CliffordK

Inbound parts and pieces are generally sales tax free, at least so far.
But, I think there are still some states trying to capture outbound sales taxes. So, sell something to a customer in another state, and you may well have to collect the sales taxes.

It will be interesting to see if that eventually gets challenged in court.

Washington used to give sales tax exemptions to Oregon customers, but they're trying to close that loophole. Essentially you can still get your exemption, but you have to keep your receipt, and file for a refund at the end of the year.

fender1

This is just one more thing that makes what was a fun hobby, a little less fun and feel more like work. I will proboably be relegated to in person cash transaction for sales or even-value swaps going forward. That is until I grow tired of in-person transactions from craigslist, which drove me to sell on ebay.....

scarlson 

Also, evilbay will collect sales tax for you. No need to do any work on that!

Most tax codes have a "garage sale clause" which exempts private transactions under some certain amount. You just have to dig a bit to find it.

I agree, though, it is an huge pain and makes it feel as though it's not worth it. I am unhappy about it too. I'm now equipped to receive bitcoins, thanks to a techy friend (even though that is horrible for the environment and makes me feel like the world is ending)..

Anyways, two words: Personal Items!

Kabuki12

I have only bought one complete bike on eBay. I have bought MANY parts , wheels , etc. My experience has been good as a buyer , not so good as a seller. The bike I bought was a 1972 Mondia Special that was listed as "Old Three Speed Bicycle". I think the opening bid was $100 with $100 shipping. The bike was in Corona California, I am in Ventura County California , so too far to drive but when asked, the seller said absolutely no pick up or looking at the bike. I asked about sizing and was told that they found the bike in a storage locker and "just look at the pictures" and they had plenty. I gathered they just blow through stuff at a rapid clip and didn't want to mess around....O.K.! I bid $300 based on what I saw was a nearly cherry bike with all the original Campy stuff , even the Brooks Pro saddle! I figured I would have a max investment of about $400 or so with shipping , and I really wanted the bike. At the close , I got the bike for $270 and was happy but that wasn't the end of the story. The seller contacted me and said the shipping would be $50 because I paid "so much for the bike"! Uhm ....OK! It turned out well and I gambled , the bike was a 63cm size which is what I had guessed and the condition was great. The clear coat was still on the chrome and it cleaned up very nicely. It easily could have turned out differently and I knew that going in.

non-fixie 

The seller is a long-term member of the CABE, and seems to get pretty decent feedback there on his sales, both directly to forum members and via ebay. FWIW.

SurferRosa

"Stem of the century"?

Oh, tis thee stem of the century!!

wrk101

Its $600 gross proceeds from ANY on line payment service. Do you use PayPal here? Or on eBay, eBay payment services. In years past, the limit was $20,000 before a 1099 was issued. Congress changed the law to $600. Even if you sold less than $20,000 in the past, you were legally responsible for paying income taxes.

Sell two items, one for $300 gross, and another for $300 gross. Bingo, you will be getting a 1099. So if in the past you sold a bike or two here, and took PayPal, strong chance you WILL be getting a 1099. Its not the end of the world.

It is up to each individual to track their expenses on any payment service. Fees, shipping, original purchase price, etc.

I've been getting 1099s in the past. So its nothing new. But it is going to be new for a lot of people. I always think back to a frameset I sold to a guy in New Zealand. $200 for the frameset, and $425 in shipping. So gross proceeds of $625. Clearly I did not make $625 "profit" on the transaction, and with documentation, I did not pay taxes on $625, it was more like $100. Keep records!

One can argue that the old $20,000 limit was pretty ridiculous. Someone might sell $15,000 and pay no income tax.

Sales tax is a totally different discussion. Ebay charges the appropriate sales tax. Then you, as the seller, will pay the eBay payment service fee on the sales tax (and everything else). As I recall, final value fees are charged on just the sales price plus the shipping.

