Clueless Buyers with cash, Firm means Firm

Looks to me like if the price is firm, that it's the sellers bottom dollar, not top. He'd probably take more if you offered it.
Some folks don't like to argue about price, and that is really what "negotiating" on a price is.
I don't do it at the grocery store and I don't like to do it on buying cars or parts. If a seller asks me what I'd give for an item, I'll tell them. Otherwise, I'm not gonna stand there and waste time debating about something.
Larry T

 

I don't see much of a double standard in what I've read on this thread. You're comparing apples to Oranges...or tangerines at least. If the OP had just said he wanted 35k and the guy showed up and tried to negotiate, that's one thing.....if he had posted 35k FIRM and the guy called and offered 33k, that's fine. HOWEVER, when the OP said 35K FIRM, the guy indicated no intention to talk him down and seemed agreeable to the price, drove ALL that way to "buy" the car, THEN said "33k+you swallow the tranportation"....THAT'S out of bounds. If someone on this thread is advocating being that much of a douche nozzle when they encourage others to do so, then it's a fair contention you're making. But that's not the case from what I read.

So many people think that everyone is on hard times, so they're getting really ballsy. I don't hesitate to tell people that I'm not in that situation (for now at least) and they can buy it at the firm price or hit the road. I find this disturbingly true when someone is pricing their ride (house, goods, etc) at what everyone knows is a rock bottom price, then they come in with an insultingly low offer as if they're being messianic and throwing you a life line...when in reality they're being just the opposite.

 

Larry,

It's a matter of perspective, and I'm not taking buyer's or seller's sides here. It's not a debate or argument, it's a game, there's a difference. Seller's bottom price is Buyer's top price.

You typically don't negotiate commodities (a car or a house are not true commodities) but you probably do shop around and typically buy from the vendor with the best price.

 

Good call! you handled it right. Usually, the buyer will be up front and states that he has only so much money...

 

I see nothing wrong with offering $33k on a "firm" price of $35k, but I always try to get it cheaper, even if it says "firm".
To me the big problem is the way it was done. Showing up at 2:30am to start with; then just handing the seller $33k, without even negotiating or asking if he would take it first. If I really want something I rarely pay the asking price unless it's so dirt cheap I don't want to miss out by being a cheapskate. But if I do want something bad I go there with the asking price, just in case the seller wont take my offer.

 

Mike,
I guess I'm kind of argueing about not argueing. (G) Lots of that in this thread.

I realize we all have different perspectives about things and that's what makes the world go round. But to me haggling isn't fun, and if it isn't fun then it isn't a game.

To get back to the original post, the buyer sure didn't go about things in the right way. You don't change a deal after it's done. If the seller made it clear that the price was $35,000.00 and the buyer agreed to it, then the deal was done.

It's usually pretty clear at the start if negotiations are possible or not. That should set the tone for the rest of the deal.
Larry T

 

Every time I sell a car at least one kid will want me to finance it. Always some white kid in his twenties. Girls and other buyers always have cash.

 

I am sorry, but you TOTALLY missed my point..........it wasn't the OP that I accused of the double standard........it is the legion of "sympathizers" who cheer him on for sending the guy packing......my point being these peanut gallery types THEMSELVES typically negotiate, aka "make an offer on" etc. and then have the audacity to say the guy who offered less is somehow a lowlife. Their stated positions suggest that they ALWAYS pay asking price and wouldn't think of offering less. THAT is the BS and the point you failed to comprehend.

As for myself, I DO NOT enjoy haggling...either as a buyer or seller. Typically, when I am looking to buy something, especially used as found at swap meets, if the price is reaqsonable to me, I may just buy it at the asking price........if it's a fairly expensive item, I often ask "can you do any better than that price?".........if the answer is yes, and the price is agreeable, I buy it. If the asnwer is "no, that's the best I can do", I simply decide if the item is worth that to me today, and act accordingly.

As a seller, I try to educate myself as to the market for the item I am selling, given it's condition, etc. etc. and price it at a figure that an equally educated buyer will recognize as a fair value. I do not price just to "play the game". Have I ever negotited from either the buyers or sellers position?........of course I have, because the market sometimes requires that......but I do not do it for fun......But what I DON"T do is "talk trash" in the manner of many of the posters to this thread that is exactly opposite of their own actions.

By the way, I totally agree with your comment about people who seek to kick a man while he is down by lowballing an already low dollar asking price from a desperate seller. That is a sadistic "sport" that speaks volumes about the character of the potential buyer.

