Auction giant eBay is always adding little features to make the buying/selling process a little more slick -- one feature that popped up recently (or has always been there, but I was blind) is the trending-at value for vehicles. According to the pop up box the trending-at value is median price based on item condition from all ebaymotors sellers in the past 14 days (or 90 days if sales are slow.)
The trending-at value adds a new dimension to the front page of an eBay auction and it is as much a good thing for sellers as buyers. The seller will be able to quickly tell when he is overpaying for a Volvo 122S or when an item is well below the median sales price. On the other hand it might help the seller by subtly convincing buyers to pay near the median of the past few weeks which could exert an upward force on the market. Let's take a ride on the Trending-at train with a few examples.
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First up is this 1967 Chevrolet Corvette coupe
currently bidding for $38,200 with a few hours to go and a trending-at value of $47,050. Before I saw the trending-at value my first thought was that anything below $40k would be a good deal for a survivor C2 Vette even if it does have an automatic transmission. 
Another auction that I was following is this rusted to pieces 1988 BMW M3 E30
currently bidding for $14,600 with a few hours to go and a trending-at value of $20,390. Not sure how many of the E30 M3's that went into the median price have Fred Flintstone style floors, but this one should go for well below that value. What do you think about this eBay feature? Comments below.
Very few owners think/know the true condition of their vehicle and will some sales will be miss because the trending price includes really good examples that should command more money than their moldy, rust bucket with no floor pans or trunk floor...
ReplyDeleteI don't think I would rely much on it over searching completed listings to see what they sold for. Who knows how evilBay aggregates "items of similar condition" I think using Hagerty's valuation guide would be a safer bet.
ReplyDeleteI think I would prefer a list of links to past sales of "similar items". There are just too many variables for me to judge the trending figure.
ReplyDeleteConcur. Too many variables and not enough data points. This is more suitable to commodity items with minimal variation and many completed sales. Anyone spending $40k on a Corvette -- or selling one -- should be doing their own homework.
DeleteOdd, I've just looked at several BMW 2002's and none of them have this feature?
ReplyDelete