, so a nice easy sale where you don't need to advertise and don't have to deal with anyone, but my offer is 70k and that is final take it or leave it.

In the end he accepted because it was easy for him, I also knew he had found a 430 he wanted so needed the money. You often get private sellers trying to get dealership prices, total dreamers. The only time it is maybe applicable is if you do have something unique and your not in a rush to sell, then it totally applies to charge what you like. If I sold the 458 or Mclaren I'd charge dealer price or close too and not budge, I know I've got a unique rare example in great condition and I don't need the money so either pay the price or kindly get lost, but if its a more common spec then advertise at a price to sell.

It is totally different but I remember when I sold my 172 Cup people were outraged I was doubling my money at what the asking price was, but I knew what I had which was a 1 owner low miles restored car, of which hardly any now exist so either pay the price do get lost, patience won as the car sold for my asking price.
 
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Recently i was interested in a car that was nicely modded and looked to be in excellent condition etc, was on Ebay for 6 months and was imo a tad over priced, private seller.
It was up for 19.5k or best offer, i offered 16.5k, had no reply from seller no counter offer etc. So i emailed him asking what he'd accept. He replied 19250.
I emailed back very politely saying i thought it was a tad overpriced (it was compared to others), he replied back very rudely calling me a "peasant" etc lol saying it was priced right.
About a month later he reduced the price to iirc 18k ono which i would've went near to, the car is no longer on Ebay so i assume it sold.
 
Those valuations can be complete twaddle sometimes to be honest. It valued a friends car @ £2k from a dealer, but there wasn't a single one available for less than £5k from a dealer on Autotrader.
 
flibbage0 said:
Because it is in excellent condition so it does deserve £15k, in fact I was willing to go up to £16k
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I think the point being made here is if you thinking the car was overpriced then either:
a) there is an alternate car you could buy for less money, in which case you should buy that
b) there is no alternate car you could buy for less money, in which case they are offering the best example of that car for £17.5k

That's not to say you should pay £17.5k for this car as it may not be worth it based on market valuation, but equally the individual may not want to part with it for market valuation - ultimately they can put it up for whatever price they want and if there isn't an equivalent condition one for less money then they may hope someone will pay it.
 
All I can say its a sellers market at moment thanks to ULEZ and shortage of new cars.

And add inflation and the mad cost of new cars.
 
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HangTime said:
I think the point being made here is if you thinking the car was overpriced then either:
a) there is an alternate car you could buy for less money, in which case you should buy that
b) there is no alternate car you could buy for less money, in which case they are offering the best example of that car for £17.5k

That's not to say you should pay £17.5k for this car as it may not be worth it based on market valuation, but equally the individual may not want to part with it for market valuation - ultimately they can put it up for whatever price they want and if there isn't an equivalent condition one for less money then they may hope someone will pay it.
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Bingo.
 
One of the reasons I keep putting off listing my MX5 is that I know I'll be told it's overpriced with people citing examples that have had half the body replaced due to rust and are on triple the mileage.

To be honest, overpriced or not, my response to somebody low balling a car by 20% of the asking price then asking what my best offer was would be met with a response of "For you? I'll knock a tenner off."
 
flibbage0 said:
Is anyone else encountering a high amount of delusion amongst private sellers and some dealers?

Example 1- Private sale £18k has a book price according to HPI valuations of £15k in excellent condition if being sold privately. Even on Autotrader when you type in the registration and mileage in the create an advert section, it states £14k for a private sale. I tried to negotiate and inform him that both HPI valuations and Autotrader value the car at £14-15k for an excellent condition car. He wasn't having any of it and the lowest he would go is £17.5k

Example 2- Trade sale- £18k car again, has been on sale for over 4 months on Autotrader, AT even indicates it's overpriced (£2.4k more than the market value), the dealer would not budge a single £ when I saw the car.

Maybe it's anecdotal but when I see threads on car forums of people struggling to sell their car, it's usually two reasons:

1. Your advert is rubbish
2. DROP the bloomin price! You are not a dealer so stop trying to sell your car at dealer prices
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You do get deluded sellers, and deluded buyers.

Honestly, using HPI and AT guide pricing as a bible to stick to when buying seems odd.. The market also dictates prices ultimately..
As pointed out, if £15k is the max market value for excellent condition, you should have loads of others to buy at that price.. if there aren’t any then it’s all about market forces..

As for dealers and buying from them, having never had good experiences, I’d pay dealer prices privately for a well documented/looked after example.
Sure you get more theoretical,protection with a dealer, but they can be hell to deal with.. However that's all dependent on vehicle.. if spending lots, then a good reputable dealer is probably wise.. spending £14k.. not sure..
 
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Yeah had the same when shopping for a fiesta. People wanting crazy money, a lot of them had been up for sale for months.

I waited it out and actually had a couple message me telling me they'd dropped the price significantly.

One was for sale next door to me for £9500 and wasn't willing to drop the price, was up for sale for 5 months when I asked him if we was ever going to lower it - which he refused. I paid £6000 for an equivalent car, I assume he traded it in the end.
 
tom_e said:
A lot of people seem to get really emotional when it comes to selling vehicles and think theirs is the best ever, like when a parent doesn't think their child looks like an alien but it quite obviously does.
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Kind of related to that you get people attached to their cars where their head is saying sell it but their heart isn't in it who can kind of reconcile it if it goes at a good amount over what it is really worth, or variations of that.

One of my colleagues recently had to sell their car after a change in circumstances having spent 1000s doing it up, most of which wouldn't add much to what it was worth and initially put it up for sale well over the book price, no idea what it eventually went for though.
 
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