As far as the seller at the start of this thread, he has a mediocre feedback score, and not that much feedback either.

shelbyfv

Well heck, I expected more excitement. I couldn't see anything wrong with the ad except all the extra tag words or whatever they are called. I couldn't find any questions asked about the item. Seems to have good feedback as a seller. Maybe I missed something.

Spaghetti Legs 

Yes, Paypal generates a 1099 for all goods and services transactions for the year. I sold my Pinarello to a nice gentleman for $1100 last summer. He was standing next to me when he paid using his phone. I asked him to friends/family, but he tapped goods/services by mistake. Doh! There's a long thread on this over on Paceline. I'm going to give the 1099 to my accountant and hope for the best. If needed I'll drum up some documentation showing how little I made on my sales. In the case of the Pinarello, I got the frame in trade for a Basso, parts from a couple of different other bikes, wheel set that I'd had but used little for about 15 years. Hmmm.

nlerner

What?! An eBay seller is being mean and clueless?! What's this world coming to?!

Soody

This is why I only deal with aliexpress sellers

randyjawa 

As the originator of "pooey stinko", I found this to be very amusing. Well done!

bamboobike4

Direct and to the point is now rude, or mean?
Try buying a used car in Detroit; insulting skills required.

Not condoning anything, but selling on eBay is inviting just as many buyers that come across like that seller.
I think he/she was trying to scrape off the buyers he didn’t want.

I like it, I buy it, or bid.
If not, not. I’m not looking for a relationship.
As Clint Eastwood said, as Gunny Highway "I'm not looking to swap spit in the shower...."

I try to keep moving and have little time to be offended.

A great seller is a pleasant surprise.
I just bought a 9-speed Campy cassette. Seller sent a VERY nice 10-speed instead, worth twice.
While I can certainly use a Super Record 10v cassette for a 9v Chorus price, and have bikes for it, just not right. I let him know and the 9v was there in 2 days with a return label for the 10v.

I guarantee there are folks here who would have said “his mistake,” and kept the 10v.
I have zero doubt about that. But, I hate a thief and keeping it would make one of me.

There are a lot more offensive things in the world than eBay sellers. Ask a Uyghur.

Chuck M 

We don't know that the two people leaving negative feedback first attempted to get a resolution before posting the feedback. Nevertheless the seller's responses to the negative feedback was tacky. I think what the OP was trying to do is point out that for someone that is trying to sell so many items on eBay, they could stand to not be such a jerk when the negative feedback is given.

scarlson 

I didn't see much atypical with the evilbay seller.

I never really understood the attitude of "I'm not here to make friends". Usually hides crippling insecurity, in my experience.

You can be direct, or even abrasive, and still make friends. Sometimes because of it, not in spite of it. It's happened to me.

Friendship is magic. More people should try it.

mstateglfr 

There sure are a lot of sellers for a site that is for buyers only.

I sold a bunch of derailleurs, shifters, crank, frame, and some brakes back in December. It was fun to see what was being looked at and offered on. I made more money than I would have made here or on Craigslist and the stuff sold relatively quickly.
It was great.

cudak888 

I read the listing and looked at the feedback both received and given.

Based on some - not all - of the replies here, it looks as if some did not read past the headline. The seller has exactly two negatives from buyers in obvious full rant mode. These buyers appear to be far more interested in leaving a negative than working out a rational solution with the seller.



In my humble little opinion, the attitude of the seller in the linked auction seems to reflect a fairly normal human being who has been burnt multiple times by absolute jerks and wants to avoid any further dealings with abusive buyers such as these. Perhaps he's indelicate about it, but so have his buyers - and these responses aren't out of line if these same comments were made in person at a swap meet.

There seems to be this attitude that every eBay seller should reflect a corporate-like entity, and I don't agree with it - especially when buyers treat small, independent sellers as if they're supposed to reflect Amazon-levels of perfection (more accurately, buyers trying to ask for a refund while still keeping the item).

As someone who has recently been burnt by a complete scumbag who chose to take out USPS shipping delays on my otherwise spotless feedback since 1998, I can entirely sympathize.

