Pony-buying ethics?

[ButtercreamDream]

I have found ponies for sale for a charity only once, and I did give the lady what I figured they were worth, instead of the 0.50 they were asking.  I suppose it might depend on the situation, though.  I don't feel bad about buying a G1 for $2 at Value Village, even though they donate some of the profits.  I also donate a lot of stuff to the goodwill, and wouldn't feel bad about finding a pony there (though I haven't so far).

If it was an individual selling a really rare pony for cheap, I think I would have to tell them.  I'd feel guilt buying a $1 Scoops from someone who could use that money.  At the same time, I have told a handfull of people of bought from in person that there ponies were worth more (a $10 Whitecap, and a free baby mermaid pony come to mind) and both sellers wanted me to have them anyway because they were their childhood ponies, and I was so excited about them.

[DancingPhoenix]

More and more thrift/goodwill type stores ARE doing their research now and using taking advantage of that and auctioning off the more sought after items instead of just selling them in the store. Some places now just see dollar sign instead of a pony and end up over pricing them, so when I see a vintage pony in a store I will snap it up for the $2 or whatever it is being sold for with no remorse

If it was a flea market or something on the other hand and the seller was very nice I would certainly consider offering a few extra dollars for something rare. But like others have said, it's up to the seller to do their research so I wouldn't offer more than $10 more than what they were selling it for.

[Navi]

Honestly, I'd be afraid that if I offered a IRL seller more money for their pony, they may get the idea that the pony is worth way more and refuse to sell it to me at all. I have had that happen before with non-pony vintage items when a seller decides their item is worth more at checkout ("oh, this must be mispriced" etc).

If I found a rare pony at the thrift, I wouldn't feel safe until I actually got it out of the store! When I find (mostly g3) ponies at Goodwill or something, I act like its no big deal at checkout. I donate so much stuff to them, I don't feel bad about it.

[June]

Honestly, I wouldn't care. Prices of almost everything (imported) here are at least twice than in the US (eg. basic $5 pony is at least $10 and I've seen playsets go for about $70). And if I order something online there are massive shipping costs and/or 25% tax.
I was browsing what would be craigslist equivalent and there were lots of 4-5 mlp fakies + a random G3 or G3.5 for sale for $10-15. Seriously... Or newborn cuties listed for $15 also...
I won't mention how overpriced ponies can be on eBay.

I don't want to sound rude, but I don't care about "ethics" because I'm constanty overpaying things (sometimes by choice, but usually because I don't have one). If I were to sell something, I'd stick to the real value of the item. If I saw a Mimic for $1 I'd get her without even thinking about it.

[brightberry]

If it's a business... then no.  They don't have any problem selling you something for 3x what they paid if they know you'll buy it for that amount.    They wouldn't still be in business if they didn't.  For people selling their old stuff, it simply depends on if they're friendly and seem nice.

But I guess if they only plan to sell during a one day yard sale where the goal is mainly to get rid of old stuff, I doubt they're going to find a buyer for a fairly priced Mimic.  In order to have a garage sale where I live, you have to buy a permit so one of the main goals is to make enough money to at least cover that.  A lot of things could be under priced just for that reason.

[Haruna]

Thanks for the thoughts, guys. I guess maybe it depends on the situation -- whether the seller is a career seller who should have looked up the value of what they were selling, or whether the seller is an individual, like a fellow collector or garage sale person or even a kid, who just needs to make some money. I think in the latter case I'd try to offer to pay more for their pony if it was rare, at least as much as I could at the time. Your responses have given me lots of food for thought.

[Greylady]

As far as charity shops go, I tend to give a few extra Euro with each purchase anyway. I've only ever found one piece of pony merchandise myself in a charity shop which was one of the storybooks that was being sold for a Euro I think, so I gave them a few more Euro anyway. If it were just someone selling something at a garage sale or something I wouldn't have any problem getting a good deal on a pony. Though if it were in particularly nice condition and/or the seller was nice I'd probably give them a bit more.