Ray

 

If I am looking to buy I want it and have the money to buy. I only look when I think it is what I want and is what I am willing to pay. It just wastes peoples time otherwise and I don't have time to waste.

 

I'm curious to know how this thread would have turned out if it was written from the other perspective (I.E. the buyer). Quite different I think.
I still can't get past those who are equating the buyer as some sort of low-life scammer. Sounds like a bad deal all around. Just poorly planned and executed by the buyer.

 

Just because your ad says "firm" does NOT mean he can't make an offer ... what it does mean is "you have no intention of accepting anything less than the price stated". He is completely within his rights to make an offer and you are completely within your rights not to accept that offer.

Some people post "firm" in their ads and end up being flexible ... some people post "firm" in their ads and stay firm ... life goes on.

 

Personally, I'd never go out to look a a car in the dark, let alone 2 a.m., let alone with 33k in my pocket.

 

Me, I'm OK with "in the dark at 2 am with $33,000 in my pocket" ... the part that scares me is the "angry wife in the car for a minimum of 10 hrs".

 

Good one...........LMAO

 

I see nothing wrong with the way the seller handled this. A firm price is just that.... a FIRM price.

In this case the problem falls completely in the buyers lap. He assumed, and quite wrongly so, the seller would cave to his offer given the early hours of the mourning and seeing a bunch of $100 bills plopped in front of him. In many cases that would work but some people, and the seller is one of them, mean what they say.

Whenever I'm heading to look at a car, even if the seller says the price is firm, I will always offer less. HOWEVER, I will also be prepared to pay the firm price if I really want the car. There's nothing wrong with trying to get the best price you can as a buyer, but you should always be prepared to pay the asking price if the seller won't move. Otherwise you'll be just as big an ass as this buyer was.

In this case I would have done exactly the same thing the seller did... but probably wouldn't have been as nice as he was at 2:30 AM.

 

That would be me. Hell, I don't even snipe on eBay.

 

This thread if funny if you read it and are older that about 50. I am 51.
I remember mom going to a real butcher and haggleing about the price of meat and the price of veggies at the green grocer, pop haggleing with the plumber and the roofer ect. At one time whe haggled about everthing. Now in the age of Walmart and internet people have forgotten how to do this. About the only place you can make an offer in daily buying is a car deal and even they are trying to do a fixed price thing.
I remember the days when started helping at pops used car lot. Guys would come in every day for a week to talk pop down on a car. Usually it would be something like this. You want $199 for that car I'll give you $150 and it would go that way till payday then the deal would be struck for somewhere in between for cash! Now a guy comes in to buy a car they don't care how much it is thet only want to know if you take payments and they don't have $100 to put down. How we have changed.
Now back to the OP. I don't care if I said firm or not. Firm just keeps the lookers and wanna bees away. The guy had Green $$$$'s laid in front of you within 10% of what you wanted... no checks, no trades... No Government to see what happened. That would have gotten my attention! Could have told anybody that needs to know what you sold the car for ( ie wife, DMV ect) that you got $15000 for it and you would have had some nice clean tax free stuff, Maybe even claimed a loss. I don't know what I would have done but these days $$$ talks. It never hurts to try. And if the buyer walked when you said no maybe he didn't really want it. That is the gamble you had to take when the money is on the line.

 

Stuff like that, I tell them it's xxx dollars today, but try me again in a week or two and maybe i'll be sick of looking at it and sell it to you.

I figure you never know.

I don't blame the guy for trying it. What the heck? It just might work.

I do think he was dumb not to have the other 2 grand with him.

I probably would have said no on principle, but then I've been known to cut off my nose to spite my face.

 

he should have asked if negotiable on his part. but when im talking that much cash whats a grand or two off? yeah its lots of cash off but were you really down to the bone? he wasted more of his time than yours but he was banking that you say ok.

 

2000 is still much money. I always try to remember my cost but usually sell below and lose some because I'm not so patient.

35K against 33K doesn't seem any different for someone but when you have 33K on your car and still need 2K worth of parts to get it finished it may take very long time to spare it.

Or take the half priced bad project and try to make that nice it will cost more.

Or try to sell 2K project car and someone comes up and offers to haul it away for free would you let him?

Of course it's nice not to sell anything to Mr. A.Holes.

 

You actually saw this dude at 2:30 am? Really? This shit could have waited till another day...that's what I would have told the buyer.....

