pls help me!! ebay newbie need opinions!

devilangel

Chanel <3 Valentino <3 YSL
O.G.
Mar 5, 2009
784
186
ebay newbie being me of course. :biggrin:
I am looking to buy a Chanel handbag on eBay and contacted the seller.
The seller is with very low feedback. We have been talking through email the last few days and I have verified the bag is authentic here on tPF and that indeed he has the bag under his possession.

The problem here is he wants to do off of eBay.
However, he said I can place my $ on hold through Paypal till I have actually recieved the bag.

I don't know much about Paypal, honestly I didn't even know you can place $ on hold.
Is that a stupid thing to do or reasonable ?!

Please give me opinions! :sad:

Appreciate any help I can get!
Thank you~
 
Don't do it, you won't be protected by PP alone. You need to go through ebay and pay with PP. Did you have it authenticated in the Chanel section here?? Or post the link and someone can help you maybe?
 
yep I have the bag authneticated, it's real!
My judgement is pretty much clouded all over right now because I wanted the bag for sooo long.. and it's a price that I am finally satisfied with. So I am so confused.
I know doing off of eBay is a no-no, but he seem to be willing to take a step back too with the $ on hold thing..

argh so what kind of potential trouble will I be getting into *IF* this were to happen?
 
yep I have the bag authneticated, it's real!
My judgement is pretty much clouded all over right now because I wanted the bag for sooo long.. and it's a price that I am finally satisfied with. So I am so confused.
I know doing off of eBay is a no-no, but he seem to be willing to take a step back too with the $ on hold thing..

argh so what kind of potential trouble will I be getting into *IF* this were to happen?


IF you did this you could be OUT the money AND the purse. Plus if you receive a fake bag instead of the one pictured you will have no ebay/Paypal protection.

I have never heard of putting money on "hold". Once it's in the seller's Paypal account it belongs to them.

I've been buying and selling on ebay for 11 years and I would NEVER consider doing this. Tell the seller if he doesn't play by the rules you will NOT be buying.
 
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Thank you mmmsc & DemRam!!!

You guys helped me clear the clouds. I guess I am asking for trouble if I were to go with his wishes, aren't I?
I already feel iffy buying from eBay with his low feedback, why would I want even to do it off of eBay in the first place?!
Haha
Ok let me see what he will say if we are doing this through eBay..
 
If he says he won't do it through Ebay, I would say forget it. Even if you DO do it through ebay, you don't know for sure...post the link? I too like above poster have never heard of PP holding the $$ until you receive the bag. I think that could be some sort of scam talk top convince you to do this.
 
If he says he won't do it through Ebay, I would say forget it. Even if you DO do it through ebay, you don't know for sure...post the link? I too like above poster have never heard of PP holding the $$ until you receive the bag. I think that could be some sort of scam talk top convince you to do this.



I agree mmmsc. But after years on ebay I am cynical about everything.

Just to clarify the Paypal "hold" policy. Paypal may decide to hold a seller's money for various reasons (like a new seller or a seller who has less than a certain feedback number, etc).

However, that would only apply to a transaction that is done "through" the ebay system. This seller would have access to the money right away and then what incentive do they have to ship? I know there are honest folks out there but why take a chance?
 
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Ya you guys are right.. although I am desperate to find THE bag.. but it's just not worth it taking the risk.

And thanks for clarifying the on hold policy DemRam... don't know if he purposely or unproposely tricked me in beleiving I can hold my $!!

Oh yes new.old.bag, thanks! Luckily i added my CC to my paypal .. I stupidly bought a large purchase w/my bank account on my first purchase on eBay. Thankfully it was a good seller..
 
I am in a similar situation as you now. I am new to ebay and really wanna get this Chanel bag. I have been communicating to the seller (a reputable consignment store in HK with 100% positive feedback and a MPRS on ebay) via emails for the past few days. Just yesterday the seller has finally agree to my offer price and requested that should I decided to get the bag, they will only accept paypal echeques or bank transfer. Does this consider off ebay transaction? I have already told them I do not have any paypal account from the start.

Also I have requested for pics to show the stains/use marks on the bag on 2 occassions, however the seller's reply is that the stains/use marks are so unnoticeable that it cannot be captured on pics. And reiterated that the bag is in Excellent condition.

I have the bag authenticated at TPF too, right now I am still undecided to go ahead or not. Any advise from ebay gurus is much appreciated. TIA.
 
I am in a similar situation as you now. I am new to ebay and really wanna get this Chanel bag. I have been communicating to the seller (a reputable consignment store in HK with 100% positive feedback and a MPRS on ebay) via emails for the past few days. Just yesterday the seller has finally agree to my offer price and requested that should I decided to get the bag, they will only accept paypal echeques or bank transfer. Does this consider off ebay transaction? I have already told them I do not have any paypal account from the start.

Also I have requested for pics to show the stains/use marks on the bag on 2 occassions, however the seller's reply is that the stains/use marks are so unnoticeable that it cannot be captured on pics. And reiterated that the bag is in Excellent condition.

I have the bag authenticated at TPF too, right now I am still undecided to go ahead or not. Any advise from ebay gurus is much appreciated. TIA.


The answer is - it is an OFF EBAY TRANSACTION.

If you do not have Paypal do they really want you to pay by "bank transfer? Do you trust them?

Are you sure you feel secure with this? Most people have a "feel" about things.

Do you think the bag is worth the risk of paying without protection?

I'm just asking the questions that would go through my head.
 
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Thanks DemRam. Honestly, after reading some not so pleasant ebay encounters on this forum plus this is really my first time dealing with ebay seller, the answer to the questions is a resounding NO.

Like what devilangel mentioned, although I am desperately in love with the bag.. but it's just not worth it taking the risk I guess.
 
No matter how much you want a purse, NEVER pay via bank wire. Never.

I bank wired once to a seller in the US and i had sleepless nights. thank goodness the seller came through. Imagine the after thought of the seller bailing out on you? And you are out the cash and no bag??

Everyone thinks twice about lending money to people/ friends and you want to risk wiring money to someone you dont even know....

There are times i really want a bag so bad but when the seller mentioned only bank wire-the thought of owning the bag goes out the window. The fees incurred for Ebay and PP should be included in the seller's decision when he/ she priced the purse when listing. There really is no need for bank wire?

Sorry this may sound disappointing... this is just my 2 cents....

However, i wish you luck in your new found love :smile:
 
No matter how much you want a purse, NEVER pay via bank wire. Never.

I bank wired once to a seller in the US and i had sleepless nights. thank goodness the seller came through. Imagine the after thought of the seller bailing out on you? And you are out the cash and no bag??

Everyone thinks twice about lending money to people/ friends and you want to risk wiring money to someone you dont even know....

There are times i really want a bag so bad but when the seller mentioned only bank wire-the thought of owning the bag goes out the window. The fees incurred for Ebay and PP should be included in the seller's decision when he/ she priced the purse when listing. There really is no need for bank wire?

Sorry this may sound disappointing... this is just my 2 cents....

However, i wish you luck in your new found love :smile:
Don't do this! There are VERY recent things like this that happened to seasoned tpfers - for example:
http://forum.purseblog.com/ebay-for...-know-sinking-feeling-no-tracking-465529.html