What do you pay for used items on ebay?

[BamaTanya]

Of course, I know it depends upon how much you want it and how hard it is to find. Sometimes, though, I find myself bidding on something and the bidding on a USED item climbs higher than the new purchase price. On OOP books, I generally try to spend no more (including shipping) than 1/2 the new price. On other used items -- accessories, for instance, I don't want to spend more than 1/4, especially if I could still purchase a new one. When things are used, I want a bargain! Using a book doesn't really decrease its value, but I still want it to be worth the "risk" of buying something from a stranger instead of a bookstore.

Maybe I just keep running into collectors who are determined to purchase something no matter what the cost -- or they just get caught up in the bidding frenzy!

What about you?

[cin]

If you're like me, you want the same books that everyone other homeschool mom wants, so the price keeps going up and up and up. I try to not spend more than 50% of the list price. If I really want it, I'll look around and buy it at the cheapest place. That includes ebay, even if it is only a couple of bucks cheaper. My goal is to save money.

[Jeanne in MN]

If I can win an auction where it's cheaper than anywhere else then I will bid up to the point it's the same price somewhere else-and maybe a bit higher if I have a chance of getting it.

Of course hassle comes into play too. I'd rather buy something through a used site where I have an account set up then wait for an invoice at ebay, send payment, etc.

[Sue G in PA]

I don't like to pay more than half of what an item is worth new. BUT, there are items that I will pay more for if the condition is like new. I find some items go for higher prices b/c of labels (clothes being one). Homeschool items can get rather pricey b/c of bidding wars and I usually don't bid on hs stuff on ebay. Only exeption...today I just won a lot of Cuisenaire rods (complete set), Cuisenaire Alphabet book, another Cuis. book, Cuis. ruler for $5.50 ($6.50 s/h)! Good deal! I was psyched. I've seen Saxon books get well over my comfort range! Honestly, for hs stuff...I prefer buying outright at WTM or homeschoolclassifieds.com.

[Beth in Central TX]

When I first started homeschooling, I tried using Ebay to purchase some of the harder to find items or to save money if the item and/or shipping was exorbitant. In the end, I found that I spent too much time watching or bidding on an item that became unreasonably priced. Therefore, I haven't used Ebay for any of my on-line purchases in quite some time now.

I usually make my on-line purchases from Amazon.com, Amazon.com Marketplace, Rainbow Resource, and Lulu.com.