Is the used market kaput?

[surf green]

After dropping a $duce on a Firefly Resonator (thanks @Radiotech just what I bleepin needed ), I realized the corral is way over crowded and it's time to move some livestock before the Res arrives. So yesterday afternoon I posted 5 guitars.............and 2 surfboards. Checked out the emails after work today and not a peep............crickets. Seems it wasn't that long ago when those posts would have drawn a crowd, but today, nada. Is selling USED really over?

 

[DougMen]

After dropping a $duce on a Firefly Resonator (thanks @Radiotech just what I bleepin needed ), I realized the corral is way over crowded and it's time to move some livestock before the Res arrives. So yesterday afternoon I posted 5 guitars.............and 2 surfboards. Checked out the emails after work today and not a peep............crickets. Seems it wasn't that long ago when those posts would have drawn a crowd, but today, nada. Is selling USED really over?

I'm not sure about everywhere, but CL here sure is for me. I used to have no problem selling a Squier that's like new for $100 less than its new price, or selling any pedals that I paid $30-50 for, for $20-30. Now, I've had over a dozen pedals listed for months with zero response. Someone else has a Joyo Hot Plexi (a $40 pedal) listed for $20, and it's been up for months too. If my health was normal and I had a car, I'd go get it. And, my like new Contemporary HH Tele, that went for $400 new, I have listed for $280, also with crickets. Maybe people now look at Fecesbook instead of CL, but I don't do FB. The only social media I do is IG, which is owned by them, which is bad enough, but I've discovered so many great musicians on IG, plus all the guitar, amp, and pedal companies are on IG.

 

[wickedtools]

It comes and goes, while it was dead before Thanksgiving and Christmas then after it I sold several guitars. Now it’s tapered off then should come back around April and May. It’s a wait game. 😊👍🏼

 

[miket1117]

i've got several guitars i'd like to put out there, but based on the CL listings here in my area, it would be a waste of time... nothing is seeming to move.

my vote is, yes, the resale market is bottoming out. however, if its the right guitar at the right price, Reverb might be the best option. people are still buying! every market different.

good luck, surf!

 

[4406Pack]

After dropping a $duce on a Firefly Resonator (thanks @Radiotech just what I bleepin needed ), I realized the corral is way over crowded and it's time to move some livestock before the Res arrives. So yesterday afternoon I posted 5 guitars.............and 2 surfboards. Checked out the emails after work today and not a peep............crickets. Seems it wasn't that long ago when those posts would have drawn a crowd, but today, nada. Is selling USED really over?

I have been watching and yes used prices are coming down i am hoping to score a sweet deal in the next few months

 

[JohnnyMac]

I just listed two guitars and plan on listing three more. I've been trying to convince myself for some time to get rid of some of my stuff and now that I've finally made the decision to "thin the herd" I'll probably take what I can get and be done with it.

But then what? Buy more cattle?

 

[duceditor]

If one looks at the crazy low new prices such as on the IYVs and the Squier clearances we were all so excited about not too many weeks ago one has to realize that there is an underlying reason for them.

The Covid lock downs built a short term boost in sales. That is now over. (How many of those quickie purchases are now sitting unplayed?)

Then, although in our world of greatly filtered “news” less is being said about it than would have in more open times, the banking system is skimming disaster, major layoffs are happening, and much else that the ‘average man’ does not see — nor, today it seems, wish to — is roiling the behind the scenes markets and decision making.

In other words the bigger picture will affect the smaller one. And no, these are not “normal” times and people sense it and act accordingly even if they themselves cannot explain just why all of this is so.

-don

 

[DougMen]

The problem is that everyone is too greedy and looking for the steal of the century, and aren't willing to pay a reasonable price anymore. They want to find a US Fender, that should go for $1000, for $400, or a new CV for $150. They want to rip-off the seller instead of paying a decent used price for anything.

 

[4406Pack]

I just listed two guitars and plan on listing three more. I've been trying to convince myself for some time to get rid of some of my stuff and now that I've finally made the decision to "thin the herd" I'll probably take what I can get and be done with it.

But then what? Buy more cattle?

I am picking up different animals to make a zoo i never want more than 2 of anything they seem to multiply and for my collection i trying to keep it small but have something of each shapes an colors even though i Love White and Black guitars
Also very picky on fretboard radius i really do not like anything smaller than 10 and right now the sweet spot for me between a 10-16 is a 13.7 on a LTD arrow V Black Metal
Good Luck in your sale hope you get what you ask or close

 

[surf green]

Buying new is almost like being part of the problem. On one hand I'm buying a Firefly acoustic for $229, and on the other I'm trying to sell a $550 Ibanez acoustic for $375..........then complaining about it.

 

[Shaytan]

Yup, I’d say by the end of the second global lockdown and particularly by the start of Ukraine’s war and its associated financial crisis that the second-hand market for everything hobby-related is stagnant.

If you’re buying, you’re actually in luck! - despite the amount of overpriced stuff people list under the premise that they’ve just bought it and have since quit/ need the money, I’ve been able to find a steady amount of great deals locally that I’ve either picked up myself or recommended to others, and plenty of new listings everyday.

