Brian:

So if you want to cover the PayPal fee, offer a discounted shipping for paying
in CASH, or place a minimum bid or reserve that is the total of your minimum
price plus the ebay/Paypal fees. I know, 2.9 percent seems a bit high for using
paypal, but I'd be willing to bet a large number of people with merchant
accounts that take credit cards directly are charged more than a fair bit over
2% for non-swiped Credit Card transactions...

Of course, PayPal has to take their pound of flesh. They started with the idea
they were going to get rich on the float... that is, they charge the buyer
immediately (by credit card or from their bank account), and it sits in the
PayPal bank account (or elsewhere) drawing interest until they have to pay the
seller. This can be nearly a month in some instances, and banks are well known
for making a ton of money on this "float" time. Well, things got interesting,
and their automated systems didn't cost all that much, but they needed a higher
gross to cover a number of problems with disputed transactions and such so they
added a cost to sellers that mimics what they would normally pay to a merchant
account provider if they took credit cards. Knowing the volumes they must have,
Paypal can't be paying over 2% for non-swiped CC transactions, so the other 0.9%
is for their "overhead and expenses". Sounds like I'm writing for them doesn't
it? Well, it's anything but the case, because if you look at the cost they have
of doing business when the transaction is a transfer from the buyer's checking
account, then you see where they are making their profit.

eBay started with a good idea, and have expanded from there. They are clearly
the most popular of the auction sites, and everyone else I've looked at is
charging nearly the same fees as they are. If I remember correctly, they bought
PayPal a while back, so they are making it on both sides now. However, if you
look at the alternatives, PayPal isn't all that bad to deal with, compared to
some other payment solutions. If you think PayPal is bad, look at Western Union
BidPay... They charge the buyer 2.95 for an $11 transaction, and $7.92 for a
$110 transaction, and the seller doesn't have to pay a discount... Sounds great
for the seller, but the buyer gets gouged pretty good.... Personally, I won't
bid on an auction that uses BidPay unless they accept company checks or postal
money order as payment. When selling, I accept credit cards directly (I have my
own merchant account, and the discount rate I pay is under 2%).

Good Luck
-_Rick

Brian Hill wrote:

Ebay is strange. They pulled my auction because I refered to my
Hallicrafters World Wide as being like the Zenith TOs. They called it Search
manipulation and also I stated in my auction that Pay Pal Pymts must include
their transaction fee which is 2.9 percent+ $0.30 USD and they said:

Quote:
Pay Pal Pymts must include their transaction fee which is 2.9 percent+ $0.30
USD.

The above text is a reference to an additional charge for bidders who pay by
credit card or a separate payment processing service. This surcharge, which
is an added cost to the buyer over and above the final sale price and
reasonable shipping and handling costs, is not permitted on eBay.

Additional charges that are an added cost to the bidder over and above the
final sale price are not permitted by eBay. Currently, the only fees that
may be added to the final price of an eBay item are reasonable shipping and
handling fees, escrow service fees, and certain currency exchange fees.
More information about these fees can be found at the bottom of the eBay
listing policies page:

I don't see why I have to be gouged twice by Ebay and PayPal for offering a
conveinant way to pay. Gezz only they can charge for everthing I guess? Like
buyers can't read and make up there own mind.

--
73 and good DXing.
Brian
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A lot of radios and 100' of rusty wire!
Zumbrota, Southern MN
Brian's Radio Universe
http://webpages.charter.net/brianehill/