Really miffed with Marketplace buyers

My point is not why I try to sell things, but why are there are so may flakes on online selling places. Is it a ploy to get addresses since once I give it out I get ghosted.
 

debodun said:
My point is not why I try to sell things, but why are there are so may flakes on online selling places. Is it a ploy to get addresses since once I give it out I get ghosted.
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Let me just throw an idea out there that just occurred to me. Maybe you'll pooh-pooh it right away, or maybe you'll consider it. You've said you don't want to just "give things away" because of being antiques/vintage. I totally get that, and I wouldn't want to either.

Anyhow, the thought... could you contact a genuine antique or vintage dealer and have him or her come by and give you an offer for everything as a huge lot? You'd make a little money, you'd get rid of all things at one time and wouldn't have to worry about it any longer. Sure you'd have to take what you'd most likely consider a substantial loss, but it would all be gone and you wouldn't be ghosted by strangers online or have to piecemeal every item separately..
 
CallMeKate said:
Anyhow, the thought... could you contact a genuine antique or vintage dealer and have him or her come by and give you an offer for everything as a huge lot?
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Been that route; even auctioneers. These people only want what they term "high end" items like Chippendale furniture or Dresden china. It seemes everyone is only into what that term "precious metals". I have nice things, but no where near what dealers want.

Sometimes I watch "Collector's Call" TV show. I am amazed at what some people's collections are appraised at, much would be what young people would term "dust catchers".
 

debodun said:
Been that route; even auctioneers. These people only want what they term "high end" items like Chippendale furniture or Dresden china.
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Well that stinks! What made me think of it was that I live in an area with tons of antique and vintage malls. When an elderly neighbor died a few years ago, her daughter had one of those places come by and buy everything out. She knew they'd take it to the vintage mall and resell for double or triple what they paid, but it didn't matter. Now, this wasn't "antique" things like furniture... more like vintage bric-à-brac, but it worked well for her.
 
debodun said:
My point is not why I try to sell things, but why are there are so may flakes on online selling places. Is it a ploy to get addresses since once I give it out I get ghosted.
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I believe many lose interest in the item but are afraid to say so. Once they call or ask a bunch more questions they may feel vested in the deal, so you get the "let me have your address and I'll swing by". But they never intend to swing by, they've already decided they don't want the item.
 
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I think we'll all soon be drowning in unwanted "stuff." The millenials don't want it, they travel light and keep all the non-electronic items down to a minimum. What will happen to all the fine china, crystal, silver, jewelry, etc. that was so important to our generation? I'm not talking about royalty, I'm thinking of the ordinary middle class, who also collected a lot of that kind of stuff.

The antique stores don't want it either. One dealer told me that everyone who comes in wants to sell, nobody wants to buy.
 
Sunny said:
The antique stores don't want it either. One dealer told me that everyone who comes in wants to sell, nobody wants to buy.
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That's the impression I'm getting. There used to be 4 or 5 antiques and collectibles boutiques around here. They all went OOB within the last 6 years.

When I did my aunt's estate, she had a lot of mice designer clothes including some Bob Mackey. Too bad my aunt and I weren't the same size. I took a carload to a second-hand shop. The proprietor only took two items out of everything. If anything had the slightest imperfection, she wasn't interested. She wouldn't take a jacket because it had a 1/4 inch thread protruding from the shoulder seam! The same thing happened at a locally well-known used goods store (they are still in business). After that, I sorta gave up trying to unload on third party businesses. It's almost like you have to go to a major store, buy clothes and bring them right to the second-hand store. They should specify "not worn more than once or twice".
 
Nathan said:
There's not much I would try to sell anymore, would just as soon donate or drop in the dumpster.
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When I moved down here to Florida from Virginia, I had several things I didn’t want to take along. I was going to list them on Craig’s List, but didn’t want a lot of people coming to my house, so I rounded up all the things and started putting it out to the curb with a Free Sign on a post I made to nail it on.

A fellow in a pickup stopped and said he would take everything I was getting rid of. I asked him if he got rich from picking up other people’s junk. He said no and he depended on getting money for what he picks up to get by on. I didn’t know if he was being for real or not, but I really didn’t care. I just wanted it gone, so I told him to help himself.

After he was done loading, he offered me a $50 bill. I asked him for what. He told me he will probably get about $300 for my stuff. I told him ‘good for you, but I don’t want your money.’ Finally, he left. I never met a person that was so insistent on wanting to hand over money.
 
Been There said:
When I moved down here to Florida from Virginia, I had several things I didn’t want to take along. I was going to list them on Craig’s List, but didn’t want a lot of people coming to my house, so I rounded up all the things and started putting it out to the curb with a Free Sign on a post I made to nail it on.

A fellow in a pickup stopped and said he would take everything I was getting rid of. I asked him if he got rich from picking up other people’s junk. He said no and he depended on getting money for what he picks up to get by on. I didn’t know if he was being for real or not, but I really didn’t care. I just wanted it gone, so I told him to help himself.

After he was done loading, he offered me a $50 bill. I asked him for what. He told me he will probably get about $300 for my stuff. I told him ‘good for you, but I don’t want your money.’ Finally, he left. I never met a person that was so insistent on wanting to hand over money.
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I wish he had stopped by my house! ;)
 
Some thrift stores will send a truck if you’re donating a ton of stuff. I did that about 20 years ago because I was moving. Of course I threw away anything not in good shape because I didn’t want the thrift store to incur a trash bill. That’s actually a major expense and problem for thrift stores.
 
