How to Save Thousands by buying on eBay, part one

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If you want to save serious cash, this is what you need to know. I have saved literally thousands of dollars every year by buying on eBay, and you can too.

What can you buy?

Well, pretty much anything. There are of course items that eBay does not allow to be sold, but that doesn't mean you can't sometimes find them. Pretty much everything you could want you can find on eBay for less, often MUCH less.

Here is a partial list of things that I have purchased on eBay:

Vehicles
Computers
Food
Spices
Rings
Jewelry displays
Clothing
Bed
Gemological equipment
Shoes
Car parts
Pearls
Gemstones
Scales (large and small)
Computer accessories
Testing equipment
Gold Bullion
Silver Bullion

There are several strategies when it comes to buying items on eBay, and they all involve research. Just because you don't know what you are looking at when you see it, doesn't mean you cannot know everything there is to know about the item within minutes.

For instance:
I purchased a Homedics scale on eBay two days ago. The wife wanted to go to Bed Bath and Beyond and get the one they had on sale with the coupon she has. With tax, it would have come out to $34.89 (I did the math). Now that I knew what I wanted and the features, I searched eBay for a scale, and found one that had about 3X as many features and glowing reviews on it (Amazon.com reviews). I also found out that it was featured in a large fitness magazine and got glowing reviews. Currently the item sells on some websites for $60 + shipping and originally it sold for $89 plus tax. I found that the item is no longer selling in stores and a newer, fancier looking machine had now replaced it. I was able to purchase the scale for $15.00 after shipping.

Another instance:
A Wilson's Leather Lamb Skin Jacket that sells new for $200 (originally $450) I got in near-new condition for $35 shipped.

In almost every case I find that laziness on the part of the seller results in a lower purchase price. If you don't put the model number, the gender that the clothes are meant for, the color, etc., you are generally going to see a lower price.

Also, there are times that putting an item in the wrong category can prevent it from selling at a good price.

First Step: What do you want?

For the sake of argument, lets say that you are looking for an Oris Titan Chronograph with the rubber strap (Swiss diver's watch). You went to a high-end jewelry store and found one that you love; only problem is that it's $3,050 (the store probably would give you 15% off, so the actual cost would be $2,800 after taxes). So, how do you find it for less? You go to eBay. On the home page, I typed in "oris titan" and left off the chronograph; hopefully someone emitted it or misspelled it, and also, by not going directly to the watches category and doing my search there, perhaps I will find one that was mis-categorized.

I find Item# 350260225408 at $1,495.00 Looks fantastic, amazing price. Then I see the seller's feedback which numbers over 1000, and 100% positive. I also find that the seller is based in the US. Fantastic. No worries there. He did make a mistake, however, by not including the word Chronograph (which adds about $1000 to the price vs the non-chronograph model).

Do I want it? WAIT! I still don't know enough yet. Next I go back to the search results, select "ended items only" and see what the watch sold for in the past, if possible. It prompts me for my username and password and then shows me 15 days or so of completed items, usually most of which are not what I am looking for.

If you are looking for a main item (computer, watch, tv, etc.) and not an accessory, search by high price first. I see that one with a metal strap went without a bidder for $1,235.00. It's not technically new, but comes with box and papers. Now, if I decided I wanted this one instead, I would click on the link "see other items" and check to see if the seller has relisted it. In this case, he has not. But that does not mean I cannot still get it. Send the seller a question, using a link from one of their other auctions, or better yet, track down their contact info.

I will do that for this seller to I can see what I can find. He gives us great info to track him down. He has his business name as his eBay store name, and I can see that name of the city he lives in. Bingo! After entering that info into Google, I now have his phone number so I can call him up and offer 3% under the listing's end price. Chances are I will be able to get it without a problem.

But say I didn't want the one with the metal strap (they can catch arm hairs sometimes). The other one that was up at $1495.00 is a great deal--it has sold before at that price and also at a little higher price. Either way, on that one purchase you save at least $1,300.00 Not so hard.

The things that you are going to be able to get the best deals on are high quality items in near new condition, like my shoes that I purchased for $15.00: Nike Air Monarch III's (had it listed without the "III"). I am wearing them now and I can tell that the most wear these received was a walk around the block perhaps twice. If I had gone into a retail store, I would have not been able to get away without spending $60 for the same pair, even if I had a coupon.

Generally super-hot items are going to be difficult to get for too much under the retail price. For items like the Wii, Iphone, and certain designer brands, eBay will still get you the best price, but not a huge amount off.

Everything else, however, you can get for 50% off at least...did you know you can buy honey on eBay? You can get specialty candies, neon signs...pretty much everything that can be shipped easily you can get on eBay for a small amount.