Heritage auctions a joke

slipk1068 · #1 05-31-2018, 05:56 PM

What kills me is AH's that charge 10% sellers premium on top of a 20% BP. What entitles these people to 30% of my collection?

Defenders are going to come up with all sorts of reasons why this is acceptable as well as negotiable, but I still say it is wrong. When I am ready to sell, I will shop my collection as if it is worth 1K, and consign everything to a big AH that doesn't gouge the little guy.

Exhibitman · #2 05-31-2018, 05:58 PM

David, as you say, it is negotiable. I cannot recall the last time I paid a commission/sellers premium/whatever you call it. There is an AH that will work with most any consignment. You just may not get REA or Heritage interested.

As for why they deserve to get paid, well, selling is a heck of a lot of work. All you ever see is the end product. Someone has to market and get the consignments, take photos, write copy, create the web site, load the images and copy, set pricing, collect funds, account for funds, remit to the appropriate persons, pack and ship orders, handle customer service, run the back office parts of the business, etc.

sb1 · #3 05-31-2018, 06:09 PM

There are other options out there.

In a perfect world the AH would charge no consignors fee, a very low buyers fee(say 12 1/2%) charge at or near actual shipping plus insurance(often less than actual) AND pay consignors two weeks after the auction ends.

If you would like to find this AH, PM me and I can hook you up!

Scott

p.s. my current auction ends Saturday June 2nd.

www.brockelmanauctions.com

Aquarian Sports Cards · #4 05-31-2018, 07:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sb1

There are other options out there.

In a perfect world the AH would charge no consignors fee, a very low buyers fee(say 12 1/2%) charge at or near actual shipping plus insurance(often less than actual) AND pay consignors two weeks after the auction ends.

If you would like to find this AH, PM me and I can hook you up!

Scott

p.s. my current auction ends Saturday June 2nd.

www.brockelmanauctions.com

Still don't know how you do it. My Parsippany auction is $6 flat consignor's fee per lot ($3 for N54 members) and 10% BP for live cash bidders, 13% for live cc bidders and 18% for absentee.

The Other Scott

P.S. We have an auction Tuesday. Since we're plugging

oldjudge · #5 05-31-2018, 07:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sb1

There are other options out there.

In a perfect world the AH would charge no consignors fee, a very low buyers fee(say 12 1/2%) charge at or near actual shipping plus insurance(often less than actual) AND pay consignors two weeks after the auction ends.

If you would like to find this AH, PM me and I can hook you up!

Scott

p.s. my current auction ends Saturday June 2nd.

www.brockelmanauctions.com

Scott--That can't be. It's too good to be true. Certainly only a mad man would dream of such a thing.

Peter_Spaeth · #6 05-31-2018, 06:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by slipk1068

What kills me is AH's that charge 10% sellers premium on top of a 20% BP. What entitles these people to 30% of my collection?

Defenders are going to come up with all sorts of reasons why this is acceptable as well as negotiable, but I still say it is wrong. When I am ready to sell, I will shop my collection as if it is worth 1K, and consign everything to a big AH that doesn't gouge the little guy.

Nothing entitles anyone to anything. There is no coercion, only voluntary private contracts. If you don't want to consign, don't, it's that simple. Shop for a better rate. Or sell yourself.

barrysloate · #7 05-31-2018, 06:17 PM

None of the fees are hidden so do a few quick calculations before you bid. Yes, Heritage can be a bit pricey and I think you do a little better bidding on higher value items with them. If you win a $75 card you will probably get hit with some higher costs.

I have no problem with Heritage charging sales tax because it is the law and they have to. And they are not keeping one penny of it, as all they collect goes to the government. My only issue is it is hard for me to be competitive when another bidder is free of the sales tax obligation. He has a nearly one increment advantage over me so it makes it more difficult to win something.

So I prefer bidding with an auction house that doesn't need to charge me the tax. But I don't begrudge those who do, and I calculate everything before I bid. If you think a company charges you too much, find another to do business with. There is no shortage of auction houses.