 

I don't blame the buyer for trying to make a deal and I also don't blame the seller for declining it...just business as far as I can see.
Flip side of the coin:
I'm visiting with my wife's friends in her home town 200 miles from ours. Guy says he wants to sell a V/8 Dakota pickup he inherited for "four-fifty"
That's what he said. I ask again and he says "four-fifty will buy it."
I bust ass home and drive up there the next weekend with four hunderd and fifty dollars..[wasn't a very nice pickup...125,00 miles..old plumbers truck] and count it out as he signs the title.
That's when he says.."Where's the rest? I want $4500 for the truck."
His wife said he was on a lotta medication for the last 6 months...
I went home with my money.

 

Not car related .. I was selling my house in McKinney Texas. Before the market crash ... 2nd day on the market we get 3 offers all just about asking price. We go with the first couple that came along. We have a deal and then comes the grace period week for inspections. Her dad flys in to look at the house he says it's not worth that price and they want to renigociate. We say no so they back out. We put the house back on the market and raise the price 5k. 1 week later the couple comes back and buys the house for 7k higher than the first deal!!! Thanks DAD!!

 

sounds to me like the buyer had no experience in negotiating a price. He should have asked over the phone before he makes the 10 hr trip. I have driven a long ways just to find out the seller has incorrectly withheld or didn't actually understand the true condition of the car or part. sometimes I can negotiate a new deal after I get there and it works out , more often than not though I just end up going home empty handed. I would never drive a long ways with less money than agreed upon just hoping the seller would take less, waste of time and money. I do ask seller almost always if they can take less than they are asking, even it says price is firm. DO THIS BEFORE, NOT AFTER AGREEING ON A PRICE. I have also been on the selling end of this and it is frustrating what people think is ok to do and say when coming to look at or buy something. Over the years I have learned not to change my plans unless I know someone for sure is coming (which is often not the case) I am always fair and honest and do my best to accomodate peoples schedules but I don't bend over backwards any more. It is all just part of the game if you mess with old cars and parts. Some people are great, some are just clueless nuts.

 

I`m in the process of trying to sell a gennie deuce roadster...advertised a few places and the price stated as firm.I have replied to lots of people with pics and discription and included that the price is non negotionable....I even had one guy come round and try to cut a deal from under a guy who was flying over and said "he`d have it, there and then".I explained that I stand by my word and will not consider anything u8ntil the guy had come and seen the car..he got back in touch a few days later after he had calmed down and offered £5k less than the asking price.I could have taken his original offer and cut the other guy out(but not in my nature, fortunately) and then been left with a potential missed sale.

I put the price at a realistic figure so as to not have to horse trade...if I`d put a few grand on the price with the intention of dealing down, then I`d probably frighten off potential buyers.

`tis a tricky one....I know a guy who always bids them in the bollocks, and has had some amazing results for his cheek..

 

$33k / $35k ??? Thats a lot of cash to check to make sure its not counterfit . Especially at that time of night. You need to know how read the buyer / seller .

 

I haven't read all these post but I would have said, "OK, i'll hold onto your $33k until you come up with the rest, and when I get the remaining cash I will deliver the car to you." Thanks and have a nice night! At least he came to look at it and offered you cash. I've had numerous people try to lowball me without even seeing the car in person or without even asking me any questions about the car.

 

I guess some of y'all cheap bastards offer 75 cents for stuff off the dollar menu at Burger King, huh?

Roddin-shack's my new hero He knew what he had, how bad he wanted the other car, and held to his principles. Hat's off to you, sir.

 

this is a funny thread. very entertaining.

here's a few lessons for all of you who have not bought and sold 30 or 40 cars over the years, as well as more parts than I can even remember.

as a buyer the only thing to be believed in a for sale ad with any degree of certainty is the phone number or email address listed. anything else is a crapshoot.

as a seller after someone contacts you the only thing for certain is you just had a conversation or email with someone you don't know. nothing said or implied in the conversation is to be taken as something that is actually going to happen.

if I had someone from 5 hours away call at 7:30 say they were coming to look at my car I'd give them a couple names of hotels in my area. no way I'm showing a car at 2:30 A.M.

I see nothing wrong with offering a guy a big wad of cash for a car that was less than the asking price, "firm" or not.

 

Just to clear the air on a couple of questions:

On the initial phone car I questioned him about the odd viewing time and he responded, that he works 12 hours a day everyday and does not want to lose the car to someone else. So I thought the least I could do was to accommodate him.

I did not previously mention that he spend almost 1 hour going over the car in my heated well lit garage and in his opinion this was the best 32 Ford he has seen for years that was for sale. He also had looked at glass cars and was not interested in them.

After the towing negotiation concluded, I honestly believed he was going to be a buyer, until he laid out the cash.

Yes, the car in question, is the one in my avatar.