People using the cost of living crisis as an excuse to make daft offers?

[thebiggestdog]

I’m about to move in with my partner and will be renting out my house, so I need to sell some of my furniture. I’m getting some work done before I rent it out, which gives me a bit of time before the house needs to be empty, so I’m not in a rush to get rid of everything.

I’ve been posting items mostly on Facebook Marketplace, and honestly, some of the offers I get are pretty funny. Just to clarify, I’m completely fine with people making offers and I’m not easily offended. I’ve accepted loads of offers in the past, but AIBU to think they should at least be somewhat realistic?

For example, I have a sofa that I bought only 4 months ago for £900, and I’m selling it for £300. I don’t have kids or pets, and I’ve hardly used it, so it’s still in great condition with no stains or marks. A guy messaged me offering £110 and acted like he was doing me a huge favour by saying he could pick it up the same day. Then there was a bundle of home accessories, like various photo frames and ornaments from Next, M&S, etc. I listed about 14 items for £10, and some woman offered me £3 😆

I know that people are struggling with money a lot more now because of inflation, but, a photo frame or ornament isn’t exactly a necessity in my opinion, so using the cost of living crisis as a reason to make silly offers isn’t going to wash with me. Am I heartless? 😆

Maybe they’re wondering why someone’s selling the sofa after only 4 months which makes them think it’s probably uncomfortable, broken or full of fleas/bed bugs (why I don’t buy soft furnishing secondhand). Plus people have to arrange vans to collect these types of items which costs money. The vast majority of people don’t have access to vans and those who do are often in the trade of buying and selling, hence wanting a good deal to make profit on.

I also wonder who wants a bunch of nick nacks. She probably liked 1 of 2 items, I would be unlikely to like all 14.

Yabu to think the second hand market yields anywhere near the new market.

I put a camera on eBay the other day for £85 , baring in mind it’s an expensive SLR camera and someone offered me £46 and I would’ve got £43 . So half the price and the amount of stupid questions , I just want to write back , buy it or don’t , stop pestering me !!!

We have a lot of free groups on fb near us , and some people put A LOT of decent stuff on there for free . Stuff that people are listing on market place for money and I expect people now are used to being given everything for free that no one wants to pay for anything ! Some of the ppl giving decent stuff away are not helping the ones trying to make a bit of money back …
Someone had up for free yesterday one of the huge mirrors that are still in there for £100 nothing wrong with it , then everyone else looks like cheap skates trying to sell stuff .

I would not count your chickens and wait to see whether you get any better offers than the "silly" ones.

You might well find that the only way of shifting the stuff is to accept what you think are "silly offers".

Second hand sofas in particular are hard to get rid of. Unless there is something special about it. Like easy to dismantle and fit in the average car. As transporting them is really difficult.

We tried selling a sofa last year. No takers. Offered it for free. No takers. Ended up going to a charity.
You will only get what people are willing to pay.

That has been my experience too. People don’t want to buy second hand furniture. I had a really lovely wooden bed I tried selling - it was in perfect condition. I ended up having to donate it to a charity that picks up furniture.

Shy bairns get nowt…

I agree with a PP that in a random collection of decorative items, most people would probably only want or use a couple; also that selling large furniture items is very tricky.
I had loads of people asking about some lovely, solid things I had last year, but no one bought. They’re in the garage housing tools and gardening equipment now!

@SunnySideDeepDown If you thought someone was trying to sell a sofa or any furniture because it was uncomfortable, broken or had bed bugs, then surely you just wouldn’t buy it though? It just wouldn’t make sense to still buy it, even at a reduced price. In my case, I mentioned in the description that I was selling because I was moving, and I’m fine with people coming to check things out or test them before they buy as well.

I also don’t expect to get anywhere close to the retail price, which is why I priced items much lower. I understand your point about the bundle, but people can always ask to buy things individually (if they’re only interested in certain items) and I’d be willing to drop the price. I think it’s a bit cheeky to expect the whole lot (especially if you don’t even want everything) for only £3 when it’s only listed for a tenner anyway! It’s fine if people don’t want to pay (like I said, I’m not in a rush) just don’t use the cost of living crisis as a way to guilt people because a nice sofa, photo frame or ornament isn’t an essential!

