Best Time to sell my M8

[oxtagone]

hello

I have an M8 I want to sell on Ebay. I know the M8 prices have gone up. However, I see some new ones are still selling for the old price.

When would be the best time to sell my camera and get the best price. Should I wait until all of the old stock is gone? I was thinking of selling right after thanksgiving; that's when most people shop for x-mas. Also, should I expect to make money, since I paid less than the current $5,400.00 price tag?

I could really use everyone help.

[marknorton]

Don't know about the US, but here they are pretty much available ex-stock, so there has to be some daylight between your price and the new price - and that's before any warranty transfer issues are taken into account. I'd be surprised if you made any profit on it.

[hankg]

Used digicams sell at steeper discounts then used lenses as so much more can go wrong with them. The price rise will help but don't expect to get back what you paid. Based on recent sales on eBay figure between $4100 - $4400.

[jaapv]

afaik used prices hover around the 4000-4500$ mark...
Although, with the way the $ is going, I wouldnt be surprised if the M8 hit the 7500$ next year.
But isn't it better used to take photoraphs with it than to try and use it as an investment?

[j. borger]

Originally Posted by jaapv

afaik used prices hover around the 4000-4500$ mark...
Although, with the way the $ is going, I wouldnt be surprised if the M8 hit the 7500$ next year.

There are several places where you can get a new one for just under Euro 40000 .....
I think the M8 is not the kind of a camera to buy 2nd hand .... defenetely not for just a couple of 100 Euros below new price ....
Let's face it you will always sell a M8 with a loss, the same holds for new bought lenses.....

[Shootist]

The real question is why are you selling it? And then why did you buy it in the first place.

You won't get what you paid for it. Good luck.

[vieri]

Originally Posted by j. borger

There are several places where you can get a new one for just under Euro 40000 .....

...I surely hope so! 40.000 euro sounds quite a lot even for a Leica

[ptomsu]

I would never buy a used one if the price difference would not be at least 1/3 below the price for a new one.

And I never ever would buy via ebay - too many negaitve experiences I made.

Just my 5c!

[oxtagone]

I am selling it because I need to purchase Medium Format Digital Equipment, and I cannot afford to own both.

I want to know if you all think I should sell it now or hold on to it until after all the old stock is gone and all the new cameras are all selling for $5,400.00 and up?

[Bernd Banken]

Originally Posted by oxtagone

I am selling it because I need to purchase Medium Format Digital Equipment, and I cannot afford to own both.

I want to know if you all think I should sell it now or hold on to it until after all the old stock is gone and all the new cameras are all selling for $5,400.00 and up?

This new price is some kind of dream of Leica. In Cologne/Germany there are M8 for under 4.000,-- € on the shelf of a big retailer. The market doesn't accept this increase, sorry....

[photolandscape]

I want to know if you all think I should sell it now or hold on to it until after all the old stock is gone and all the new cameras are all selling for $5,400.00 and up?[/quote]

I sold a chrome body on Ebay for $4,150 that was in beautiful shape, but had about 9,000 exposures under its belt. I wanted a black one, which I couldn't get when they came out originally, and bought one in near mint condition for $3,550, and it only had 400 exposures. So deals can be had, but rarely.

Ebay is always dicey. In 300 transactions, I have been burned 2X. But overall it's works, even though their fees and Pay Pal fees have become almost obscene. Right now there are lots of M8's on Ebay, mostly demos from Kurland Photo. I would wait til they clear out just after Thanksgiving, then list yours and try to capitalize on the holiday season and see what happens. Definitely set the reserve price at the lowest amount you can accept, and be sure to establish what the shipping will cost--to insure an M8 and ship by 2nd day air can easily cost $75+.

Good luck.

[jamriman]

I think the days of making a buck on new or used M8s are gone. Just my 2 cents.

[sdai]

I've seen these M8 demo on eBay for more than a month now ... and they're not selling, they've listed more than 10 cameras I think, sold 2 or 3 maybe ... before the price fix, brandnew M8 with full warranty was (at one time) available in Japan for merely 3800 US.

[johnwolf]

Carlos,

Did you consider selling it on Amazon? All the M8s there now are at the new price and there are no used listed. Even a high used price would stand out.

I sell frequently on Amazon. They take a bigger cut than Ebay, but sale prices seem higher. I think many buyers will pay a little more to avoid the auction experience, especially for large ticket items.

You could list it high and see what happens. Then lower the price if you want. Or switch to Ebay when the new M8 price becomes universal.

John

[jaapv]

Originally Posted by Bernd Banken

This new price is some kind of dream of Leica. In Cologne/Germany there are M8 for under 4.000,-- € on the shelf of a big retailer. The market doesn't accept this increase, sorry....

Hmmm... 4000 Euro is approx 5800$ So that is about correct. The dollar is pressing the euro-price down at the moment. I'm sure a price-hike in the USA is imminent. Not just for Leica.

[sdai]

Is Costco a Leica dealer?

Apparently they accept returns for full refund in one year, I didn't know about this till I read a hot thread on dpreview in which a guy returned his one year old 5D for all money back with no hassles.

[pekem]

Originally Posted by oxtagone

I am selling it because I need to purchase Medium Format Digital Equipment, and I cannot afford to own both.

You are surely going to lose money whichever way. Selling on eBay is an option but sadly it may not be as smooth as you would wish because Leica in common with other items bearing prestige names will attract the scammers. Add to that the fact that Leica buyers on the whole are buyers with a good deal of knowledge of the equipment and for that reason they will have a good idea of values. As said elsewhere the fees of both eBay and PayPal are very high indeed and difficult to avoid.
As an alternative I would be inclined to investigate the possibility of trading the M8 with the retailer of the medium format equipment, cutting my losses and getting the camera I really want.

[egibaud]

I sincerely hope that you will NOT make profit!!!!

I can understand that you do not want to lose money.

But if your goal is to make profit, go and purshase some gold / euro bills / play on the stock market. But PLEASE leave us free of speculations!!!!!

Some people like me waited months to get an M8 not because of a lack of money, simply no stock at that time. So if you bought for speculation purpose while other could have used your camera, please stay on eBay and do not bother us here.

And if you bought your M8 to make pictures why do you speak about profit????? only NOT losing money is an ethical way of seeing things!

Eric

[jrc]

E-bay can be a pain, but browsing can be interesting...I notice that there is a 135mm hot-shoe mounted silver Nikon viewfinder listed with one of the M8s; bet that would work great with a Leica 90mm...it's small, too, and the current bid is only around $11. And it looks to me, from a quick browse, that you can get some pretty minty M8s, both black and silver, for less than $4500 US. They can't all be crooks...and that's less than 3100 euros...


JC

[jamriman]

When they first came out and were scarce you can ebay a used one (demo) for going price. I for one still have mine and will only sell it when the M9 is released.