References on selling

[Sherry]

Normally my policy is the horse stays on the property until paid in full but I try to take it on a case by case as well to try and please the buyer if possible. Buyers are sometimes wanting the horse right away so they can actually start showing the horse which of course is a win win situation for marketing your farm as well and getting the horse out in the ring. Sometimes mares are wanting to be shipped so they can breed to their stallion in a timely manner, bred mares can be too close to delivery if you wait till paid in full etc.... so if I decide on the rare occassion to let one go before they are paid in full here is my question.....What are your experiences on getting referrals? FIRST OFF LET ME SAY I ALWAYS GET A SIGNED CONTRACT THAT COVERS ALMOST EVERYTHING REMOTELY POSSIBLE AND I SCREEN FOR EVERYTHING REMOTELY POSSIBLE THRU COMMUNICATIONS AND RESEARCHING OTHER PEOPLE THAT MIGHT KNOW THEM PERSONALLY etc....so if you will please limit your input/opinions on the referral part it won't be redundant to something I already do. After every possible angle has been covered I find the one thing I don't do that I possibly could is ask for referrals. So wanted to put it out to you guys if that has helped you in the past and how?

My thought process on this is if someone asked me for a reference I have tons that would give me nothing but glowing reviews because that is how I do business. If I had one or two bumps in the road I certainly wouldn't give you that reference because in my mind I already did the right/honorable thing and it would be a discrepancy on what the buyer expected verses what they got which was either out of my control or I saw things differently and wasn't willing to comprise for whatever reasons etc... but if I was the type of person that didn't conduct business in the utmost fashion then I certainly would be giving you references that were "willing" to say how "glowing" I was so I don't see what the point is...but then feel like the person buying my not think I care about the horse (so not true!!) The above is not reflected on any incident what so ever. All of mine to date that I have let go early have turned out totally 100% great in regards to paying out the contract but everytime I get asked to release early I go thru this process. I feel as comfortable with it upfront as any of us could or I wouldn't agree to it but I know that is still a 50/50 and I have been lucky so far that all of them have worked out.

But if someone sheds some light on something I haven't thought of or give experiences where it really helped then I could start incorporating that into my process. I just didn't want it to go like this:

A. ask for referral

B. received "glowing" referral

C. didn't come into play because said buyer was that type of person to do right by contract anyway

D. the "glowing" reference was of no help because I just got thrown under the bus. LOL

Also any other ideas you can think of....some of my concern stems from this very forum where it is quite frequently stated you wouldn't do business with so and so for totally legit reasons and I know you don't want to bad mouth the person on the forum but leaves me wondering who I need to stay away from and no way to find out their names except pm some stranger who may think I am just trying to be nosey, start trouble etc....when all I would really do with that info is tuck it in the back of my brain for future reference if that person tried to buy a horse and then have it come into play. I do not just cross them off my list as there are two sides to every story. And to be honest I am in the dark about alot of show people because I choose not to listen to the gossip until I know first hand or from someone I REALLY trust and respect.

Sorry so long just wanted to cover all the points

 

[MiLo Minis]

Isn't selling live animals, that you truly care for, tons of fun?! :bgrin I don't usually ask the person themselves for references. I ask them lots of questions and find out where they are from and who they might know that I know. Thats the greatest part about the internet - the world has gotten so much smaller! Like you mentioned they can give you their handpicked references that mean nothing. But if you find out where they are from you can email people you know in the area and ask about them - you are much more likely to get truthful responses that way.

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[Becky]

I've learned the hard way not to let a horse leave my property until paid in full. :no: References just don't matter if the buyer decides to stop paying!!!!

I'm more than willing to work out flexible terms, but the horse [SIZE=18pt]stays here [/SIZE] until paid for.

 

[PaintNminis]

I won't let the Horse leave intel he/she is Paid For JMO

 

[Katiean]

You can get a background and credit check on anyone for $19.95. If they owe a lot when they take the horse. That way you know if they pay their bills. If they do you would most likely get paid. But with the cost of showing, and that is the reason for taking the horse before it is paid for, Then why can't they afford to pay cash?

 

[Minimor]

Like Lori I don't ask the buyer for references. I know that whomever it is will not be giving me the name of anyone that will give a bad reference. Knowing that the references given will be glowing ones, there is then no way to tell which of those are "real" and which are simply good friends that are lying through their teeth. So, I find out where the person is located, then hopefully know someone in the same area that knows the person--or even someone out of the area but still knows the person & may have done business with her/him.

