Want to understand

[littlesteppers]

You are putting a horse for sale up on the salesboard (thanks ML ;-))

and within a few hrs you got tons of replies. So you start mailing pictures and pictures and information and pedigrees. One says..I COMMIT..will mail downpayment. Fine. you tell everybody "SOLD"

Still want more pictures..every angle possible. You make a contract and mail it.

Now 9 days later..there comes this email. Sorry can't afford her. :no:

By now your other potenial buyers have bought somewhere else. Nobody gonna wait around.

How can we avoid this ?????????????Why do people act before they think? I think it is very WRONG.

Can you tell I am irritated? :bgrin

 

[Suzie]

Well I may get flamed for this response...but I do not consider a horse "sold" anymore to ANYONE until the d/p is in my Paypal account, or the check clears the bank or the contract to purchase comes back in the mail -SIGNED with a MO. Flame suit on-Flame away. I am nearly flame proof on this subject by now. And don't EVEN ask for the paperwork until that LAST check CLEARS MY BANK...Been there too....People no where to be found OR the horse.....

It is a first come/first served world. And not an honest one.... Sad but true.

I too have been "burned" way too many times. "Please hold this horse until my tax refund" does not do it for me anymore. Sometimes I want to email back- Which YEAR tax refund? If I still have the horse and you have money in hand, then contact me -or take a short term loan out if you really want this horse.

If I want to purchase a horse, the d/p is on the way to the seller immediately. If I change my goofy mind later, well, I am just out the d/p I guess. Believe me, I don't change my mind very often.....

And I do try and tell the seller if I have asked a million questions and decide the horse is not right for me, that I have decided to pass. I think this is just being polite. And I appreciate it if people do me the same way.

I guess that is why you see so many ads about "no tire kickers" need apply!! LOL!

 

[Mona]

I sure don't blame you at all for being irritated!! Maybe next time in a similar situation, explain to them that since you ran an ad and are getting several inquiries, that you cannot hold the horse for more than 3 days. They could wire or PayPal the money....a deposit anyway, to hold the horse until they can get the contract returned to you if they are that interested. (You could email the contract and have them print it out to send back.

Also, keep emails from other interested parties in case something like this happens, and then you can at least let them know if they have not found something in the meantime, that the deal fell theough and she is once again available.

 

[ChrystalPaths]

I go with the old time thought: A horse isn't sold til you have the money. A downpymt even is good. I have never considered a horse sold til then. I'm so sorry this happened Christine. It does make the blood boil. Relist! Could be the others will still be interested! Did you keep any of the previous inquiries?

 

[Sue_C.]

Yep...done that - n - bought the "T" shirt. Surely does make one ticked...

What I do now, is tell other inquiring minds, that there is a sale pending...and take names and numbers. Then, should the down payment not happen...I call the other potential buyers back and let them know.

:

 

[sedeh]

I don't consider it sold until at least a deposit has been received! I guess you could let other potential buyers know that you have a sale pending and their #? on the list.

 

[Lisa-Ruff N Tuff Minis]

Well I do say I need a deposit with in X amount of days and it is pretty easy to tell others pending sale and keep there info.. if they have found another horse in a matter of 48 hours odds are they would have not bought yours anyway

I have been on the other side as well - when a seller backs out of the deal nothing I really stress to much over either way.. guess I just figure wasnt meant to be

 

[littlesteppers]

Thanks guys..like I said I did take emails and safed them..BUT these people moved on..and can't blame them.

What gets me is WHY reply and commit..you KNOW the price..you know you gotto have the horse shipped BEFORE you reply..just trying to find a way so this will be avoided all together..

I am just glad I didn't have vet cost for the health papers and so on..

I feel better that it happened to others as well..guess missery loves company..LOL

:

 

[Firefall]

I've had the same thing happen. Now what I do is give the info to everyone that asks, letting them know that a down payment from someone is expected, but will add them to a list if they still want the horse and the down payment doesn't come.

 

[Marty]

Christine, I had Knight Star "sold" at two weeks old to what I considered a perfect home. The people told their children and got them very excited and they counted the days till weaning, and called me several times a week for months to see how he was doing and I was emailing pictures as he grew. They made two trips down here from up north for visitation and basic handling lessons. The children referred to him as their horse, told all their friends and relatives. I was waiting a good while till after weaning to allow shipping and when the time finally came, the daddy changed his mind two days before the shipper was to arrive here, because he was unexpectedly being assigned to do a tour in Iraq.

This tied me up with that colt for 6 months and yes I did miss out on other customers, having told everyone that he was sold.

After that, I put him back up on the market and received many responses and also one bad deposit check after another and people changing thier minds and jerking me around and changing and their stories left and right and I'm wore out with it.

I just want a good home for the horse and can't see what that is so hard to do, but apparently it is.

I'm glad that I don't "have" to sell horses unless I want to or I'd be up the creek with no paddle.

Why is it so easy for me to buy, and so hard to sell ???

I'm probably not going to breed anyone this year.