I think some people get a thrill from the chase. Getting the bargain is the exciting bit.

I also think some people are trying to get stuff cheaper to sell on for a profit…!

Second hand furniture is VERY difficult to get rid of

@Dogmum1983 Yep totally agree! I've noticed it a few times too, where pricey stuff is being offered for free. It's great if the seller doesn’t need the money and just wants to get rid, and of course, it's nice for the buyer to snag it for nothing. But then it turns into this expectation, and people start thinking you should just give things away because it's the nice thing to do. I think a lot of people are very entitled nowadays.

did they actually use the col crisis though, because you haven't actually specified what they said in your post? As in, did the woman say 'Would you take £3 for the photo frames because I'm struggling for money due to cost of living?' Or did she just say 'Would you take £3?'

With larger items like furniture, even charities won't pick them up sometimes, so people taking it for free are doing the sellers a favour, as if nobody wanted to buy it their only other option would be to pay the council to remove it.

For the photo frames etc, try Vinted.

I often look at adverts and think sellers are in cloud cuckoo land. Our local selling page has things like 5 year old sofa, purchased £1,800, selling as moving, perfect condition £950. Or 5m of super expensive tiles £500 new, £300. Just because it cost a lot, it’s not worth it to most people.

I think you may need to strike lucky OP, it’s frustrating but having someone want that exact model is unlikely and means it might as well be 4 years as 4 months.

We’ve sold two leather three seater sofas, one two seater velvet sofa, a dining table and six chairs, a couple of wooden units, an oven and a hob in the last year. They’ve all gone relatively quickly and for decent money.

@latetothefisting Yes, she mentioned that money was tight and asked if I would take £3. Another person said they were interested in the sofa, but went on this long tale about needing to scrape together the cash as they were skint and would have to ask their family for help. So, it just turns into a bunch of sympathy stories and a way to make others feel guilty for not giving things away for free or at least pennies!

I’m sure it’s useful for some people just to get rid of stuff, but not for everyone as some (including me) actually want cash for their stuff and will keep it until they get the price they’re after (kind of like selling a house, haha)

@Elizabethseymour thank you! Haven’t used vinted in a while so that’s a good shout!

okay, yeah that's unnecessary, and would be even if they were offering close to the price you were asking - the sob stories are completely irrelevant (and often made up!). That would annoy me more than the cheeky offers tbh.

@Tuliprosey14 yes I’ve sold a coffee table, sideboard, tv stand, fridge/freezer, chest of drawers, a shelving ladder, canvas and a couple of other bits

Few years ago I put perfect condition 2 year old 42inch samsung tv, not a scratch on it on and was offered a fiver 😂
Sold it for the 100 I wanted, of course.

It's not Col. Chancers were always there. Alongside the "is it available?" "yes it is" "great" and dissappear one

The people who do this aren't struggling. They are just cheeky.

If you sell on platforms like Vinted and Ebay then expect get cheeky offers all the time. When someone makes a cheeky offer I am tempted to ask them how they would feel if their boss only offered them half of their wage next pay day because that all he thought they were worth. Of course I dont do that. I simply make a counter offer by stating that my best is ££.

Some customers are unbelievable. One got an item with a good discount then sent me a snitty message about how they resented dealers like me buying stuff at auction and reselling it. Only collectors should be allowed to buy at auction. With people like this who are whinging before you have even send the goods they can turn into the buyer from hell. I quickly refunded their money and welcomed them to my blocked buyer list. After 20 years on Ebay you get a gut feeling.

Yes, this.

Personally I'd be suspicious of a sofa someone was getting rid of after a few months and there's no shortage of second hand sofas out there.

If i had a budget of £300 for a sofa Id buy a cheap one new rather than take chance of spending on that 2nd hand and if theres any issues at least new you can return. The market for 2nd hand furniture is limited