However, I’ve managed to get three deals the past several months - an Alhambra classical I’ve bought for the college musical fraternity and both the Peavey Envoy amp as well as the Jackson JS30 I’ve recently shared - I know I would’ve absolutely missed the chance if it was last year.

Amid the pandemic, I’ve bought a 70s MIJ Strat copy that Fb Marketplace recommended to me and had been posted only a couple of hours prior for a great price - had to pick it up immediately if I didn’t want the next interested person down the line to get it first - same thing about a home gym bench I’ve got only by the third time contacting a seller right after receiving the saved listing notif I could close the deal in time. In between that, I can recall having missed a Maison superstrat in project condition (currently still listed by another guy who can’t move it LOL) and a Uber cool 90s MIJ Squier silver series in factory blue sporting my all time favourite strat pickups. Clearly indicates not only less people are getting into hobbies, the extra supply from pandemic quitters surpasses the second-hand demand and, simply put, people have less disposable income.

Luckily, said Peavey is a keeper, I’ve even bought a footswitch for it, it’s such a great practice amp, and I’ve been able to justify the expense by selling the Marshall VS15 I had for that purpose to a friend who was interested in it for the longest time. The Jackson, though, while I’m taking care of some fixes and a setup, the plan’s to move it for a fair price right after to finance a couple of pedals. I already know it’s gonna be a though sell (heck, if I managed to pick it for an objectively great price a week after being [incorrectly] listed), but I knew that beforehand and that I could afford the investment, plus it’s gonna serve as a great guitar for band rehearsals in the meantime!

 

[Audiowonderland]

If one looks at the crazy low new prices such as on the IYVs and the Squier clearances we were all so excited about not too many weeks ago one has to realize that there is an underlying reason for them.

The Covid lock downs built a short term boost in sales. That is now over. (How many of those quickie purchases are now sitting unplayed?)

Then, although in our world of greatly filtered “news” less is being said about it than would have in more open times, the banking system is skimming disaster, major layoffs are happening, and much else that the ‘average man’ does not see — nor, today it seems, wish to — is roiling the behind the scenes markets and decision making.

In other words the bigger picture will affect the smaller one. And no, these are not “normal” times and people sense it and act accordingly even if they themselves cannot explain just why all of this is so.

-don

It's amazing how many conspiracy theorists and economists play guitar. Tax bills are due in three weeks. People are hanging onto cash right now and trying to sell to raise money. It happens this time of year, every year.

 

[DougMen]

It's amazing how many conspiracy theorists and economists play guitar. Tax bills are due in three weeks. People are hanging onto cash right now and trying to sell to raise money. It happens this time of year, every year.

I've had this problem with CL for well over a year now, so in my case, it has nothing to do with tax time.
As for those talking about how the pandemic fueled buying a lot, all my selling on CL that was easy and quick was long before covid. I've been doing it for over a decade, and never experienced this until about a year or so ago.

 

[kdm1218]

I've had this problem with CL for well over a year now, so in my case, it has nothing to do with tax time.
As for those talking about how the pandemic fueled buying a lot, all my selling on CL that was easy and quick was long before covid. I've been doing it for over a decade, and never experienced this until about a year or so ago.

It’s like there are persistent economic factors eating into normal peoples living expenses when every single thing costs more. But I’ll just keep my conspiracy theories and economic expertise to myself

 

[DougMen]

It’s like there are persistent economic factors eating into normal peoples living expenses when every single thing costs more. But I’ll just keep my conspiracy theories and economic expertise to myself

We'll, I'm not afraid to express my "theories", which aren't theories, but fact. Corporations are making record profits, the highest in 70 years (since 1950), so much so that they can afford to give themselves huge bonuses and do massive stock buybacks to enrich themselves even more, yet they continue to raise prices, and they blame it on "supply chain issues" and "labor costs" and other BS excuses.
More and more mergers and buyouts are putting more and more areas/segments of our economy in the control of fewer and fewer people. We're living in the Gilded Age 2.0.

 

[Radiotech]

It’s not over, it’s just market adjustment back to pre-pandemic levels… but now with a glut of git’s from the failed pandemic players attempt.

Some items are still high (Hello Kitty, Squier VM Telecaster basses, and Antigua Baritone’s), but if you look at sold prices they are coming down too.

About a year from now we’ll be finding $20 unplayed affinity’s again regularly 😬.

 

[Lonn]

Posts 14 and 15 are borderline political. Keep on track please.

 

[Ace38]

Posts 14 and 15 are borderline political. Keep on track please.

Beat me to it, I was gonna say the same.

 

[Cochise]

Craigslist isn't what it used to be. I listed 3 pedals and an amp for sale in both Craigslist and FB marketplace. All 4 items sold within two weeks through FB. Not a peep from craigslist. I can understand not wanting to be on Facebook, but it's worth it to just have a dummy account for listing gear for sale and making purchases.
Another factor is that our society seems to have lost the art of the haggle. People see the price and don't know how to negotiate it down properly.

 

[Riverdrifter]

Craigslist in my area has been dead for years.