I'd buy from this seller with relative confidence. In fact, I'd really like to see the usernames of the two ranting buyers, as I'd love to add them to my block list.

-Kurt

P.S.: @randyjawa, you used to contribute some really good stuff. Why have your threads as of recent become C&V clickbait? I'm not the only one who has noticed.

randyjawa 

Sorry that you (and others) see it that way. I will do my best to be more positive in the future.

Drillium Dude 

100% this.

When I was finally able to move the Sparrow frame/fork, I was absolutely over the moon; I had dealt with some absolute tools over the 2+ years it was listed, first as a complete bike and later as f/f. FWIW, it was listed on CL, but after taking numerous queries, sending tons of extra photos, listening to all manner of unrelated prattle, all I ever seemed to get were ridiculous low-ball offers. Someone even thought I should entertain shipping the bike after the prospective buyer made a $200 down payment - and they would then pay me $50 per month until the balance was paid off! Wish I'd saved those emails - they'd make for some interesting reading (I did save them for a time, but deleted them once the Sparrow had moved on).

There are lot of freakin' nutcases out there; I can tell the seller has dealt with plenty of them. Sometimes - perish the thought - we need to try to see the world through a lens that isn't our own...

DD

Kabuki12

As a seller it can be a bit problematic. I was selling a 1973 Paramount for a friend and I put a “buy it now’ price plus a low opening with reserve. About three days in and a lot of questions answered, more photos , “no I will not take low ball offers”, a guy in San Jose hit the buy button and I was relieved that it had sold. The problem…the buyer never paid! This after numerous messages to meet him at the train station with the bike and he would take it on the train home. Kept changing date and time so I should’ve known. I told my buddy to give the bike to his son who loves classic road bikes. eBay did nothing about it after I complained I think he is still on there. That is the only time I had any trouble with a buyer.

roadcrankr

My eBay selling goes back to '97. Actually more buying since inception, but probably five hundred sales during that time. Only a few less-than-smooth transactions, but still managing to keep my record spotless. Some ten years back, one buyer did not like a couple of tiny scratches on an unused wheelset. In my listing, I mentioned shopwear and tried to disclose in my pics. Dude went berserk on me. He got a full refund and sincere apologies, but nevertheless left my first negative. eBay gives the seller the opportunity to write a blurb, so I expressed my surprise about getting my neg despite issuing a full refund. Slipped in a little "avoid this eBayer" bit, too. Somehow it worked, because he retracted the neg.

Anyway, I always try to give good service, yet sometimes you depend on luck for every transaction to go well. Still, way better than FB Marketplace or craigslist, where you're forced to meet people in person. And they suffer no repercussions for botching a deal.

bamboobike4

eBay feedback is like those “kick me” customer service forms.
Most corporations are thrilled above 85%.
There is a statistical likelihood that people are unhappy unless they get EVERYTHING.
The eBay seller is doing pretty well in that regard.

As for the general foibles of eBay:
There will always be a certain % of (let’s call them people) who, either by nurture or nature, believe they are entitled to something that someone else feels they are not entitled to. That can be anything from tangible to intangible. It's gotten so prevalent that it has become an actual market variable.

Entitlement conflict has been so since Cain & Abel, (figurative or literal-take your pick) and has driven conflict in the literal/figurative time since.
For example, human migration, since humans began, even when there was LOTS of space. War. Always caused a fight. Always a winner, always a loser.

I think it’s gotten worse since Ben Spock canceled spanking, because now feelings are part of the results equation.

grant40

A lot of people on The CABE are uptight like that it seems.

jonwvara 

Randy, you're fine! You've been a great contributor to this forum and I always enjoy reading your posts.

randyjawa 

@jonwvara...

Thanks for your support. I did, however, learn something from the personal and public attack. I now know what "click bait" is and I, too, really dislike it. I hope that I can continue to present helpful, instructive and entertaining posts in the future.