How best to negotiate reasonable prices?

[Asomer]

I came came across a C/L seller in Indianapolis(I'm in Texas, so shipping costs would come into play,) the other day selling the 2 of the exact same RH sofas I've been looking at & a RH coffee table: everything is 2yrs old. The sofas have the same down cushion option I'm wanting & dimensions, just not the slipcover fabric or color I'd prefer(yes, they're linen slipcovered sofas, NOT leather!) A new RH slipcover runs @ $800-$1,000 depending on fabric choice, size, etc...LOL, keep all of this in mind for when I tell you how much they've been asking for each sofa:

They claim they paid $3,595 each, not inc shipping for the sofas 2yrs ago(sounds bout right.) They def don't look brand-new in the measly 2 front facing pics they've posted. Yet, they don't look beat up either, just normal...yet, they're asking $3,500 for each sofa?!?!

Lol, for that price I could buy it brand-new in my desired fabric & color!! They said they're willing to negotiate as the listing's been up for over a month now & NOTHING in the listing has sold.

My question is, & this applies to any & all used furniture items being sold on eBay & Craigslist: how do you go about asking for less & negotiating a reasonable & fair price without insulting them & souring the deal? Especially when they're asking just shy of what they paid retail for? So many ppl on those sites think they can recoup their full investment regardless of however long ago it was on used furniture! Without sounding overly judgy(LOL,) they look like uninformed idiots who have absolutely no clue what they're doing...and, they wonder why a month in & nobody's buying what they're listing!

I got the impression they were insulted when I offered $2,000+ less than what they're asking for(I offered $1,200 initially, then $1,500.) Those sofas aren't worth $3,500 new & they most definitely aren't worth $3,500 2yrs old!!

Any tips & techniques or advice would be great for future reference & perhaps this could become a sticky to help others coming across similar situations?

Andrea

[dmattinson]

With that distance there is no incentive for them to take a lower offer. Best negotiation is done in person, face-to-face. The prospect of a person walking away when a buyer is right there is tough for anyone selling anything and makes them more willing to compromise.
You may not be willing to drive or fly to check it out but really, that is the best way to work a deal. However, spending that money also adds additional risk to you. Hundreds of dollars are wasted in travel and time if you walk away.

I would ask them "what would it take to sell these?" If their number is still unreasonable, move on. It will not be worth the effort.

[Asomer]

With that distance there is no incentive for them to take a lower offer. Best negotiation is done in person, face-to-face. The prospect of a person walking away when a buyer is right there is tough for anyone selling anything and makes them more willing to compromise.
You may not be willing to drive or fly to check it out but really, that is the best way to work a deal. However, spending that money also adds additional risk to you. Hundreds of dollars are wasted in travel and time if you walk away.

I would ask them "what would it take to sell these?" If their number is still unreasonable, move on. It will not be worth the effort.

Ok, thanks for the tip. Now, what if the listing IS in my local area & they're asking for cpl hundred less than retail or what they actually paid for the item?

Even if I negotiate face to face, it's only with these kinda listings where the seller is completely uninformed as to mass produced furniture's resale value & it makes for a really awkward situation having to offer way under what they're asking.

I guess I'm looking for the best way to phrase my offer & how to diplomatically explain to them they're asking way too much?

[drcollie]

People have perceptions of what THEY think something is worth, however the market sets the price. You will see this in everything pre-owned from the price of a home, to a car, to a swiss watch, to furniture. When someone dictates the price they want for something, and it hasn't sold in a reasonable amount of time, that's a sure sign it's over-priced. If there is something you want that person has, put in the highest offer you are willing to pay and then tell them to keep your number and call when they want to sell it, and tell them that is all you will pay. Sometimes you will get a call two months later, sometimes not.

I just sold my daughter's Mazda 3 (she has moved to the city and has no need for a car). I had two committed buyers in 24 hours because I priced it right and to move, a little less than fair market value. They both knew the price was right, so there was no need to negotiate. When things are priced right, they go fast, when overpriced they sit.

[Jenny]

I guess I'm looking for the best way to phrase my offer & how to diplomatically explain to them they're asking way too much?

You don't. Give them your highest offer and move on. If they need to get rid of it, they will contact you eventually. Otherwise, it's up to them to ask for whatever they want and wait for the perfect buyer on their own time. After all, there's clearly a market for people who want RH furniture but can't quite justify the extra 1 or 2 grand.

[dmattinson]

The biggest key is don't desire the item so much that it makes you compromise on the price.

An example I am dealing with at home is the wife wants a dining room table for when we move. We currently have an eat-in "country" kitchen with a pub height table and pub height chairs which is great for a kitchen area but not for formal dining.
So off we went to PA's Brandywine valley where the antique and craft shops are located. She hated the antique stores (despite seeing some very well built older furniture) but we stumbled on a place that makes furniture from reclaimed barn boards and beams. She absolutely fell in love with this table (she also wants matching benches for the long sides) @ $1800 unfinished:


I told her to keep looking - they don't make the furniture there, they have "a guy" in Lancaster, PA (Amish furniture is not what it is made out to be - those folks are farmers...sure, they can raise a barn but carpentry isn't their 1st focus) that makes it for them and they do the antiqued finishes or staining.
I will say, it is a very nice table but I am not sure it is $1800 nice to have to add more to stain it, especially since she is looking to antique the top and not let the wood grain be the focus (waste of reclaimed boards in my opinion).