I had someone wanting to buy one horse, and I just had this feeling...so I phoned someone I know that I was sure knew the person in question, and asked for her opinion. Care of the horse wasn't an issue from what she'd ever seen of the person's horses, but money definitely was. She said get your money up front, as she'd had issues in trying to collect from the person in the past--lots of disconnected/changed phone numbers, changed addresses, changed barns for boarding horses--just things that runs up the red flag. Not a suitable home IMO.

I don't tell people I'm going to check up on them, but if they were to ask I would freely admit it. I'm perfectly comfortable with a seller doing the same with me.

 

[Betty B]

Even with a glowing reference the horse stays here until paid for. No exceptions. Just good safe business. It is nice to be able to get a good reference on someone if possible but it isn't always possible. Sometimes i think things just go bad from miss understandings too.

 

[lvponies]

I really wish there was a place where buyers/sellers could post their experiences, both good and bad. Unless you know someone that knows the person you're dealing with, alot of times you're just out of luck with finding out the truth about someone. Sometimes the "word" is out there, but unless you're in the "know" you may be totally clueless. It makes it hard to know who to trust and who to run away from as fast as you can.

:

 

[disneyhorse]

I have purchased and sold many, many horses on payments and never had a seller hold a horse until it was paid in full. I actually TRY to get this arrangement so I can have LOTS of references from sellers that I'm always prompt with payments or pay off early!

That said, if you are nervous or can't get many references I would hold the horse until paid off in full.

I would charge board though!

Andrea

 

[Lisa-Ruff N Tuff Minis]

I have bought almost all my horses on payments and all are home (and insured) before being paid off.

I sell almost all of my horses on payments and all go home before being paid in full.

I know there are a few bad apples out there but I find most people are good and those that arent word does get around fast.

 

[horsehug]

I too have sold many horses on payments and let the horse go before being paid off.

And I always got paid.

But then in my experiences in life, most people have been trustworthy. I know it is not always that way but it has been in my life. I think I tend to do it because I want to treat others the way I want to be treated....... which is with trust.

Susan O.

 

[Sherry]

Thanks everyone for your responses. We need a "Plays nice list" and a "Doesn't play nice list"

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[Reble]

I believe you get to know the breeders in your area, and word of mouth is your best advertising.

Does not take long to know who to buy and sell too in our area. :bgrin

Small world, and over the internet have been very lucky, just have a good instinct when talking with people.

As for letting a horse go without full payment never never never. Too many things can happen. Can never cover them all. :new_shocked:

 

[Katiean]

I won't even take a personal check. I sold some fur rabbits and was paid with a personal check. After they got home with the rabbits they put a stop payment on the check. I sold a Throughbred Hunter/Jumper. I dropped him off at the farm. Picked up the check and went strait to the bank the check it was drawn on. After I was informed the check was no good because there was not enough in the account. I went back to the farm and their child was saddling the horse. I told her to take her saddle off of MY horse and put him back in MY trailer. The father then went and took the money out of the savings and brought me cash. I am not saying that everyone does this. But, I have too much invested to play games.

 

[R3]

I prefer to let the buyer take the horse with them, IF I am already comfortable with selling to them on payments, and I have checked out their references. However, I would want proof of insurance, with me as the beneficiary though if the horse was very valuable.

I would want references. I agree that if you ask for 'personal' references, that you would only be given 'friends' or people that had good experiences with them. That wouldn't give you names of people that they have had problems with. I would want non-biased references. I would especially want the name of their vet. The vet is a professional and should tell you the truth about the person, since their reputation is at stake. Also, their feed store might be a good non-biased reference. With those two references, I would know that the horse had good veterinary care, and that they did indeed provide feed for their animals. I guess if it was a person buying their first horse, these references wouldn't work though.

I am interested in how a person gets a credit-check done on someone. That sounds like a great idea, but how do you do it?

 

[Gena]

I have sold a few horses with a payment plan set up and so have a lot of my friends, I would take half down and set up monthly payments for the remainder. Everyone I chose to do this with were on time with their payments except for one couple. IME the people I entrusted to do this with really appreciated it and my trusting them and were excellent with their payments.