Exhibitman · #8 05-31-2018, 10:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by barrysloate

None of the fees are hidden so do a few quick calculations before you bid. Yes, Heritage can be a bit pricey and I think you do a little better bidding on higher value items with them. If you win a $75 card you will probably get hit with some higher costs.

I have no problem with Heritage charging sales tax because it is the law and they have to. And they are not keeping one penny of it, as all they collect goes to the government. My only issue is it is hard for me to be competitive when another bidder is free of the sales tax obligation. He has a nearly one increment advantage over me so it makes it more difficult to win something.

So I prefer bidding with an auction house that doesn't need to charge me the tax. But I don't begrudge those who do, and I calculate everything before I bid. If you think a company charges you too much, find another to do business with. There is no shortage of auction houses.

Barry, we go through this same discussion every few months here. If you aren�t being charged sales tax you are obliged to pay use tax which is the same exact tax but remitted by the buyer. Either way you are supposed to pay.

A2000 · #9 05-31-2018, 10:05 PM

I always thought Heritage was pretty upfront with their charges. If you're not sure if you have to pay sales tax, they even have a link for you before you can click to confirm your bid.

robertsmithnocure · #10 05-31-2018, 10:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Exhibitman

Barry, we go through this same discussion every few months here. If you aren�t being charged sales tax you are obliged to pay use tax which is the same exact tax but remitted by the buyer. Either way you are supposed to pay.

Thanks Exhibitman,

I do not know why people can't understand this. Whether the auction house collects the tax on you behalf or not, you still owe it.

Fballguy · #11 06-01-2018, 07:11 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by robertsmithnocure

Thanks Exhibitman,

I do not know why people can't understand this. Whether the auction house collects the tax on you behalf or not, you still owe it.

It's actually you AH defenders who don't understand...The OP's grievance was against have to pay additional tax because the AH charges an arbitrary shipping and handling charge. Not that he had to pay taxes. So many people in this thread keep missing that point then accusing the OP of not understanding. It's humorous.

markf31 · #12 06-01-2018, 08:45 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fballguy

It's actually you AH defenders who don't understand...The OP's grievance was against have to pay additional tax because the AH charges an arbitrary shipping and handling charge. Not that he had to pay taxes. So many people in this thread keep missing that point then accusing the OP of not understanding. It's humorous.

What you dont seem to understand is the fact that Heritage details and spells out ALL of their charges on their website and in the agreement that is signed by bidders at the time of registration. Heritage details and specifies that handling/service charges WILL BE CHARGED. And by law, when the handling and shipping are combined, tax MUST be paid on that charge. Those are the facts that you and the OP either are ignorant to or simply cant comprehend.

robertsmithnocure · #13 06-01-2018, 09:35 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fballguy

It's actually you AH defenders who don't understand...The OP's grievance was against have to pay additional tax because the AH charges an arbitrary shipping and handling charge. Not that he had to pay taxes. So many people in this thread keep missing that point then accusing the OP of not understanding. It's humorous.

Exhibitman's post (and my follow-up) were both directed at barrysloate, not specifically the OP. It seems as though you have a difficult time with following the different posts on this thread.

barrysloate · #14 06-01-2018, 07:45 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Exhibitman

Barry, we go through this same discussion every few months here. If you aren�t being charged sales tax you are obliged to pay use tax which is the same exact tax but remitted by the buyer. Either way you are supposed to pay.

Adam- could you please clearly explain what use tax is? If, for example, I live in NY and bid in REA, which is in NJ, is there still some tax that is supposed to be paid? Sorry if I'm a little lost.

Aquarian Sports Cards · #15 06-01-2018, 07:47 AM

Basically Use tax is sales tax paid by the purchaser if the sale is interstate. Nobody, or almost nobody, pays it, but we're all supposed to.

savedfrommyspokes · #16 06-01-2018, 08:17 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Aquarian Sports Cards

Basically Use tax is sales tax paid by the purchaser if the sale is interstate. Nobody, or almost nobody, pays it, but we're all supposed to.

In my state, as long as the purchase is for re-sale, I am not obligated to pay the use tax.

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