Help! How much would you pay for used AGs ?

[DScully717]

I just had to post on this because I *might* have the opportunity to purchase a large lot of AG stuff from a seller in my area. I met her at a yard sale last weekend when I found a TON of AG books at her yard sale. She said that she and her friend had a ton of AG stuff from their kids who no longer wanted them. She said that she was going to dig through all of her stuff and clean it up, etc., and then call me this weekend to see what I wanted.

She and her friend told me a few of the items they had, such as 3 dolls (Molly, Felicity and Kirsten), Felicity's 4 poster bed, some AG clothes for girls, and a lot of accessories/clothes for all of the girls. My question is, depending on in what condition these items are in, how much should I be willing to fork out? Should I offer to purchase it as a lot or individually, etc? I just want to have some prices in mind so I don't a) go nuts and overspend on used AG stuff, and b) have a price range in mind of what is reasonable to pay since I've never done this before, and I don't know if they are going to have preset prices for things or not. Both women seem very eager to unload the stuff, but I don't want to cheat them by paying too little or vice versa.

So, how much would you pay for:
a) a historical like Felicity or Kirsten
(in good condition)
b) furniture ( like a bed, trunk, etc)
c) clothes for girls, and
d) clothes for dolls.

Any input is appreciated!

[Skittl1321]

I wouldn't pay more than half of retail if everything was in good condition.

Although, it usually goes for more than that on ebay.

If you buy it as a lot- I would figure out what half of retail for all the item is and then subtract 10% from that... lots usually go cheaper than individual items because of the convience of selling that way.

[jlogemann17]

I would look at closed e-bay auctions, and then offer less (because she doesn't have to pay all the e-bay fees). If an outfit sells on e-bay for $20, I'd offer $15. But really- I wouldn't offer anything until she comes up with a ballpark at least. She may be very happy to unload outfits for $5 and if she says $5, you could say- oh I would think they'd be worth at least $10, then she'd say- oh, that'd be great! Or she might say $20 each, and you could say- Oh, I was hoping for more like $15. A lot of it depends on how badly she wants to get rid of it, if she has an e-bay account or is used to selling on e-bay, etc. If I were you, I'd also come up with a final amount you're willing to spend- say $200. Then make your list of what you want most, and stay within your budget. Force yourself to stay within your budget by taking only as much cash as you really want to spend. Otherwise it'll be easy to spend more than that. If her prices are high for you, you can always say, Thank you for offering this to me first, your prices are certainly fair for the secondary market, but I was really hoping for "garage sale prices," I guess I'm not looking to spend that much right now.

It's really hard to come up with a dollar amount for what a used doll should sell for because so much depends on the age of the doll (is it white bodied?), hair condition, limb condition, funny smells, etc. I think you're better off deciding what you want to spend total, then when you get there, deciding what you can get for your money.

Jo

[DScully717]

That's some great advice; thanks guys! I definitely think I need to set a price limit for myself otherwise I'll go nuts. I was kinda thinking along the same lines of seeing how much the lady wanted for the items and negotiating up or down from there. I think 50% of retail sounds reasonable. I'll have to let you know what I decide to get if the deal goes through. I'm not sure what kind of dolls they are (white bodied, etc) or if there are any retired outfits (hopefully!). I'll let you know how I make out!

[stebbarry]

I've bought several things from local people. It seems as if I usually will pay $50 - $60 for a doll in good condition. I've found two Trunks (Samantha and Molly) and paid $50 and $60 for them. I've also found some AG furniture and usually will feel good about paying about half the retail price for it. I would personally just see what the prices are that the ladies come up with. I think that most people would prefer to have one person come and take all of their stuff away instead of having several people come and buy one or two items each. If you think their prices are a little high you could say, I would like to buy everything for (the price you are willing to pay). Good luck and I hope you get some really great stuff for a reasonable price!

[Kenshinchan]

I think there's a good chance that I'd fork out the money for the whole lot (if prices seemed below eBay's) and take what I wanted and sell the rest here or on eBay. [img]redface.gif[/img] That's somewhat selfish of me, though.