What to expect from AH consignments?

[bobbyw8469]

Originally Posted by bobbyw8469

That is entirely too much. They are basically telling you they don't want your consignments in a roundabout way. No one likes to hear that their consignments are "not good enough" for a particular auction house, but that is what they are telling you. I would hold onto the items or try to get rid of them yourself.

Edited for clarification.....I misread what you are saying. So one auction house only wanted to charge you 7.5 and the other 10%??? That is great. You can't factor in the buyer's premium. That is not yours. You can TRY to get 0% commission, but the norm seems to be to extract a little bit from the buyers AND sellers.

[bnorth]

Bobby is correct on both posts depending on their fee.

This is my best advice I learned the hard way. You need to know exactly what one of their auctions your stuff will be listed in. I had a AH contact me about a set I was selling. I consigned it to them stupidly thinking it would be in their online auction. Nope they put it in their little rinky dink local live auction. I easily lost over $1000 because I didn't read the contract or ask exactly what one of their auctions it would be listed in. So when consigning be sure you know all the details.

[jh691626]

If it helps, they are all easy to post, PSA-slabbed items, like a Willie Mays or Duke Snider autograph on a baseball card. I'd say they are of medium interest--vintage players/cards, usually good players, likely to grow in value over time, but nothing like WOW.

[Leon]

Originally Posted by jh691626

If it helps, they are all easy to post, PSA-slabbed items, like a Willie Mays or Duke Snider autograph on a baseball card. I'd say they are of medium interest--vintage players/cards, usually good players, likely to grow in value over time, but nothing like WOW.

You should consider trying to sell them on the BST here first. No cost and no problem if they don't sell.... Be sure to vet your trading partners. You can always PM me or another moderator with questions.
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[raulus]

There does seem to be a tale of two worlds around here:

1) for really nice stuff with high price tags that will drive a lot of traffic to the auction (think 6 or 7 figures or more), then I’m hearing from a lot of people around here that there is no cost to the seller, and you would probably even get a piece of the bidder’s premium, depending on just how nice it is. I’ve never consigned items this nice, so I’ve never gotten this deal. But on this board, many have asserted its existence, so I am inclined to believe that it exists.

2) for the stuff that you describe, the deal that you described is what I’m used to getting. You might be able to get a slightly better deal from another auction house by shopping around. My guess is that the BP is going to stay with the AH, and it’s just a question of how low the seller’s fee will be, even potentially as low as zero, although that might be a stretch.

I will also observe that you have a few auction options that are less expensive but might be less effective, depending on your perspective, to wit:

1) PWCC. They tend to be vilified around here based on some of their past scandals, which I won’t recount for you here, but my recollection from reading their terms is that they will give you a good chunk of the bidder’s premium. I will hasten to add that there is some question about how many bidders actually go to their weekly auctions. They also typically only accept slabbed items, or if they do take raw, it’s at a much higher fee level.

2) Use an eBay broker like Probstein. You usually end up paying around 10%, maybe slightly less, and large well-known brokers tend to get a lot of eyeballs on eBay.

3) Sell it yourself on eBay. You will pay about 10% to eBay, and might not get the attention that you’re hoping for, depending on whether or not your items go viral and/or get outed around here.

[sb1]

Ebay is going to cost well more than 10%, 13-14% for higher volume sellers, about 20% for casual sellers once they collect their fees and the payment fees. I have only sold a few hundred dollars on their in the last year and looked at my total sales/tax withheld/payout, etc and their take was 21.2%.

[raulus]

Originally Posted by sb1

Ebay is going to cost well more than 10%, 13-14% for higher volume sellers, about 20% for casual sellers once they collect their fees and the payment fees. I have only sold a few hundred dollars on their in the last year and looked at my total sales/tax withheld/payout, etc and their take was 21.2%.

Went back and double checked the rates. Looks like it’s 12.9% for the first $7.5K for any given item you sell on eBay. If the item is over $7.5K, then the percentage declines.

You’re right that PayPal or credit cards charges another 3%, give or take.

Depending on where the buyer lives, they do pay sales tax, although they are going to pay that on any platform or retail venue, except for maybe the BST here. Naturally, some states (like my home state) have zero sales tax. So it’s hard to figure it, although for some buyers it could be as much as 10%.

