Beware using sniping software on eBay Auctions (Sumday)

[Saintsfanfl]

Asking an eBay seller to not change their listing with no bids because you want to hire a 3rd party blind snipe service is like asking the tail to wag the dog. Neither eBay nor the seller is there at accommodate the ease of a snipe service. I have been an avid sniper in the past so I am not against it but as a sniper one should take responsibility and recheck the listings.

 

[Saintsfanfl]

I would not advise others to do that. You have almost certainly paid more than you should've at times.

Maybe, but maybe not. I would even say usually not if you know what you are buying and the real market value. There is one particular property that I have bought 8 units of. 6 through direct ads or offers and 2 through eBay auction with snipe bids. The two eBay auctions were the most I paid by far, and they were not even the most valuable units of the 8. I paid more than double on the snipe bids. The problem is others know the value as well and many times the sellers just need to unload the units. It only takes one other bidder to get the bid up to market value where a direct offer can be less than that value and could be accepted.

 

[VegasBella]

I would not advise others to do that. You have almost certainly paid more than you should've at times.

I definitely did NOT pay more than I should have for that particular purchase. It's a method to use when you really want to buy and when you would be upset if the snipe app didn't work or if someone outbid you.

 

[Panina]

I never have purchased from Sumday but definitely will if I see something I want. Whether you like his business model or not Jeff Brown is accessible and honest, saying it how it is, rare, a person I would would trust with my business.

 

[Daddyaus]

For those of you who bid on eBay or use sniping software or a service, I seen a new one that I had never seen before. There was a Grandview 2BR LockOff 98K RCI Points contract posted on eBay. I put this in my watch list over a week ago, knowing it ended this weekend I just pulled it up. It now is for an entirely different resort in different area for a fixed week unit. Just look on the revision tab at beginning of listing and you can see, they changed every thing in the listing.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/FREE-USE-FI...867000?hash=item5b38512938:g:8foAAOSw-QBXPfW5

You are familiar with the concept of people making mistakes right?

What is the actual harm done here?

 

[md8287]

I definitely did NOT pay more than I should have for that particular purchase. It's a method to use when you really want to buy and when you would be upset if the snipe app didn't work or if someone outbid you.

If done better sometimes with eBay auctions and better sometimes buying outside the auction. To each their own. Buying from a trusted seller is key.

 

[md8287]

You are familiar with the concept of people making mistakes right?

What is the actual harm done here?

I believe in SumDay but this was no mistake as you can see in the thread - it was a business decision. One I disagree with but one that makes business sense given the volume and goals of seller.

The harm did not occur in this one case but the potential harm is now in the open as I bet 90% of eBay buyers did not consider this as one of the MANY risks of buying on eBay.

The OP, as they said, should have chosen a title that focused on the practice and not the seller but the info is very helpful and I am thankful to know of this added eBay risk.

 

[theo]

I believe in SumDay but this was no mistake as you can see in the thread - it was a business decision. One I disagree with but one that makes sense given the volume and goals of seller.

The harm did not occur in this one case but the potential harm is now in the open as I bet 90% of eBay buyers did not consider this as one of the MANY risks of buying on eBay.

The OP, as they said, should have chosen a title that focused on the practice and not the seller but the info is very helpful and I am thankful to know this eBay risk.

I certainly have no dog in this fight and I would never actually consider buying a timeshare (on eBay) from anyone.
I would not hesitate to do business with Jeff Brown / Sumday, but not via eBay. Just a personal choice and position. YMMV.

That said, I fail to see what "risk" exists with timeshare auctions on eBay since any and all real estate auctions are non-binding anyhow. If a winning bidder does not choose to close for any reason, they need simply decline to do so; no harm, no foul. With that fact in mind, what's all the fuss and furor about on this?

 

[dagger1]

I bought three Wyndham CWA contracts on eBay from Sumday last September/October. They were first rate to do business with and I wouldn't hesitate to do business with them again.

