I see this a lot in Bike Forums (I’m not talking about LondonBikers) mostly one-make forums and bike clubs.
They tell you how good their bike is and what mods it has and how well it’s been looked after - fair enough.
Then they say something like "Rare models of Bikes like this normally go for £10,000 second hand but I’d like to give forum members first dibs before I advertise so will accept £9250.
So what do you do? Go to Ebay, MCN , Biketrader etc to see what the going rate is yourself.
Working from a real example I saw today I did just that… 7 ( not that rare then! ) examples of identical specs (same mods, same equipment) came up, the most expensive in a dealer for £9000…with half of the mileage than the one advertised. Private sale (like the seller above) went from £8700 down to £8495…all had less mileage.
So immediately you look like a money grubbing so-and-so trying to pull the wool over buyers eyes by saying
“Rare models of Bikes like this normally go for £10,000 second hand”
No they don’t - they go for £9000, in a dealer with all of the dealer advantages and less miles - for private sellers like you they go for around £8600… not the £9250 you think you can fool us is a “bargain” , letting it have it cheap because we’re use the same forum…
I can guarantee most bikes advertised on a forum are 10% to 15% overpriced IMHO. I very rarely see a bargain - ie something 5% under the going rate…I guess one of the problems is we price it because we have fallen in love with it - and refuse to be realistic about it.
I can’t blame people for trying to get a good price but don’t try and convince us what the going price is, buyers can quickly find out for themselves and you end up looking like a chancer.
Like anything else, people need to price their merchandise reasonably or it won’t sell.
I can see both sides. I’m on a car forum for a particular brand and I’m considering selling at the moment. I’ve had my car six years, I’ve looked after it heedless of cost in that time, I spent many months carefully evaluating other examples of this model before I bought it, the one I eventually found was well cared for and I paid over the odds for it. It was a good buy and taking care searching for it has paid off; nothing has gone wrong with it in my tenure. These cars I’m talking about can be money pits.
When I come to sell it I will post on the UK forum first. I will be looking for slightly more than the typical eBay Autotrader price - but I think, with justification.
I bought my last bike through an FB group, price was a steal as the mileage was so low, pristine condition and the fact that it was on FB made me feel better about the seller, we had extensive conversations on messenger which helps build trust.
I regularly see other R6 on said group and the prices seems appropriate. If not others would quickly reply to disagree.
I’m not sure which forum is that but I found my experience extremely positive.
By making your case in explaining it’s history people will understand.
It might sound brave but by admitting it will cost more than your average Ebay etc car BUT it has a solid history and you can rely on it not being a money pit will actually attract the buyer who know’s it is much more of a bargain than a trted up but razzed clunker that’s heading for it’s first mega bill at the garage.
Some Triumph’s for instance have a very expensive 12k service and it amazes me how many people advertise their Trumpets at 11,999 miles or even 14,999 miles without having it done.
People don’t realise that they will have to spend £600 at the dealers after they’ve bought it which makes it not a “bargain” but “pricey” (plus the hassle of getting it serviced)
Hey Silver
yes it does happen and you have the warm feeling of buying from someone you already know through an FB group.
Something similar happened to me when I put a request for a particular rare model out on a one-make forum…Someone replied with a lowish mileage pristine example and I couldn’t believe my luck, I bought the bike and it was a gem for the 2 years I had it.
However it’s just my opinion, and it’s a red flag to me when the ad says They normally go for “£X” but I’m willing to sell it to a forum member for “£Y” when a quick check reveals that both “£X” and “£Y” are way over the top considering the history , mileage etc