So I convinced her to hold off for now and look at some other places...we have driven around and she hasn't found the "one" yet. I told her (and am starting to convince her) that it might be better to find someone in Florida to work with on creating the table she is looking for AFTER we are in the house for a little. No rushing to fill the place with furniture before we move in (plus, I will need to load it and unload it without hurting it - something this bull doesn't have a perfect track history of doing over the years).

[Asomer]

The biggest key is don't desire the item so much that it makes you compromise on the price.

An example I am dealing with at home is the wife wants a dining room table for when we move. We currently have an eat-in "country" kitchen with a pub height table and pub height chairs which is great for a kitchen area but not for formal dining.
So off we went to PA's Brandywine valley where the antique and craft shops are located. She hated the antique stores (despite seeing some very well built older furniture) but we stumbled on a place that makes furniture from reclaimed barn boards and beams. She absolutely fell in love with this table (she also wants matching benches for the long sides) @ $1800 unfinished:


I told her to keep looking - they don't make the furniture there, they have "a guy" in Lancaster, PA (Amish furniture is not what it is made out to be - those folks are farmers...sure, they can raise a barn but carpentry isn't their 1st focus) that makes it for them and they do the antiqued finishes or staining.
I will say, it is a very nice table but I am not sure it is $1800 nice to have to add more to stain it, especially since she is looking to antique the top and not let the wood grain be the focus (waste of reclaimed boards in my opinion).

So I convinced her to hold off for now and look at some other places...we have driven around and she hasn't found the "one" yet. I told her (and am starting to convince her) that it might be better to find someone in Florida to work with on creating the table she is looking for AFTER we are in the house for a little. No rushing to fill the place with furniture before we move in (plus, I will need to load it and unload it without hurting it - something this bull doesn't have a perfect track history of doing over the years).

Those Monastery tables are hot right now & you can find them in all price ranges. $1,800 actually isn't that bad, IF it was completely finished & ready to go!

If they're asking $1,800 for it in its "as is" state, with the "antique" finish as an additional cost?! Yea, I agree: they're nickel & diming you all the way for a table you can literally go anywhere nowadays & get!!

I agree with you on the reclaimed barn wood too: reclaimed wood is REALLY hot right now & it'll be a bit more expensive than the exact same piece made from new wood. But..., to just cover it up with a finish?? No: that totally defeats the purpose of going with reclaimed wood. In that case, hat skip the reclaimed wood, opt for the table made from new wood & save yourself the several hundred $$$.

I was like your wife: anytime I was moving, I would get that "might as well redo the whole place & start from scratch" wild hair. But once in my new place, I start noticing how what I thought I really wanted wouldn't have looked right, or the scale would've been way off for the room, etc. So now, I think it's much better to move in & live within the space for awhile, see how it functions & what your needs are relative to it. THEN begin looking for that "it" piece.

I'm also the instant gratification type: I want the whole space fully finished in 1 go with art hung on the walls, rugs on the floors & drapes on the windows. I'm fighting that urge too & taking Duane's advice to purchase quality pieces 1 or 2 at a time.

[drcollie]

Most reclaimed wood in the USA is Heart Pine, a wood with a very interesting history. Heart Pine was considered an ideal building wood, particularly for Ship's Masts in the early days of our country. Its one of the things the British used to do to to Colonists that really used to anger them. They would go into a forest and brand the King's Mark onto the best of the Heart Pine trees for ship-building and Colonists were forbidden to touch any tree with that brand on it, nor would the Brits pay the landowner for it. It was considered the Right of the Crown. Heart Pine was a heavy sap wood, and not like the pines we have today, it was not soft, and ideal building characterics plus it was easy to work with hand tools. It was over-forested and generally thought to be extinct around 1910 to 1920. Now they get these old Heart Pine woods when they tear down a factory in built in the 1800's, most all the flooring and beams were made of it. Because it was sap-heavy, many logs sunk in the rivers used to transport the trees (they were floated downstream). The sap kept them from rotting and they can and are pulled up from the river bottoms now, still perfectly usable.

That photo of the table appears to be 'Cabin Grade" Heart Pine, which would have been flooring in a factory. I installed that same floor in my store in 1986 of re-claimed heart pine. We put two coats of clear varnish on it and here's what it looks like today, 30 years later. It never been anything but dusted the last three decades.





I have no problems at all paying $ 1,800 for that table if its made of Heart Pine (you need to ask). What is the base made of? Heart Pine as well? Those pedestals may be hollow, at the very least they are glued up, they're big. The top is belt sanded, and it would look much better with a scraped top - I would pay them extra to do that. They have pinned breadboard ends on it so that's good, will keep the top stable in high-humidity Florida if you buy it. I would also have no issue paying them $ 500 or so to finish it, either. If its Heart Pine, and all solid wood, that's a bargain. I assume the top detaches? Would be very heavy and hard to handle if it does not. My suggestion is to buy it before you move -- there are no woodworkers of note in Florida (I used to live there) and you would be buying from the mid-Atlantic and shipping it down. Good luck.

[dmattinson]

I'd have to look at the notes we took but I think they said this was oak and pine would be a little cheaper. Finishing cost would be 10% of the cost.
All said with 2 matching benches, it was $3410 + tax finished.
We'll need to go back. They were rearranging their showroom and working on finishing some items in their side of the floor where this piece was.

[dmattinson]

On a side note, I found a place that made a table out of 1960's era boardwalk planks from either Rehoboth or OC MD. Lots of character and an aged grey finish but I didn't get info on the species and worry about outside boards containing pressure treating chemicals, especially on an eating surface.
The wife hated it...but she's from Boston and has poor taste ;p