 

[Egret1986]

I fail to see what "risk" exists with timeshare auctions on eBay since any and all real estate auctions are non-binding anyhow. If a winning bidder does not choose to close for any reason, they need simply decline to do so; no harm, no foul. With that fact in mind, what's all the fuss and furor about on this?

Agreed. It's a heads-up from the OP to keep an eye on sniped auctions. But any more than that....I don't see the problem with a non-binding transaction.

I bought three Wyndham CWA contracts on eBay from Sumday last September/October. They were first rate to do business with and I wouldn't hesitate to do business with them again.

Before this thread was started, and having just completed two transactions with Sumday (as well as several in the past), I was thinking that I wish all timeshare resellers handled things as well. I have always been pleased with the handling of my purchases. And from posts here on TUG, I am confident that Jeff Brown and his group will work hard to make things right if something ever does go wrong. The communication is always good.

We have been made aware of an eBay practice by this seller. This seller is doing nothing wrong. This is simply a financial decision that has been chosen by Sumday. It may inconvenience or disappoint some, if an un-monitored listing is changed to something else. However, as previously stated, "no harm, no foul." Simply do not snipe or bid on their auctions. Problem solved with Sumday

It's a good heads-up. Knowledge is power. But anything more than that.....well, I don't see the problem with the practice.

 

[ssreward]

Binding or not, the simplest fact is this: eBay does NOT allow the item for auction to be changed so if this is ever noticed again, I'll be sure to report the auction & hope anyone else who notices this practice will do the same!

 

[theo]

Binding or not, the simplest fact is this: eBay does NOT allow the item for auction to be changed so if this is ever noticed again, I'll be sure to report the auction & hope anyone else who notices this practice will do the same!

I believe that your quoted / blue highlighted statement above is not actually "the simplest fact" at all, but is instead "simply inaccurate".

My own understanding is that eBay listing items which have received no bids CAN be changed, but I don't want to split hairs (or further prolong this increasingly tiresome thread discussion). You are of course always free to report whatever you wish to whomever you choose, as you may see fit.

 

[ssreward]

My admittedly limited understanding is that eBay listings / items which have received no bids can indeed be changed at will, but I don't want to split hairs (or further prolong this particular thread discussion). You are of course certainly always free to report whatever to whomever, as you may see fit.

Are you seriously surprised eBay doesn't approve of using 1 listing to sell 2 items for 1 fee? They like making $ as much as any other business...
They complimented me for having the integrity to realize it was against their policies & ask about it

 

[chapjim]

Are you seriously surprised eBay doesn't approve of using 1 listing to sell 2 items for 1 fee? They like making $ as much as any other business...
They complimented me for having the integrity to realize it was against their policies & ask about it

Where are the two sales for one fee? The listing had no bids and was changed.

Sumday is a straight up seller. They take care of their part of the transaction very efficiently. The delay, if any, is at the resort.

 

[ssreward]

Where are the two sales for one fee? The listing had no bids and was changed.

Sumday is a straight up seller. They take care of their part of the transaction very efficiently. The delay, if any, is at the resort.

One would assume the original Grandview sold, otherwise there was no reason to change the listing. All I know is eBay straight up said you can NOT change a listing from one item to another, period. If you have one auction going & you want to sell a second item - you must create a new listing. I can send over the chat transcript if you don't believe it. I know SumDay is reputable but they're still violating eBay policy by doing this "switch to save listing fees" thing.

 

[chapjim]

One would assume the original Grandview sold, otherwise there was no reason to change the listing. All I know is eBay straight up said you can NOT change a listing from one item to another, period. If you have one auction going & you want to sell a second item - you must create a new listing. I can send over the chat transcript if you don't believe it. I know SumDay is reputable but they're still violating eBay policy by doing this "switch to save listing fees" thing.

Maybe the original Grandview was purchased directly from Sumday, totally apart from ebay. I don't know what the fees are for a timeshare sale listing. I only list rentals and most of them have a very small listing fee (less than $1) or no listing fee at all.

