How much to sell a use instrument for...

[pheffernan]

The OP’s instrument is not rare, not a museum piece, not unusual, not collectible, just a well regarded but relatively common imported factory made entry level instrument. Therefor, devoid of the other influencing factors, I believe 500-550, 70 percent of what it cost new is fair value.

I don't disagree on Em's OM. And I'll go further and add that there are some instruments where 70% is optimistic. One is, as you noted, a ubiquitous factory-made, entry-level instrument. Another is a flattop where, with rare exceptions, we often see well maintained used instruments offered for about half of new pricing. It's a great opportunity for buyers, rough for sellers.

[pheffernan]

There's an F5G in the classifieds right now at 3400.00, a bit higher than what they generally have been selling for. It's been a 3000.00 to 3200.00 item for years. That's not a substantial bump. Again, I don't follow F9's. I do follow F5G's and highly recommend them.

That's a 10-20% bump if you include F9's with no precipitating factor that I can see other than the rise in new pricing.

[MikeEdgerton]

That's a retailer selling it. The price of the F5G's hasn't really changed. Again, I know nothing of the F9's.

[Paul Busman]

Current Retail price is $1295 with a case. There are still some old prices floating around (that dealers may or may not actually sell at).

Used, $500 should be on the lower side. $600 would be a realistic value for one in excellent condition with case and free shipping. Shipping will be up around $50, so adjust price accordingly if charging vs doing free shipping.

*Anyone reading this in the future: This applies to 2018 only.

Holy smokes! I was about to offer mine for a LOT less!

[multidon]

Just checked on Reverb. Right now there are 5 F9’s listed. They range from early 2000’s to just last year in age, and from $3000 to $4500 in price. 4 out of the 5 have been listed for a month. And right now, The Mandolin Store is listing the new price for an F9 is $5299. All of them, to me, except maybe the 3000 one (which has only been listed for 1 day) seem a bit ambitiously priced. The one for 4500 was originally listed at $5299 in mint used condition, same price as a brand new one, and then “discounted” 15 percent! Apparently, someone thinks that because it’s mint, even though it’s used, someone would be willing to pay the same as new. In fact it’s not unusual on Reverb for a seller to say buying their instrument is “just like buying new”. Uh huh. With no manufacturer warranty. Right.

You can ask whatever price you want for an instrument. It’s your instrument, and your business. But just remember “Askin’ ain’t gettin’”. Just because you see an instrument listed for sale on a website at a certain price doesn’t mean that’s the value. If it actually sells at that price, well, that’s a much different story than it sitting there unsold for a month or more.

[MikeEdgerton]

I'd like nothing better than for my F5G to be appreciating in value. The problem is that the price has remained static for years and the only way it's worth more is because I've added Waverly tuners and a Calton case and I'm not all that sure that will increase the value. There are two sold listings on eBay right now. On each they accepted a lower offer so you don't know what they actually went for. Don's comment is true:

You can ask whatever price you want for an instrument. It’s your instrument, and your business. But just remember “Askin’ ain’t gettin’”.

There will also be outliers in any case. You see the occasional $2800.00 sale and the occasional $3400.00 sale. The majority are between those two numbers.

[Dave Sheets]

If you look at used instruments at reputable dealers they are often at something 70% or 2/3 of the new price for the instrument for common, well known brands that aren't rarities or limited editions. If you want to sell your used instrument to a dealer, they seem to pay roughly 2/3 of that price, or 2/3 of 2/3 of the new price, so 4/9 of new. This leaves them room for some profit. They also have to stand behind the instrument if there turns out to be a problem, so part of that differential covers their risk. If you watch e-bay bidding on popular instruments, the dealers drop out of auctions pretty consistent at the 4/9 mark (give or take a bit). Above that price, there's no profit left for them.

For the same price, I'd rather buy from a reputable dealer than an individual, because I know the dealer will stand behind the instrument if there is a problem. Many private sellers will too, but it's a bit tougher, and some won't, or you won't be able to find them.

In a private sale, as the seller, you may not be able to get the dealer's selling price for the instrument, you may have to take a bit less. If you can sell it to a dealer at the 4/9 number, and the dealer sells it at 2/3 to 70% of new price, then the private seller price looks to be in the middle of that somewhere.

With a lot of brands (particularly factory made instruments), some manufacturing years are regarded as better than others, the good years can demand a pretty substantial premium relative to the less desirable eras.

[Loubrava]

I've sold off a bunch of instruments over the last several years, all on Ebay so take this with a grain of salt if you're selling direct, or through other online retailers. To set a price, I use one of two methods depending on how much info is available.

1) I'll research the Sold listings on Ebay for the last year, to see if there is actual market information. If there is, then I'll list at the average of those prices, as long as I can afford to wait a while and re-list if it doesn't sell. Or I'll list a bit below that price if I want a quick sale.

