Resale Overprice (foreal)

Interesting topic. I think when there´s an item that has been made only few, of course the price will grow by time for some, but I must say I´ve seen ridiculous prices sometimes. Well, if someone buys it anyway, then it is ok. I know I won´t, as I don´t value any doll (or other unnecessary luxury item) that much myself, but if someone else has enough money and wants to spend it that way it´s their money. By the old saying, the one pricing the item isn´t the fool but the one who pays it is.

I´ve noticed many people feel the dolls more like persons than just items, as buying dolls with planning to make money with them seems to be something many people moralize and think it´s not right. Still, that´s done in any other areas I guess, from stamps to cars... Or anything.

I must admit if I´d sell my dolls I hope to get back what I paid, or even close to it, as far the doll is like new condition. But I wouldn´t try to make money with them. (And very likely nobody wouldn´t even pay overprice for them, haha. I have not limited dolls.)

 

Never underestimate the gullibility of the average buyer. The prices people are willing to pay for standard edition dolls continues to scare me. I guess it really boils down to what people are willing to pay for the convenience of having their doll in a week instead of a month.

 

The market dictates how money is spent within the hobby. And the market value does not always reflect the original price. For instance, a new Unoa kit from Crescent shop is $570.00; although, this is just the kit and does not reflect the cost of shipping or anything else. I generally see Unoa's, assembled or otherwise, going for $700.00 and more. Usually in the $750.00-$850.00 range depending on certain factors. That's a markup for a used product that isn't limited.

Many dolls in the marketplace sell for much more than their original price. Personally, I prefer to sell products at what I deem their just value. I try and recoup the original price of the doll and the fees and shipping if they were significant enough and no more. My intention is to replace what I originally invested and not make a profit.

 

Sadly, this is true. I have seen many a ball-jointed doll for sale on eBay at either outrageously high prices, or outrageously low prices. I suppose it is because the seller-slash-buyer either have no clue of the value of their dolls, or simply don't care. Maybe they just don't really know much at all about ball-jointed dolls (When I was first introduced to the hobby, I knew nothing about them either--only that they are absolutely beautiful), or, they know the true value of the doll and don't market it at that price. However, I think that as a buyer, you must express some decency. For example, if you are browsing some marketing site in hopes of finding a second-hand doll for sale, and you find a doll you're interested in purchasing, and the price is so ridiculously over-the-top or under what it should be, remember that before you bid, you will most likely end up paying for the results of your purchase. If you buy some doll second-hand at a reeeally low price, when it arrives, just be prepared for that doll to be less than what you expected. The same thing goes for if you pay a hugely over-priced sum of money for a doll. Now, I'm not saying that this happens all the time, and that people should never use marketplaces, or anything, but what I am saying is that people should just be prepared to be disappointed if they paid over or under the actual value of the product.

 

even though i cannot afford the asking price of one of my dream dolls -LE Cat Lea which regularly sells for over $1000 now i don't think badly of the sellers.
market price .... its how the world works, i think people attach to doll (i know i do) but to think the market should be different to other highly collectible items seems silly...look at cars i love Shelby Cobras but seeing they are rare and highly sort after i know i will never own one...is it unfair that they now sell for over a mil .. no its what the market demands and i doubt car collectors feel its wrong of the owner to get the best price possible
we are collectors but we also have lives and being able to supplement both our collecting and possibly pay a few bills by making a profit on a limited doll doesn't offend me rather good luck to those who are lucky enough to be able to

 

I think it's simple. If a doll is limited, it's price grows in time because is the only opportunity to have it in that moment. But if the doll is basic, its price will be reduce because it's secon-handed and everyone can buy it new. The price depends also if doll is in perfect condition or not.
I think this is the perfect situation but not always the situations works like I said. Sometimes we can see ridiculous prices in market and extremly high too.

 

I think some people have a very unrealistic expectation to sell their basic sculpts for too close to the original price.
If a doll costs you $600 and you've had it for 2 years and maybe there's a little tiny bit of yellowing, it's not really worth more than $450 or so at the most. But people list it at $590 or something to save you a whole $10 on a two year old slightly damaged basic doll. It kind of frustrates me because unless the doll is very clearly damaged (broken parts etc) the second hand market prices are stupidly close to the original price. And I'm not saying that just because a doll is old, its not special to the owner... I'm just saying that when you resell something that is still available from the original company, hopes recovering all of your losses is silly.
I just get frustrated when the seller says "or make me an offer" and I take into consideration the limitedness of the sculpt, how old the doll is and what condition it is in. If it's evenly yellowed, or the blushing is chipping off or if it's a few years old I will offer what I think is reasonable... like if it's $500 from the company I'll offer $350-$400 to the second hand seller, but I can't STAND it when a seller says "make me an offer" and you make an offer that's not unreasonable considering the condition of the doll and then they write back and FLAME you for saying their doll is "older" and that "yellowing isn't damage" or that "blush chipping happens over time." and that I insulted them with my "low" offer.
I really wish people who come into the hobby and expect to get exactly what they paid for a doll (or get really close) a few years and some yellowing later would be realistic.

