Craigslist girls--can you help me with pricing?

hungryturtle

We're trying to clear out some things that don't fit in our new house and I'm trying to sell on Craigslist. My question is how would you price/how much would you pay for the following items: 1. Amish made entertainment center, two years old, perfect condition--what % of the new price would you suggest? 2. 9' Christmas tree, also two years old/used two Christmases, not prelit. Seems like I always price things too high and get no responses or I get 20-30 responses which tells me I may have priced it a bit low. I'm trying to find the right balance. Thanks!

Manday

When you price it, do you put "or best offer" on the price? I do not know how much these items would go for, but I would open adding that statement would help. I would rather price them high and have to repost them in a week if there are no responses personally.

jannypie

i think a lot of it depends on how large the ent. center is, what kind of wood, what style it is, the color, etc. there's no hard and fast rule about % of new price; the general opinion is that once you buy it and take it home, how much you paid for it doesn't factor in anymore. its about how much others will pay for it now. craigslist is a pricing game, so its really hard to tell. what might be too much one week could be too little the next.

that said, i'm surprised you get that many responses telling you you've priced it too low! did you receive any responses wanting to buy it? in my general experience people shop on craigslist wanting a deal, so really no price is too low. you don't want to undersell yourself of course, i'm just surprised about the responses.

so in answer to your questions,
1. we have an Amish made armiore ent center and i wouldn't price it less than $150, and it's probably 10 years old. searching around for what other ent centers are going for might help, then add in some based on the quality of the work and the wood.

2. 9' trees are hard to come by, but almost all the new trees being sold are prelit. a 7' prelit tree is going btwn 60-80$ right now at walmart (which is where people looking for a deal right now would look also). i personally would price it at $60 first, and knock off maybe $5 every two weeks as Christmas approaches until it sells.

hth and good luck!

hungryturtle

Thanks, Jannypie. This one is almost 6 ft tall, with the doors that retract in, etc. I once priced a Sauder desk at $30 and had about 15-20 replies, the first in within six hours so I figured I could have asked a little more! Good thought about the tree. I think I'll list today.