When did Reverb overtake Ebay?

[Ox Han]

Except there's no evidence that Reverb has overtaken Ebay in any way - by any measure - beyond it seeming that way to some members (yet not by others) .

What measure do you want to see? eBay allows members to sell anything and reverb restricts items to only those that are music production & instrument and related.

eBay should have more overall sales because of this, but reverb could have more sales/listings for musical instruments and gear for recording equipment than eBay.

Not sure there’s a way to check other than searching for the same musical instrument or a related piece of gear on both sites and seeing which has more listings. I was just using conjecture and nothing factual as most people probably were on this site. I am Using my own personal experience as to why I use Reverb and not eBay

Guess you could look at their respective stocks

 

[dcrigger]

What measure do you want to see? eBay allows members to sell anything and reverb restricts items to only those that are music production & instrument and related.

eBay should have more overall sales because of this, but reverb could have more sales/listings for musical instruments and gear for recording equipment than eBay.

Not sure there’s a way to check other than searching for the same musical instrument or a related piece of gear on both sites and seeing which has more listings. I was just using conjecture and nothing factual as most people probably were on this site. I am Using my own personal experience as to why I use Reverb and not eBay

Guess you could look at their respective stocks

No I get it - I was just pointing that the thread thus far hasn't come up with anything to affirm that the title's assertion "When Did Reverb Overtake Ebay?" is true in the first place. The question isn't "when" when there's no consensus that they have.

That's all - I wasn't pressing you for proof - just stating the reason (the higher cost) may or may not be a factor - when rain, there's no evidence that Ebay has be "over taken".

 

[CAMDRUMS]

And that's why I don't sell on Reverb or Ebay anymore.

I wonder how long before the tax man figures out how to go after sellers on FB marketplace.

 

[David Hunter]

Plus now I will get a 1099 from them. Will not be long before all the other payment apps will have to do the same thing. Paypal, Zelle, etc.

They already do:

 

[Samir]

New here, but this is a really interesting discussion and since I've dealt with sales taxes and 1099s many times over the past few decades and thought I would share.

The sales taxes are only a recent feature because of the overturning of the ruling in Quill Corp v. North Dakota where before the loophole was no tax collection for sellers if you didn't have a physical presence in the state of the sale: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sales_taxes_in_the_United_States#Internet_transactions

But well before this ruling was overturned, states started implementing the 'use tax', which is a tax that kicks in if no sales taxes were paid for an item. In my experience, they usually went after new businesses after a few years and audited their purchases for sales tax payments and then hammered them if they found something didn't have sales or use tax paid. In addition, some states like Illinois require a use tax declaration and payment on the state income tax return, which I'm sure they'll also use for audits.

Bottom line is that there is a sales tax on anything sold by a retailer with a business license, even used stuff. And I haven't researched it, but I'm sure somewhere out there there might be some case law where the taxing of used goods has been challenged. But I think as long as we have to pay sales taxes on purchasing a used automobile, other used goods will still get taxed just to keep things uniform and easy to implement/regulate.

So what about the 1099s? Well, when the 'market place' sites became the tax collectors, they also became the seller--which they pretty much were anyways since they collected the money (as previously mentioned--consignment). So if they are the seller, your item is 'inventory' that they acquire when they pay you for it, and any vendors that get payments exceeding a certain number are supposed to be given a 1099. So that's why if you sell a lot of stuff with a certain marketplace, you'll get hit with a 1099. But if you stay under this threshold by using different marketplaces (or sell direct by setting up your own operation where you collect the payments as well as remit sales tax), you won't have to deal with a 1099.

All this stuff is known as 'the cost of doing business' aka 'overhead', but has made its way into something as simple as selling a set of drums on online since such sales have become much more prevalent thanks to the Internet.