Everybody just needs to get over themselves, non-limited BJD's (like everything else) depreciate over time... they do.... it's just the way of things.



Limited dolls are of course different.

 

There's no excuse for flaming you for making an offer. If they price too high, though, they just won't sell, that, in the end, is their risk.

What amuses/horrifies me is when a basic doll is described as "in excellent condition" and is priced at or just under release price but has not just yellowing but what I would consider major flaws that I would need a susbtantial reduction in price to even consider - fingers broken and reglued, hands chewed by pets, staining, chips, partial or badly done mods. Yes, it's good to detail these things, but how on earth is that "nearly flawless" or "in excellent condition"?

I also run a mile from dolls that are dirty or have partially removed faceups, and the seller claims they will be easy to clean up, because if it was so damn easy, surely they would have cleaned them up before putting them up for sale. Ditto with sellers who claim that they will clean them before sending them off. It might just be deplorable laziness, but I tend to suspect that the dolls might either be stained or much harder - or impossible - to clean than suggested. I'd want a pretty big discount to consider them, and even then, I'd probably pass.

But this isn't so much talking about prices, which I do think sellers have the right to set however they want, however unrealistic, so much as delusionally optimistic descriptions.

I would be more likely to buy from the marketplace if so many dolls weren't sold "with extras" and including every wig, pair of eyes and outfit they ever purchased with the doll, pushing the price well above that of a pristine one from the manufacturers. Yes, it might be a good deal considering what was paid for the extras, if they were the exact same wig and clothes I would choose - but I really don't want to shell out for the clothes and wigs someone else wanted.

 

No I think it is not acceptable.
It does surprise me that it happens with BJDs as with most things the value decreases the minute you buy it!!!

 

I can understand that limited sculpts go up in value, but I have seen dolls that were standard sculpts on a site, more than two years old, for MORE than the site price! That makes no sense to me - if I wanted the doll, and had enough to pay the full price, I would buy it from the company.

 

If a rare doll is actually worth hundreds or even thousands of dollars, then it's not overpriced, it's just that doll is worth a whole heck of a lot of money because it's rare. Now, if you're selling said rare doll at a price that would be fair for a mint conditioned doll, but the doll you're selling has scratched and dents, doesn't come with everything it should, then yeah, it's overpriced.

 

I wish companies would be more careful about trying not to sell so much to those who they know are just turning around to resell the doll right away (this happens a lot with Rosen Lied dolls), but when it comes down to it on the resale market, the item is worth whatever the consumer is willing to pay for it. If no one will pay what the person is asking, he or she will have to lower the price until it sells.

Now a seller lying about the condition of an item... that's a completely different matter. It's always wrong.

 

Sheesh. It may seem 'stupid' to sell standard sculpts that are yellowed and slightly damaged at prices close to company prices, but, really, it's a buyers who end up purchasing them that are the 'stupid' ones. Come on. If you can get it new at close to the same price, and you choose to buy the second-hand one, who's being stupid and who's making good money off the dumb? :\ Seller not selling at the price you want? Too bad, pay it or move on. There are always other options. If you move on, good for you, smart, but if the seller manages to sell at their desired price, they're smart too.

I would agree that people who ask for offers and then insult you for making one are kinda stupid,yes. There are always polite ways to say 'no', as I have before, but that's really more about manners than about pricing.

 

To me it also depends on how much of a demand the doll is. I kind of understand if the doll was not only limited but in higher demand and popularity. Then there are those that are not only limited but really unpopular. I've seen how it works in a virtual economy where there are specific limited items a month. Depending on how sought after the item is, sellers will be more inclined to hike prices up to make a profit off it while other items of the same rarity won't reach the same value because no one likes the style and these sellers are inclined to slowly drop price. I've seen this done with other real life collectibles too where there's the popular rare and the unpopular rare. In some cases unpopular rare collectibles tend to drop below it's original price.

It's pretty different here though. I've seen a not so popular sculpt go $200 more than its original value and still no takers.

 

I don't see how it is wrong to do this, because the market sets it's own price in the end. A doll will only sell at any price if someone is willing to fork out the money. I personally think that people I see putting dolls on ebay (especially in the UK where the market is quite limited) for inflated amounts are usually in for a suck in! They sit there for weeks on end with no bids.

In the end if someone really wants a sale they put the price down, but they do sometimes get lucky and get an early sale at the inflated price. In the end, they took a gamble and won. I don't see what's wrong with it, it's a free market. It's highly frustrating if it's a doll you really want and you don't have the cash, but c'est la vie!

