Another great use for eBay that is often overlooked is to find the bottom value of an item at auction. We say bottom because that is what we tend to see when comparing values on eBay, but of course there are exceptions, so the key to using eBay for comparison-shopping is to follow multiple auctions. See if you can get a feel for a category of items. This will teach a lot about what it takes to sell these items successfully, and you don’t have to spend a penny to do it.

Since, in our opinion, eBay values for resale tend to be low, you can imagine that it presents quite a challenge to resellers. Low values means nothing if you are cleaning out your garage and everything you sell is basically found money. In cases like that you are simply liquidating stuff that is taking up too much space and you could care less about profit margins. But in cases where you are buying to resell at a profit, low resale value is never good news. This is another reason why advise exercising caution when jumping into reselling for profit. And don’t forget that the listings themselves cost money and are an expense, even if the items don’t sell.

If you really want the best data for comparison values, you might want to subscribe to eBay’s Market research, which allows you to check on things like average selling price of a particular item. They charge a small monthly fee for this service, but this can be critical information if you’re planning on purchasing an item for resell. You can see more details on this at:

http://pages.ebay.com/marketplace_research/detailed-comparison.html

Using eBay for comparison values is just one way to utilize the power eBay, whether you are buying items because you are simply looking for a bargain or whether you are looking to source items to resell at a profit later. We cover this subject in more depth in our “Making Money Using PoliceAuctions.com” Tutorial.

Our goal at PoliceAuctions.com is to provide you with a comprehensive product sourcing resource, everything from where to find items at government auctions to direct live streaming auctions on the site, whether you a consumer looking for a bargain or a reseller looking to source products with potential profit margins. Ebay will always remain relevant to our mix of product sourcing and it will always be a key resale channel for resellers, and since PoliceAuctions.com is dedicated to being “The Ultimate Source,” we will always cover eBay.