Selling by arrangement after bids received

Fromply

I'm selling a load of stuff off on ebay. I've received a message asking for a buy it now price for 2 of the lots - buyer says he will pay cash on collection which he can do tomorrow. In principal, I'm happy to do it this way (assuming he meets my price expectations)
Auctions still have about 7 days to go, but both lots have already received bids. I'm pretty sure that the current bids will not be the winning bids (they are a long way short of what similar items usually sell for)
Where do I stand? Is it an option to offer this enquirer a buy it now price for the two lots and to withdraw them from sale if we agree, even though bids have been made? Or am I required to just let the auction run its course now? I kindof feel a moral obligation to let the auctions run their course (regardless of whether I can cancel it legitimately or not) as I've offered the items for sale and people have made, presumably, binding bids! However I'm not terribly experienced on ebay, so not too sure...


Any thoughts/recommendations/guidance?

hollydays

Chances are he won't meet your price expectations.
He wants to get it off ebay quick to get it cheap.
He says he'll pay cash- that's what you were expecting anyway..

Fromply

Sure I get that - but should I even give him the chance to meet my expectations, or do I need to let it run its course?

hollydays

Simply ask him what he's expecting to pay before you even look into this any further

soolin

Just be warned that if you cancel your listings and sell 'off eBay' you will still be charged by eBay for FVFs.

Fromply

How would they know what I sell for if it is off ebay? (currently both items have bids of below £1 - I expect/hope for a combined price for both of around £180)

hollydays

If your expecting that value, what can you possibly gain but not letting the auction run.

Avoriaz

Fromply wrote: »

How would they know what I sell for if it is off ebay? (currently both items have bids of below £1 - I expect/hope for a combined price for both of around £180)

They won't.

As far as I am aware, they will calculate the FVF on the highest bids at the time you cancel the auctions.

If you act quickly while bids are still under £1, your FVF will be tiny.

You do run the small risk of significantly higher bids being placed before you cancel the auctions, but, with 7 days to go, that isn't likely.

As you have exchanged messages, presumably via eBay, I imagine there is a small risk that eBay will investigate and sanction you or even ban you. I have no idea how real that risk might be. It could be non existant.

soolin

Fromply wrote: »

How would they know what I sell for if it is off ebay? (currently both items have bids of below £1 - I expect/hope for a combined price for both of around £180)

The FVfs will be based on some formula or other , I've lost track of the new rules. It might only be based on the original listing price, or it might be based on the highest bid placed.

http://pages.ebay.co.uk/help/sell/questions/endlist-now.html

soolin

Following links from my last post, you might get away with just FVfs on the start price as you will of course be removing all the bids currently placed.

The link says


If you end an auction early and buyers have already placed bids, you may be charged a fee. This fee is the same as a final value fee, based on the item price when you ended the auction.

Fromply

hollydays wrote: »

If your expecting that value, what can you possibly gain but not letting the auction run.

The disadvantage is that by not taking it, I might not get the bidding I'm hoping for on the items (they are collection only - so it is dependant on local interest)



On the flip side - if I can get what I'm hoping for now, what advantage is there in not taking it?