- Before you bid or buy, you should:
- Determine guidelines for what you are willing to pay.
- Know your total costs and how you'll cover them.
- Provide eBay with your credit card information if you are bidding over $15,000.
- Apply for financing if you want to make monthly payments.
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| Determine Guidelines for What You Are Willing to Pay |
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All bids on eBay are binding; therefore, you should make sure that you know how much you can afford. A great way to determine a realistic price is to look at final sale prices for similar items that sold on eBay. This can be done easily by using the Completed Items option within Advanced Search. If you are considering a vehicle purchase, use Kelly Blue Book as an additional resource for pricing information.
If an item is selling at a price far below fair market price, use extra caution as to the nature of the transaction and try to understand what may be contributing to such a low price such as damage, title issues, and so forth.
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| Know Your Total Costs and How You'll Cover Them |
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If you are bidding or buying a vehicle consider other potential costs such as title, registration, state taxes, and any shipping costs. Refer to your state's Department of Motor Vehicles Web site for guidelines on taxes, title transfer, and registration.
If the seller isn't local, make sure you know how you will pick up the vehicle or arrange shipping if you are the successful buyer (typically, sellers can help arrange shipping, but buyers usually pay for it).Get shipping quotes from DAS , a company that ships cars, motorcycles, and most other vehicles.
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| Provide eBay With Your Credit Card Information if You Are Bidding Over $15,000 |
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You are required to have a credit card on file with eBay if you bid more than $15,000 for an item. You will be notified that you need to provide this information when you bid; therefore, allow yourself some extra time if you are bidding during the last minutes of an auction. Your credit card will not be charged; instead, eBay uses it to confirm your identity—a safety measure to help protect both buyers and sellers from potential high-bidding fraud.
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| Apply for Financing if You Want to Make Monthly Payments |
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Buying what you want is easier when you can make affordable monthly payments. eBay, together with several top lenders, can help you get the financing that you need. Visit the eBay Financing Center to arrange financing before you bid or after you buy or to calculate monthly payments.
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