I am so sick of low-ballers!!!!

Quote Ronda63:
You make some very valid points. I do agree that my female is at the upper limits of pricing. I know it will take the right person who likes her look to purchase her at or near my asking price.

So... you are aware that you are priced at the high end of what you feel the market price is, and you are willing to negotiate.

And yes, there are other mojave females similar to mine that are a lot less and within the offer that I was given. So...why does a person not select that one rather than ask for a much lower price on one that is priced higher?

You answered your own question.
They see that you are priced at the high end of, or above what the market price on the animal is, perhaps they like yours better, and are simply asking if you would consider selling your animal for a reasonable offer, since "there are other mojave females similar to yours that are a lot less, and within the offer that you were given."

Why not list your animal at the FIRM price you are willing to sell it for, (and then ignore lower offers,) if lower offers are going to offend you ?

It is the price high and haggle, OBO advertising that conditions buyers to make "lowball" offers.

Originally Posted by AbsoluteApril

My pet peeve is someone who low-balls and then also wants to make payment plans. If you're gonna make a low offer, be prepared to pay right then in full.

I couldn't agree more...I also couldn't give you karma for that statement, but I tried

Originally Posted by hhmoore

I couldn't agree more...I also couldn't give you karma for that statement, but I tried

I like those and the ones who haggle you to death and ask for more pictures etc then say "if you've still got it in two weeks when I get paid again I might buy it".

I used to tell lowballers to pound sand, now I just add their email address to the filter so any future pesterings go straight to file 13.

The bottom line is this:

People are selfish.
People are always out to get the best deal they can.
Common courtesy and common sense is not so common any more.

But remember that there are plenty of ways to be kind and respond in a way that explains to them why you are not interested in their offers.

No point in being angry at people that are just the way they are. Act in a way that you would like to be treated, and move on.

The snake will sell at the value you want if you are willing to wait for it.

(Trust me when I say I have to remind myself of this often...)

Common courtesy and common sense is not so common any more.

You aren't kidding...
I've been actively looking for a couple of snakes recently, so I've contacted several people with requests for pictures. A good deal is great - but I'm more interested in finding snakes that have the look I want (that makes the process that much harder, but why settle?). I have to say that half the people send pictures that are utterly useless, and I don't even bother trying to get better ones anymore...but this is beside the point. Where I was going is that when I get pictures, and decide I am not interested in the snake; I make a point of contacting the person, thanking them for their time/effort, and informing them that - unfortunately - the snake doesn't quite have the look I'm seeking. Most are courteous - if not appreciative - but some take offense, occasionally to the point of being rude and insulting. Some apparently think I'm saying that the snake isn't what they say it is, and are okay once I clarify; but others really seem to not grasp that somebody looking for that kind of snake might not be interested in theirs. I can almost understand why so many people just don't respond when they decide they aren't interested...it isn't worth dealing with some of the sellers after the fact.
I have to say, though, that I recently got a response from a gentleman that was so nice I felt bad for not buying his snake. It sounds weird, but that is the kind of person with whom I WANT to do business.
Sorry to have taken this off topic - I just didn't feel like starting my own thread.

Originally Posted by LadyOhh

No point in being angry at people that are just the way they are. Act in a way that you would like to be treated, and move on.

Yeah. I mean you can always be nice to their face while being a coward and trash talking them on a private forum ... That's *totally* the way the cool kids do things.

I don't feel there's anything wrong in making or getting a lower offer on an animal. Even if it's crazy low(and I've gotten some CRAZY offers on high end snakes before), it's easy for me to politely decline with a "I'm sorry but I can't accept that offer, thank you." If it's not "crazy low" then I'll often counter offer with a slightly lowered price off my asking price. Haggling is never offensive to me and I don't know that I've sold more than half a dozen animals at the actual asking price.

The part that will drive me batty is when I get an offer that's really low, decline it and they come back with insults of "I can get a NICER snake elsewhere for way less than yours!" and such. Really? Well then you'd better hope they still have it, because you're DEFINITELY not buying mine now. Don't go making demands that I meet your offer on my animal.

I have a over-priced cinny female right now on another website. Technically she's for sale, but I want to hold her back so I stuck a high price on her. I'll probably take her off the market entirely since I really don't want to sell her. HER price has the word "FIRM" on it with a note that I would prefer to just hold her back. If someone appreciates her as much as I do and is willing to put out the extra funds to buy her, I'll sniffle and let her go. But it takes $XXX to make me happy to let her go. That's how pricing works. You have to give me an amount that makes me happy to exchange my animal for your cash. Some animals are worth more to me than they would be worth to a buyer. Those don't sell.

Haggling = okay. Low-balling = mildly irksome but fine. Rude insults because I won't accept a low-ball offer = annoyed Wolfy.

Many good comments, so I'll just add a touch. At one point in time, over 30 years ago, I wanted a snake bad. I was young, not much of an income, but I wanted my first snake. The avenues of finding one now is much different, but the point is the same, I was going to make all kinds of offers until I got my first one. Offers come and go, low-ballers, as you call them, come in all ages and IQ levels (referring to our hobby). Take offers with a grain of salt, as many many offers say, "looking for an offer, the worst thing I can say is no". Even a wholesaler, who is not a bad person, has to make a buck, and after the purchase, shipping to them and then shipping back out, it's hard to make money without a great price. ALL this, not to mention the economy is bad and some need to move the snake at any cost because it's the snake that will pay the ultimate price. Low-balers are out there, but they may have saved the life of snake when the options for some are little.

Originally Posted by Shadera

Yeah. I mean you can always be nice to their face while being a coward and trash talking them on a private forum ... That's *totally* the way the cool kids do things.

No, I can be an adult and apologize and let go...

THAT is the way cool kids do things.

This has definitely turned into an interesting thread!! I really appreciate the ones who put a different spin on it. I have yet to be rude to someone who has sent me a very low offer and don't plan to start. A very basic "thanks, but no" has seemed to work so far. I also have never offered a low offer on a snake and I don't plan to start that either. I believe what Lady Ohh said is right on the money regarding common sense and common courtesy. There is a fine line between getting the best deal you can and insulting someone with your offer.