 

[gretschdrummer]

Anytime someone buys a company it's because they think they can extract blood from the turnip. Company buyers aren't builders, they're leaches.

perhaps they bought it to lose money
But I’m not sure

 

[mebeatee]

I’m lazy....I just take stuff to my local music store to sell (or trade) on consignment. I know he lists on reverb and that’s ok because I don’t have to worry about the “paperwork”, shipping et al. The store makes a little loot as so do I...good all around. There is also a great drum store in the nearby big city that I have taken many spare parts and “ vintage“ hardware to so they can have an “inventory”. Better than sitting in a box in my basement, and me wading through online “tire kickers”. They....the specialty drum store...can deal with folks looking for a ‘63 Camco parallel strainer unit for example.
I have no sympathy for anyone who is in the business of “flipping” gear and then complaining. It bothers me when someone posts here about a fantastic acquisition they scored....then folks immediately chime in with are you going to sell/flip it, or they say outright that it was bought to flip. If that’s what folks want to do then fine but don’t bitch when yer ass gets bitten.
If you don’t like what you see on the online selling sites then don’t use them. There’s a big world outside of the internet ya know....
bt

 

[Samir]

perhaps they bought it to lose money
But I’m not sure

That happens too. 'Some people just want to watch the whole world burn'.

 

[ChicagoDave]

I wonder how long before the tax man figures out how to go after sellers on FB marketplace.

Not long. I don't sell there either.

 

[Rich K.]

But the platform allows and in fact requires it now through their strongarm policies.

What strong-arm policies?

 

[swarfrat]

Allowing buyers to return without cause. Period. Let alone for extended times.

 

[Rich K.]

That's not the worst - what's more egregious is that I paid tax when I bought it, and am now taxed again when I sell it.

The taxes you paid when you bought it were sales taxes collected by your state.
The taxes you pay when you sell something are income taxes. Completely different stuff...

 

[Rich K.]

Allowing buyers to return without cause. Period. Let alone for extended times.

Strong arm policies would imply you're forced to sell your goods through them. You're not. Ebay is not a right, or a utility. Louis CK did a bit about folks feeling entitled to stuff that was just created. The internet, especially places like eBay, reverb, easy gave thousand (millions?) of folks and opportunity to easily sell "stuff" for relatively very low fees. Many of you seem to not remember how you used to sell stuff...
You could take out ads in newspapers that cost a lot in relation to how many people would see them. You had to pay whether or not stuff sold. You could sell on consignment or at auctions with fees at least 20-25%.
Now, you can eat a gummy and sell your cowbell for what you bought for used...it takes a minute and you pay 13% if it sells.
Waaa....

 

[swarfrat]

The taxes you paid when you bought it were sales taxes collected by your state.
The taxes you pay when you sell something are income taxes. Completely different stuff...

Except it's not income

 

[Ox Han]

Except it's not income

Correct. He said it’s sales tax. Only the buyer pays sales tax and reverb collects it separately. The seller does not have sales tax deducted from their take.

You aren’t legally required to file the 1099 you receive for selling something you own at a loss. Reverb must give you a 1099 for going over your states threshold, or the federal threshold. Reverb does not know if it is income for you or not. (This is a tax law and not politics.)

Example; the federal threshold that requires reverb to give me a 1099 if I sell $20k of goods or 200 transactions in a calendar year. However, I live in Virginia and the state threshold is $600 in a calendar year. Now Reverb have to give me a 1099.

What concerns me, as I said, is that none of my sales were income as I sold my own stuff. But, I sold a lot of stuff. A lot of good stuff and I’m concerned that selling over $10k in stuff and not needing to file will trigger an audit because of that amount.

Maybe not… I dunno

 

[Rich K.]

Except it's not income

Whenever you sell something, it's taxable income.

 

[Ox Han]

Whenever you sell something, it's taxable income.

It is not income if you sell your own stuff and get less than you paid for it

 

[Rich K.]

It is not income if you sell your own stuff and get less than you paid for it

Yeah, it is...
But if you're selling stuff, you can deduct the stuff you buy as an expense. An account can handle the amortization.

 

[Ox Han]

Yeah, it is...
But if you're selling stuff, you can deduct the stuff you buy as an expense. An account can handle the amortization.

Hopefully someone in here is a CPA, but If you sell your stuff for less than you bought it then it is a loss and there is not profit or income to pay taxes on in the first place

 

[Rich K.]

Hopefully someone in here is a CPA, but If you sell your stuff for less than you bought it then it is a loss and there is not profit or income to pay taxes on in the first place

It's a loss when you declare what you paid for it as an expense.