Auction Power Guide

do i need a credit card or any other information too? thanks. any tips would be great!

Hi, yes you do need to have an account with them in order to sell or even buy on ebay. Don’t worry it doesn’t cost anything to have the account. You do have to set up a credit card with them for purchases and decide if you want to accept your payment via paypal (which could then be transferred to your bank account; though this takes up to 4 days to do). You can also accept checks or money orders as payments but paypal is much faster.
When you do list your items for sale it’s best if you have a picture uploaded of what you are selling and that you put in the best possible description. You should also note if the item is new or used and what its condition is. Then you pick a starting price or buy it now price. If the item sells they will charge a small fee on top of what they charge to list the item. If it does not sell you can relist it and if it sells the second time they will not charge you to relist it. You also have to state how you are going to ship the item and what you are charging for shipping (must be based on weight and distance). If you do take paypal for payments they will also charge a small fee when receiving the funds. If you have any other questions feel free to email me.

Are these expenses normal or am I paying too much? I sold a camera for $1477. Ebay charged a fee of $62, paypal charged a fee of $58 and the shipping was $18. Is there a way to bypass or lower the paypal fee?

That is high but its all in your agreement. Ebay used to allow people to accept checks and money orders and not to offer paypal. This is no longer the case, they will only let you use paypal if you choose to sell on ebay. There is just too much money to be paid for them. Also beware, if your buyer chooses to open a dispute after receiving the camera, paypal WILL side with him and refund him the money. I sold a 3k bike frame on ebay. Buyer opened a claim saying that its not what he ordered, mailed me back a kids bycicle frame instead. Since paypal had proof of delivery, they went ahead and refunded him the money.