My neighbor across the street passed back in April. His family spent two weeks at the house. They rented a roll-off and filled it to overflowing. I went over and looked at it after they left and was able to rescue a few items that seemed nice to me like a bear cookie jar and a hand-made rustic bench. Who knows what else ended up in there that I couldn't see?
 
debodun said:
I went over and looked at it after they left and was able to rescue a few items that seemed nice to me like a bear cookie jar and a hand-made rustic bench. Who knows what else ended up in there that I couldn't see?
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Deb with that approach you will never declutter your house. But you're OK with that, aren't you?
 
After my ex’s grandmother‘s funeral, about 25 years ago, the family was invited to her home the take what they wanted. It was a very cluttered house and garage. My ex said it was a feeding frenzy. A large family with many grandchildren who were adults as well (g-mother was almost 100 years old). They picked the place clean. No roll-away required!
 
debodun said:
It's almost like you have to go to a major store, buy clothes and bring them right to the second-hand store. They should specify "not worn more than once or twice".
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Sometimes I watch the storage unit YouTube videos and one of them said that they donate any old clothes because the only clothes that sell well at flea markets are either vintage items or clothes that still have sales tags (it is surprising to me how many of the storage units have some clothes that still have tags!).
 
C50 said:
Deb with that approach you will never declutter your house. But you're OK with that, aren't you?
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Well, I don't go out of my way to attend garage sales like I did when mom was alive. She'd get a newspaper on Friday and I'd make a list of all the sales that looked promising and we'd spend Saturday garage saleing. That was back when they were popular. Mom seldom came out of a sale empty-handed. That's why I inherited a houseful of things that nobody seems to want anymore. Back in the 1980s and 90s. it seemed everyone was collecting something. Fast forward to the 21st Century - nobody is collecting anymore.

Now I will only stop at a sale if I happen to pass one and it looks inviting. Most of the time I don't buy since I am trying to sell what mom acquired.
 
Sunny said:
I think we'll all soon be drowning in unwanted "stuff." The millenials don't want it, they travel light and keep all the non-electronic items down to a minimum. What will happen to all the fine china, crystal, silver, jewelry, etc. that was so important to our generation? I'm not talking about royalty, I'm thinking of the ordinary middle class, who also collected a lot of that kind of stuff.

The antique stores don't want it either. One dealer told me that everyone who comes in wants to sell, nobody wants to buy.
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I think lifestyles change, and those things are just not part of the next gen. Hardly anyone polishes silver, or wears furs, or eats meals on fine china. Many don't even wear suits to funerals or weddings.

It seems like most people don't want to part with stuff because it is part of their life history, or that of loved ones. In a way it's saying goodbye to the past. Unfortunately for many, it remains in boxes on shelves. From what I've seen, most people's garages are so full of stuff that their cars have to remain parked on the street in the weather, and their cars are worth far more than what's inside the garage.
 
Before I moved, I took these photo of the corner cabinets where mom displayed her "finds" (an these are just a small example of what he had). She was really into Depression glass and back then it was a popular collectible and she probably thought it was a good investment and an inheritance for me, but now it is actually a white elephant.

cabinet dining room after.jpgcorner top left after.jpgcorner top right after.jpg
 
bobcat said:
Unfortunately for many, it remains in boxes on shelves. From what I've seen, most people's garages are so full of stuff that their cars have to remain parked on the street in the weather, and their cars are worth far more than what's inside the garage.
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Yep, and when they die, it all goes to a landfill.

Better to donate the things now and let others enjoy them, than to have it all trashed.
 
debodun said:
Most of the time I don't buy since I am trying to sell what mom acquired.
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Mom got her enjoyment out of it. It served its purpose.
She did not get those things so that they would be a burden to you when she was gone!
You can donate those "white elephants" as you called them, and have some breathing room.
 
debodun said:
Even I've been off track with this thread. I am not asking what to do with my sale items, just what is it with people these days that they seem to have no accountability.
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Such seems to be the way of the world these days. Contractors don't show up as promised, people who mow don't show up either, and hardly anyone bothers to answer their phone anymore, just to name a few things.

As for clutter: I don't have a garage. I have a carport to park under and at the end of it are storage rooms with a total of about 300 square feet. I emptied those a few years ago, and all that's in them now are useful items like ladders and yard tools such as rakes, hedge clippers, and a weed blower.

I've never set out to de-clutter my house, and don't intend to do so. There are antiques and collectibles here, but not to an abundance, and I keep things neat and orderly. My cousin (Executor of my will) probably will not want any of my furniture or decor because he has his own tastes, and has a lot of "stuff" in his own house. But - he is going to inherit my house and what's in it, so I feel no desire or obligation to start getting rid of things for his convenience. He can take care of that, or have an estate sale.
 
Any items is only "worth" whatever someone is willing to pay for it.
As you have found out (and mentioned in several threads), finding that person willing to meet your price is nigh on impossible! Especially when your asking price is so high for today's market.



As an aside, why surround the items you value with so much clutter?
 
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