Ethical question / Paypal

[SMPEP]

My biggest issue with the non-gift option on Paypal is that they now report to the IRS. I very rarely sell anything at a profit, and frequently sell at a slight loss. I am a collector, not dealer. Yet the full amount of the sale shows up as taxable "income"? If this were buying and selling stocks you adjust these figures for your cost basis. But for baseball cards you're expected to pay full tax, even when selling at a loss?

Said differently, if I simply traded the cards I had for the ones I want, there is no tax. But if I trade the ones I have for cash, to buy the ones I want (because I can't arrange a direct trade of 1973 Topps cards for a T206), then I owe taxes on it?

[HRBAKER]

Originally Posted by SMPEP

My biggest issue with the non-gift option on Paypal is that they now report to the IRS. I very rarely sell anything at a profit, and frequently sell at a slight loss. I am a collector, not dealer. Yet the full amount of the sale shows up as taxable "income"? If this were buying and selling stocks you adjust these figures for your cost basis. But for baseball cards you're expected to pay full tax, even when selling at a loss?

Said differently, if I simply traded the cards I had for the ones I want, there is no tax. But if I trade the ones I have for cash, to buy the ones I want (because I can't arrange a direct trade of 1973 Topps cards for a T206), then I owe taxes on it?

Don't you still have a "cost basis" on a card you sell and receive regular payment through paypal on? I can't imagine that all full time dealers are forced to report the full amount of a sale as profit.

[SetBuilder]

Yeah, good luck trying to use an electronic payment system other than PayPal.

I used Auctiva linked to Authorize.net once. It allowed me to accept CC payments through the Auctiva gateway.

Everyone avoided my auctions. I even got neutral feedbacks from people with comments like "He doesn't accept PayPal...beware".

Never again. PayPal is a monopoly and it is absolutely required to sell on eBay.

Why do you think eBay banned Google Checkout? They want zero competition.

[HRBAKER]

As a buyer I have actually used several other electronic payment options on ebay. It is rare but it does happen.

I guess I look at it like this; if I want to buy something at a store and they tell me the only way I can pay for it is using their credit card or account - I have two options, agree to their terms or don't buy it. I don't consider just taking it a viable option.

It actually happens at dept. stores quite often, "extra 25% off if you use your house credit card."

And I agree, they would love ZERO competition.

[tonyo]

Originally Posted by SetBuilder

Yeah, good luck trying to use an electronic payment system other than PayPal.

Never again. PayPal is a monopoly and it is absolutely required to sell on eBay.

Originally Posted by tonyo

Also a bit of an aside since Leon mentioned ebay's near monopoly......I bought a card on ebay last night. When I went to pay, I was directed to Propay. Huh?... what's this? I back tracked looking for a paypal option (since I try to run my collecting through a seperate account tied to paypal), but didn't see one. Thought about emailing the seller to ask to use paypal, but decided to not go thru the hassle. It worked fine I suppose.

But it is true, I may hesitate to bid on an item, or bid less if I can't use paypal......just because I try to run my collecting through paypal.

[Exhibitman]

Originally Posted by SMPEP

My biggest issue with the non-gift option on Paypal is that they now report to the IRS. I very rarely sell anything at a profit, and frequently sell at a slight loss. I am a collector, not dealer. Yet the full amount of the sale shows up as taxable "income"? If this were buying and selling stocks you adjust these figures for your cost basis. But for baseball cards you're expected to pay full tax, even when selling at a loss?

Said differently, if I simply traded the cards I had for the ones I want, there is no tax. But if I trade the ones I have for cash, to buy the ones I want (because I can't arrange a direct trade of 1973 Topps cards for a T206), then I owe taxes on it?

The threshold for a 1099 from Paypal is relatively high--over $20,000 in gross payment volume AND over 200 separate payments in a calendar year-- and if you are doing sales in excess of that threshold you need to speak to a competent accountant about getting everything squared away as a business.

[Leon]

Paypal gift is a different, less secure product than the regular paypal payments. I have no issue using it. If anyone thinks they are doing something wrong by using it then they shouldn't use it. Pretty easy decision.

[alanu]

I don't like the paypal fees, but I love the service anyway for the convenience.

[freakhappy]

I can see most everyone's points here, but I like using it and will continue using it on Net54 because I feel comfortable with it. If Paypal tells me to stop using it, I will but until then no issues here.

If you believe that there are ethical issues with using it, don't use it. There are clear cut ethical dilemmas and there are situations that people "believe" are ethical dilemmas...