2) If there is no market information, I use a general rule of 1/3 off current retail price if I think it's a "hot" item likely to be in demand, or 1/2 off current retail if my guess is that it's a soft market and might need a stronger incentive to sell. I try not to go under 1/2 off, but I've done it a few times for offbeat stuff that I just need to get rid of.

For anything that will sell for over $1,500 or so, I offer free shipping. That means eating $70-$100 depending on size/weight and distance, but it can make for a quicker sale. On Ebay I sell to verified USA addresses only, which limits the potential market but it makes it easier to offer free shipping (and lately, not have to worry about customs/CITES hassles).

I've shipped a few mandolins in the last few years UPS/FEDEX & it seems it's always $150 to over $200 due to insurance. I always insure for cost of sale price not retail, the instruments sold were worth 2K-3K. Are you guys insuring your stuff or am over paying somehow ?
Thanks

[foldedpath]

I've shipped a few mandolins in the last few years UPS/FEDEX & it seems it's always $150 to over $200 due to insurance. I always insure for cost of sale price not retail, the instruments sold were worth 2K-3K. Are you guys insuring your stuff or am over paying somehow ?
Thanks

I insure musical instruments as part of the free shipping, but I take a calculated risk and under-insure. Usually for half the amount, sometimes less. I'm very careful with how I pack shipments, and so far (knock on wood) haven't had to make an insurance claim in over 100 items sold on Ebay, with maybe a dozen of those being expensive musical instruments.

Part of the calculated risk is assuming that even if an instrument was damaged during shipping, I'd refund the buyer, and in many cases would be able to have the instrument repaired for re-sale. A total loss like theft or an instrument completely destroyed would bite harder when I'm under-insuring. But this gets back to the idea that if you're selling at all, it works best as a volume operation where you can spread the risk across many sales, and if you have some losses, it's just part of doing business.

The other way to go, of course, is insure for full value and bump up the sale price enough to cover it. I tend to go for a little more risk to keep the price more attractive to the buyer. YMMV

[Br1ck]

One of the many eye openers to me when I visited TMS several years ago, was that they had two F 9s, a new one and a slightly pre Harvey instrument. The older one was very good, the new one was better. Now this was just two instruments, but implanted in my head forever is I'd want a Harvey signed instrument. I'd expect to pay more all else being equal. The beauty when buying used is there is no more devaluation. The original owner takes the hit. A year old F9 is worth no more to me than a well cared for five year old F9. Then it's just a matter of condition. The best values if you want to save money is to snag an instrument extensively giged, and priced accordingly.

Now where a store with a repair business makes money is buying instrument needing work. They can buy for a song, fix them and make a tidy profit. I see 70s D 18s and D28s with brand new neck sets and frets all the time.

But buying quality used is the way this becomes a non issue. Hard to see loosing money buying a Northfield F5 S, for $2400, or a Collings MF for $3400 or so. Always going to be worth that as long as you don't run the headstock into unyielding objects.

[Folkmusician.com]

Are you guys insuring your stuff or am over paying somehow ?

Just like Folded Path, I self insure. Every time I averaged it, we lose a ton of money insuring vs paying for the few that are lost/damaged. Damage is never a total loss. The instrument can still be sold at a discount.

Things do go wrong though. Ship enough, and you will eventually have to deal with damage/loss.

[HonketyHank]

As someone who has shipped 'valuable' items only a few times, I find the ~1% of declared value to be a reasonable fee for peace of mind. If I were in the business of selling in order to make a living, that same 1% could well be a significant dent in my profit margin and I would try to do an analysis like Folkmusician's (above).

Those who sell insurance are basically "the house". "The house" always wins in the long run. But peace of mind is worth something in the short run.

[Dave Sheets]

Br1ck has it right, the best deals are on good quality instruments that are roadworn, shopworn or scuffed, but fundamentally sound. They can't really depreciate much, as long as they are still working and taken care of. A lot of people don't want instruments with any scuffs on them at all, which makes bargains available for the rest of us .

[Smyrna5]

Current Retail price is $1295 with a case. There are still some old prices floating around (that dealers may or may not actually sell at).

Used, $500 should be on the lower side. $600 would be a realistic value for one in excellent condition with case and free shipping. Shipping will be up around $50, so adjust price accordingly if charging vs doing free shipping.

*Anyone reading this in the future: This applies to 2018 only.

Pretty close, I'd say. I'm not really a fine mandolin guy yet, so take what I say with a grain of salt. However, I have bought and sold a lot of ukuleles and guitars. For non-collectible pieces, I generally use a 50% of new retail price as my lower price target when buying. Ill offer perhaps 60% to 65% if its in excellent condition. I find that if I don't follow those guidelines, I end up losing money when and if I decide to sell the item myself, unless I want to wait a long time for a sale.

From the buyers perspective, its understandable that if they buy new from a dealer, they generally have a warranty, and often a 30-45 return policy. Unless they get a sweet deal on a used one, it makes little sense to most buyers.