 

[ssreward]

Maybe the original Grandview was purchased directly from Sumday, totally apart from ebay. I don't know what the fees are for a timeshare sale listing. I only list rentals and most of them have a very small listing fee (less than $1) or no listing fee at all.

It doesn't matter where it sold - you're always free to sell an item outside of eBay & cancel the auction. You're just not allowed to list a different item in its place - no matter how much money it saves.

 

[Saintsfanfl]

It doesn't matter where it sold - you're always free to sell an item outside of eBay & cancel the auction. You're just not allowed to list a different item in its place - no matter how much money it saves.

I could be wrong but do not believe this is accurate. eBay takes very careful measures to prevent sections from being changed that should not be changed. If outside of 12 hours and no bids, almost anything can be changed except for the format. Thousands of sellers will change to different items and this has been going on for years. If eBay didn't allow it then they wouldn't be able to make the changes.

 

[Pathways]

I can send over the chat transcript if you don't believe it.

I too thought it was ok under certain circumstances to change the item.

ssreward: Settle this with the chat thread!

 

[uscav8r]

Binding or not, the simplest fact is this: eBay does NOT allow the item for auction to be changed so if this is ever noticed again, I'll be sure to report the auction & hope anyone else who notices this practice will do the same!

You must have plenty of free time on your hands to play Internet Vigilante.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[ssreward]

I too thought it was ok under certain circumstances to change the item.

ssreward: Settle this with the chat thread!

Here it is....and I'm still really curious about why the heck the rep guessed it might be about a bull weathervane, lol

 

[ssreward]

You must have plenty of free time on your hands to play Internet Vigilante.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

More like I didn't care for the attitude that this was some insignificant thing that shouldn't have been brought up by OP. It seemed wrong to me so I went to the source to find out...that's called research, not vigilantism.

 

[presley]

That being said, ebay allows the changing of ads that have received no bids and we will take advantage of those situations if we can.

I am glad you posted that. I scan threads and didn't realize that there weren't any bids when you change the ad. I never use Snipe so it never would have occurred to me that someone would set a snipe without placing a starting bid. I'm the type who if I see something I want, I bid the highest I am willing to pay and I don't look again until I get an email telling if I won.

Like I said earlier, If I could change the title of the thread I would,

You can contact the moderator team and ask them to change the title of the thread. Just be specific about what you want it to say.

I don't know about Sumday except that they have a good reputation here on TUG. I will say, however, that if a timeshare auction interests you then you should contact the seller directly and offer the amount you would set your snipe bid to. That's how I got my best deal! I would never have wanted to risk it on a snipe bid.

I agree with this and I have done that before.

I would not advise others to do that. You have almost certainly paid more than you should've at times.

An educated buyer may end up paying a little more than what the auction would have ended with had they not offered to buy early. I don't think anyone cares about that in the long term of getting exactly what they want for a price they want.

There was another time when I offered to buy before the auction end. I wanted to pay $1,000 and the seller said they would end the auction for me if I paid $1500. I said no and just entered my bid of $1,000 and went on my merry way. I won the week for $53. So, in that case, yes I would have paid a lot more if they accepted my original offer. Since what I wanted was very specific and I had been looking for it for a couple years, I would have been equally as happy paying $1,000 for it.

 

[theo]

....ebay allows the changing of ads that have received no bids...

The fact that there were indeed no bids in the specific listing under discussion here seems to have been just conveniently ignored by some folks in this thread.
That highly and directly relevant detail is not actually addressed at all within the fuzzy "chat" exchange which has been presented as "evidence" / "research".
Just the same, I guess folks have every right to simply ignore those directly pertinent facts which do not support their position or their indignation.

 

[Pathways]

View attachment 4095 View attachment 4096

Here it is....and I'm still really curious about why the heck the rep guessed it might be about a bull weathervane, lol

This chat thread is missing WAY too many facts to be definitive as to whether this breaks their rules. I will have to remain in Sumday's camp unless presented with further evidence.