PS: I didn't vote because "I" have never done it, but I still don't think it's wrong for others to do so

 

People are inherently self-interested. For buyers, they want to get as good of a deal as possible. For sellers, they want to recoup as much of a loss as possible or even make profit if the mold/doll itself is long sought after many collectors. I've said this before and I'll say it again, the market is impersonal and self-motivated. If it doesn't sell, so be it. It also seems many here are angry that they didn't get the doll at the price that they wanted it. If you don't get the price you want, too bad and move on.

If one says it's unacceptable for a person to freely price their dolls, I would like to hear a good reason in why it's unacceptable. If you live in a socialistic society where capitalism or the free market is the root of all evil, then I can understand.

 

The word "overprice" is a bit vague and extremely subjective really...

So say I buy a doll for $500 +shipping/insurance/customs fees, it arrives, I decide I don't like it an immediately put it on the MP for $700 which covers my costs but is considerably more than the basic cost of the doll from the company. I wouldn't really consider that OVERpricing the doll, just re-selling the doll at what it cost me.

Imagine instead I buy a doll for $500 including all fees, it arrives and I immediately put the doll up for sale on the MP at $700 which covers my costs and gives me $200 extra. THAT I would consider over-pricing.

Then there's the question of whether it would be considered over-pricing to increase the cost of a doll/head with modifications or a face-up. Would it be overpricing to add on whatever the FU cost you? What about adding on the cost of the FU plus a hundred or so extra dollars because the FU was done by a popular artist or because it's a particularly unique one?

I'm sure I'm just repeating what other people have already said, but oh well

I would love an SDC Renee, but most Volks LTDs go for $1500+ on the MP. Do I want to pay $1500+ for her? Mmmmm... probably not. Would I spend $1500+ on her if I had it? Yep, pretty sure I would Since I don't, I just wait for the time when someone decides to sell one at a price I can afford, but I wouldn't necessarily consider that price OVERpricing. It's more than I want to pay, sure, and so to me it's overpriced, but if people will PAY that much (as I would if I earned more T_T) then it's not really in my opinion. It's only overpriced when no-one will pay it ^^

 

Doll A is priced on Ebay/Yahoo Japan/DOA at $XXXX

Different examples of Doll A sell at this price not once but over and over again. Therefore the doll is worth price $XXXX. Maybe it isn't worth that to you. But as long as some else who wants the doll is willing to pay that price then, the doll is worth that price.

Limited Dolls can and have always held their prices or gone up in price as perfect examples of the doll become rarer ( owners mod them, owners wipe the limited faceup, owners split the doll, owners sell the outfit or special parts). Anyone living with the expectation that they have the right to buy a Limited doll at whatever price they feel is correct is living in a dream world and is going to be continually disappointed. Having done it many times, I don't feel that there is anything wrong with selling a doll for what you paid for it or buying a doll for a higher price than it originally sold for if you can afford it.

I'm selling a Williams head at the moment. He cost me $XXXX amount to get hold of and thats what I'm selling him on for. I've just brought another Limited Volks boy from Yahoo Japan. I paid at least a third on top of the original Volks asking price and yes that sticks in my teeth a bit but we live in a capitalist society and when demand exceeds supply people will attempt to make money. I don't hate the Japanese seller who stood around for hours to get her Dolpa ticket and then hours to purchase the doll.

This resale value thing does work both ways. It is just as possible to loose a lot of money on a doll as it is to make money on one. If Soom restock Sard or Beryl in their Limited incarnations ( and this is looking increasingly likely), all those people who brought them for higher prices in the MP will loose money on their sales if they decide to part with their expensive Limiteds and none of those new buyers will be complaining.

These items are considered art dolls especially limited or OOAK versions by the manufacturers or very sought after customisers, and they appear to be subject to the same pricing vagaries/conventions as any other piece of art. I'm pretty sure that the people sitting at Sotheby's who don't get to buy the Jackson Pollack they wanted at their preferred price don't flame the original seller and complain about it. Obviously some of us feel that these dolls are special enough to go the extra mile to get the one you want and if its a bit more expensive then you would ideally like, then well that's part and parcel of this not exactly cheap hobby...

 

Well in colectible marked are normal issue when some persones doing business buying all limited edition and selling in double or triple price.
Its business, nut somewhere deep in my soul i feel bad.

 

Not really sure, but isn't there a depreciated value to worry about?

When you buy a new car, as soon as it leaves the lot, the value starts to diminish. So, wouldn't the same go for dolls, too - as soon as the doll arrives in your home, the value should go down, which would mean you can't sell them for more than they're worth?

But I think it does differ if they've kept it in mint condition, where they may gain value over time.

Like, I don't think it would work if you buy a doll, own it for two or three years and then sell it after that.