Talked to an estate sale pro about pricing and it blew my mind

I was at a sale last Saturday and got chatting with the lady running it, she told me she marks things high on day one because serious collectors expect to haggle down 30-40 percent. She said if she priced things at what she actually wanted, people would just lowball even lower. Has anyone else noticed that pricing games at these sales are more about psychology than the actual value?

2 comments

2 Comments

david73911h ago

Wait, have you ever seen how folks price things at garage sales compared to estate sales? I went to one last month where the guy had a beat up old toolbox marked at 80 bucks. I asked him about it and he said he starts everything high because his regulars get offended if they don't feel like they got a deal. He told me about this one lady who bought a lamp for 20 bucks that he would have taken 5 for, and she bragged about it for ten minutes. It's all a game of who blinks first I guess...

leow908h ago

Heard this same thing from a guy who runs a booth at the flea market by my house. He told me he adds a 50% markup on everything just so people feel like they won when they talk him down. It's wild how much time people waste playing these games instead of just saying a price.