 

[Jean_B]

I'm from the school of "SHOW ME THE MONEY, HONEY" and don't consider it sold until I have some of that green stuff in my hands. If someone says "I'll take it" I immediately ask for a phone number (by the way, I never never never send a contract unless they give me their phone number...I call them...and get a sense on the phone of just how serious they are, and how "qualified" they are to actually own any living thing, much less one of my horses). If they aren't willing to give me a phone number -- they don't get my horse. Period. If they have a phobia about talking on the phone -- that's their problem, not mine. I want to get a feeling about who I'm dealing with. How much they know about horses, what they want it for, etc. Emails do not give you any sense of that.

While I have that contract out there I do NOT mark the horse "sale pending" because there are a lot of bozos out there, though after talking to them on the phone I only once ran into a bozo. If I get any inquiries - I tell them I have a pending contract but if it falls thru will get back to them and answer all of their questions, because you just never know.

My contracts have a "drop dead" date - If I don't get it back, signed and with the down payment -- it is null and void and I start contacting everyone who had expressed an interest.

 

[ChrystalPaths]

My contracts have a "drop dead" date - If I don't get it back, signed and with the down payment -- it is null and void and I start contacting everyone who had expressed an interest.

I love this! Another thing I like is using PayPal....instant deposit!

Marty, I'd take your Knight Star in a NY minute but I'm honest enough to say I am plum broke honey. I can still love him for the pretty guy he is. The right mommy will come around when fate says so.

 

[Suzie]

[The right mommy will come around when fate says so.

Exactly Debs! That is my viewpoint too..... :bgrin

I am a "fate will intervene" person. Things turn out for the best- regardless of how I think they should have gone...

 

[capall beag]

This happened to me last year with my colts!

I was really mad! took a month for the mother to tell me she couldn't afford it........or hubby wouldn't pay fotr them!!!!!!

I was very mad!

Her poor little girl was crushed!!!!!

Soooooooo irresponsible!

Sorry it happened to you, it is both annoying and upsetting.

 

[ChrystalPaths]

[The right mommy will come around when fate says so.

Exactly Debs! That is my viewpoint too..... :bgrin

I am a "fate will intervene" person. Things turn out for the best- regardless of how I think they should have gone...

YOUBETCHA Suzie, just look at you and the Glow boy!!! Couldn't ask for a better mommy (and daddy) for him!

 

[Suzie]

I for one am a sucker for children. I get really upset if the adult uses the "child" as a way to make you hold a horse. I had a dad string me along for 3 months last year on a colt his daughter "Loved"...the d/p was in the mail, then it would be sent next week, then first of the month, then something came up unexpectedly....yada, yada, until I finally said, ENOUGH, the horse is back for sale. Then he had the nerve to guilt trip me on it. Broke his daughter's heart. Nope, HE broke his daughter's heart by not buying the horse, not me. Grrr......

 

[littlesteppers]

I for one am a sucker for children. I get really upset if the adult uses the "child" as a way to make you hold a horse. I had a dad string me along for 3 months last year on a colt his daughter "Loved"...the d/p was in the mail, then it would be sent next week, then first of the month, then something came up unexpectedly....yada, yada, until I finally said, ENOUGH, the horse is back for sale. Then he had the nerve to guilt trip me on it. Broke his daughter's heart. Nope, HE broke his daughter's heart by not buying the horse, not me. Grrr......

Yah know that happened to me too..even worse.. :new_shocked: it was a handicapped child..and than after I had it ..2 payments than 6 month nothing..I did NOT refund the payments as stated in the contract that she signed..she told me I STOLE from her handicapped child!!

 

[Chamomile]

Oh yes! I've had this happen too! I've since decided to not make any hastey remarks until the deposit is in my hands. BUT I had a gal mail me a deposit of $1000, then start himming and hawing around and the next thing you know I get a nasty email saying that the horse isn't what she wanted after all, it's not a case of buyers remorse (yea right!!) and she felt that there was something fishy going on.... She found a horse registered with AMHA with a similar name, different farm, different pedigree, but she was sure there was some "funny business" going on. I had been talking with this woman for a month on the phone, nearly every day!!!! I couldn't believe what I was reading. Of course I instantly got on the phone, but couldn't get her to pick up. Finally I get a call back, from her husband. He tries to read me the riot act, these people don't know anything about horses and have actually been lying to me from the get go! I finally just sent back the deposit and put the horse back on the market. It was a HORRIBLE experience and one I hope to never go through again. I got a lot of flack from friends for sending back a NON REFUNDABLE deposit, but these people were CRAZY! I was concerned that things would get out of hand and I can't afford a lawyer. So now I ask for refrences and don't mark a horse sold until I have the FULL amount in my pocket

: I hate to feel this way, but there are some wacko people out there and one must protect ones self...

 

[Joyce]

Sorry Christine that you had that happen to you but sadly it does happen more often than we realize.

Joyce

 

[dannigirl]

I don't consider a horse sold until a deposit is made (and check cleared) and an agreement is signed that states exact dates for future payments and when (or if) they will get posession of the horse and what happens if or when they are late with payments. I make sure everything is in the contract that they sign and if there is more than one adult involved, I get all signatures. If someone looks at a horse and says they will be back or be in touch, I give them only 48 hours and then the horse is fair game. I will, however contact them if someone else becomes interested if they so request for a week or so.

Forgot to add that we also decide what will happen to the deposit in various situations and put that in the contract as well as how much of the payments they will get back if something happens ect.