[Stormness_1]

I've told market sellers to 'keep the change' if they were super nice or if their stuff was worth a bit more, but thrift here get their stuff for free too - and it's usually waay overpriced, so if I get something cheap, so be it!

[Pony Adventures]

In many cases, secondhand sellers are just trying to get rid of the items. It's easier to clear out space by giving away or selling cheap, so even if they do know a pony is worth more, it might not be worth their time to figure out how much more (or hold onto it until someone is actually willing to pay what it is worth).

The moral dilemma I always have is for new toys. Do I buy at the store locally so that my tax money actually stays in the community (to some extent, at least) or do I buy online? If I buy from the store, I take away the already limited supplies from children or other people who don't have the resources to buy online but, like I said, I keep tax dollars local. I prefer to buy in store because then I can choose the least-flawed one but I always feel extremely guilty.

EDIT: I will always back away in store if children are there but usually the your aisle is empty when I shop (late night).

[Ice Crystal]

I agree that it's up to the seller to research. Last year my friend found Rapunzel at a thrift store for a buck. She was in bad shape but she was still able to sell her for a pretty penny. If the owner had known, they could have sold her for as much and it was not my friend's responsibility to tell them (she didn't know the value of Rapunzel either haha, she was just looking for ponies, but even if she did).

[lovesbabysquirmy]

:/ Sorry, but I don't feel guilty when I get a good deal on a pony from a flea market or thrift store or something. It's nice when life throws you a bone once in a while. And I do kind of agree that it's a seller's responsibility to do their research. If you don't have the time to put into finding out what your pony is worth, that isn't your buyer's fault.

Pretty much this. 

[Roogna]

I wouldn't tell them ;p
of course, I usually see the opposite - common, baity to nice condition ponies being priced at a lot more than they're worth...I want to rescue them but I just can't

[ponycake]

When my uncle passed my mom got a lot of his things. Since he spent decades paralyzed his hobby was pretty much only collecting. It was hard for her to find out the values of his things especially on some specific items (like most were pretty normal priced but some were rare and not having anything to do with the stuff she didn't know what if any were rarer). When she started selling on Ebay, some man messaged her saying she priced some things that are worth a lot very low and told her what they go for. I thought that was very nice. She definitely needed the money at the time too.

[Sarah-Bee]

I don't think its any different than winning an auction which goes super low or snatching a BIN which is under priced on ebay - in all cases you are paying less than the pony is worth. If you see a Punzie for $50 on ebay, you are going to message the seller and suggest to them to times that price by 10? No, most people [myself included] would hit that BIN pretty quickly. It may sound harsh but its is up to a seller to work value and set their price. If they dont want to or dont have the time to research then that is their personal decision. If I sell something for buttons which is worth hundreds of $$ sure I would kick myself afterwards but at the same time I should have checked it out or made enquiries.

This.

There are things I wouldn't ever do like try to get a 'good deal' for myself by taking advantage of a new collector for example, or if someone were selling a pony for £10 (which is generally a lot at a flea market) that was worth a lot more than that, I would not barter down because usually ponies on flea markets are £1 or £2. If someone is selling something for a fixed price, even if I know the pony's true worth, they are obviously happy to get that for the pony and I won't feel bad for buying it. They could ask for more: they didn't. I found Indian Cotton Candy at a flea market for £2 and was ecstatic with my purchase. The seller was happy with the £20-ish I spent on her stall overall too.

[TinyShinyUnique]

I'm so glad that many of you state they would back off if children wanted ponies or that they would never take advantage of a newer collector. Not everyone is like that.

I just remembered that when I contacted one seller years ago, overjoyed that I had found my G2 grail at that time and told them I was so happy to have found that pony for sale and had named her as my grail. In the next message, the seller had asked for more $$ because I wanted that pony so much to make it that most wanted one for me. I think that was low and unfair and I still regret buying ever from that seller even though it got me a pony that I love. And yes, I overpaid.