So more like 16% selling costs on eBay, all-in, ignoring sales tax, which could be nothing, or could be a lot.

[Leon]

Originally Posted by raulus

Went back and double checked the rates. Looks like it’s 12.9% for the first $7.5K for any given item you sell on eBay. If the item is over $7.5K, then the percentage declines.

You’re right that PayPal or credit cards charges another 3%, give or take.

Depending on where the buyer lives, they do pay sales tax, although they are going to pay that on any platform or retail venue, except for maybe the BST here. Naturally, some states (like my home state) have zero sales tax. So it’s hard to figure it, although for some buyers it could be as much as 10%.

So more like 16% selling costs on eBay, all-in, ignoring sales tax, which could be nothing, or could be a lot.

How do you go about ignoring sales tax? Count me in but that is always another 8.25% from me. That is a cost, like it or not, for most collectors.
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[Rhotchkiss]

Auction Houses are for profit businesses (God Bless them). While some AHs may take a scrape on shipping, insurance and other "soft costs", the vast majority of their revenue is derived though fees. These fees are usually computed as a percentage of the hammer price. It doesn't really matter how its computed and to whom it applies, it ends up being something the buyer pays for and it reduces what the consignor puts in their pocket.

Traditionally, an AH will charge the consignor a Seller's fee -- a percentage of the hammer price -- and will charge a Buyer's Premium - a percentage added to the hammer price that the Buyer must pay to get the item they won. However, regardless of semantics, its all about how much the AH makes, paid for by the Buyer, and reducing what the consignor walks away from.

Two fundamental facts to acknowledge: (1) Since the consignor is the customer with the item, and since the AH makes no money unless it sells consignments, this is all negotiable. And, with most negotiations, he with the leverage has the advantage in negotiations. (2) in general, it is just as much work to list, sell, collect, ship, etc, a $500 card as it is a $50,000. This latter point is important because 10% on a $50k card is $5,000 vs 30% on a $500 card is only $150, but the work is similar while the reward is greatly disproportionate.

Ultimately, it comes down to how motivated is the AH to list a particular consignment; and motivation can be quantified in tangible terms -- how much money do I need to make to do the work here, and intangibly - are there indirect benefits to having certain items in an auction (such as a T206 Wagner, high grade 51 Mantle, or other items that create buzz and generate traffic to the auction). This motivation will of course vary by AH, and that's all part of the negotiation.

To address the OP's initial inquiry: I am not surprised that you are getting offers of a 7.5% - 10% seller's fee and none of the Buyer's premium, on a group of items valued at $100 - $500. Think about it. Suppose you have an item valued at $250; the hammer price would have to be about $200+ so that it sells for $250 with the 20% BP. If the AH takes a 10% seller's fee and a 20% BP, the AH is making $50 to sell this item. That's $50 to receive, list, describe, promote, sell, collect, and ship. Plus, there is customer service time and certain risks, such as someone is unhappy and bashes the AH on net54 or another forum. Whether $50 is worth all of this is the decision the AH must make. Whether the consignor is willing to walk with $200 on a card worth $250 is the a decision the consignor must make.

Anyway, my gut is that you can probably get the seller's fee reduced to less than 5% or eliminated entirely. But that will depend on leverage and motivation of the AH to get your consignment. And, fighting over 2.5%+ may not matter much, as getting 70% of a card that sells for $500 is almost the same as getting 80% of a card that sells for $450 ($10 difference).

[Ray Van]

Originally Posted by sb1

Ebay is going to cost well more than 10%, 13-14% for higher volume sellers, about 20% for casual sellers once they collect their fees and the payment fees. I have only sold a few hundred dollars on their in the last year and looked at my total sales/tax withheld/payout, etc and their take was 21.2%.

Agreed! I usually net around 80% of the final selling price on eBay once all fees are factored in. So 7.5-10% consignment fee at an AH is much better.

[bobbyw8469]

Originally Posted by Ray Van

Agreed! I usually net around 80% of the final selling price on eBay once all fees are factored in. So 7.5-10% consignment fee at an AH is much better.

Not necessarily though. Most all AH's charge AT LEAST 20%....and buyer's factory that into their bids.