Let's take a hypothetical case.
Someone posts a mint condition 1985 Spoiler with typical woods for $3500. What are the possibilities?
1. The seller is ignorant of the market and really thinks that's a fair price.
2. The seller knows the market and that the bass would typically sell for under half the asking price. This could be with the intent to negotiate a reasonable price on the high side, or with the intent to make large profit.
So, if someone who knows the market is interested, they might contact the seller to negotiate and offer $1500. That person wouldn't chase the instrument because they know there are others out there at fair prices.
On the other hand, a less knowledgeable buyer might pay the price for the beautiful Alembic, or might make an offer based on the asking price. Let's say the offer is $2500, because that would be a great deal for something that's being sold for $3500, right? Oops. Buyer still overpays out of general market ignorance.
I prefer, and I realize this is just me, that everyone is on an even playing field. The seller should know that they are never going to find someone to pay double market value for their instrument without having to sit around bumping their thread for two months with no bites. A buyer shouldn't pay double market for an instrument here and learn about it afterward. What would that say about us as a community?
The question is more complicated when the seller has just joined us for the purpose of making the sale. We want to make sure to welcome new members while protecting ourselves from profiteers whose only interest is to make money at the expense of this community. That's a tough line to walk.
Now, if the same bass showed up with a price of $2000-2200, I doubt it would generate the same comments. The price would seem to be on the high side, higher than any stock four string Spoiler we've ever seen, but at least in the ballpark. If the bass truly has the unique feature of being like new, that could justify the higher price for some knowledgeable buyer.
So, what are our options? I see four, though there may be others.
1. Continue to try to be delicate in commenting on price discrepancies within for sale threads.
2. Ignore such threads and let those involved in the transactions fend for themselves.
3. Put together some sort of buyer's/seller's guide and make it hard to miss. For example, a locked sticky at the top of the For Sale board. Maybe even make it required reading before starting a thread in the for sale section. Someone would have to periodically update it as the market moves. Even so, I doubt it would prevent comment when someone asks $13K for a typical old Series I or $6K for a Distillate.
4. Use the Seen on craigslist, eBay, and elsewhere board to create threads related to our own For Sale board when you want to critically discuss an item. This would keep the pricing comments out of the particular seller's thread while still making the wisdom of our membership available.
I know I don't like the idea of ignoring threads where pricing is way out of line. Other than that, I'm open to any solution that would provide some protection and group wisdom to all involved. Otherwise, if Dave and Mica have an opinion, I will abide by it, like it or not.
