why are used glock prices more than new?

Like the title says, why are the classifieds flooded with used Glocks with prices that are above retail? Am I missing something?

Lots of people try to recover what they paid at retail. Typically glocks sell pretty well at 400-500 depending on condition.

You're missing the 50+ threads on this topic already.
Why? Because it's a free market. Don't like the price, move on to the next one. If it's a current gun that I can buy in a store, I usually do. It's usually less hassle all around.

It's a waste of people's time and crowds up the classifieds. People that are actually serious about buying one click on the ad, only to find that they could buy it cheaper in the store at full price.

I have a lot of hobbies, and guns are the only one where this kind of pricing nonsense exists with no explanation other than "I can ask whatever I want for it"

It makes me wonder if they are trying to sell to people with criminal records who otherwise wouldn't be able to purchase a gun

Then send a message to the people with guns for sale and ask them. The rest of us really have no control over them.

Enough said

757ian123 -
First, welcome to the site and community! What you've noticed and commented on is something that has been observed and debated many times over the years on this site (and others). Please don't feel like there are no good deals or that, the overwhelming majority of people on here are anything less than honest, hardworking, stand-up men and women who want to pursue their hobby and follow the law. If you stick with us for a few months, Im confident that you'll find whatever you are looking for here on Tinder VA Gun Trader if you stick around for a while! If you're looking for a special Glock, but can't seem to find one priced the way you want, I encourage you to create a Want to Buy post with your requirements.

Second, in regards to a point you brought up in your post,


That's quick leap to a baseless conclusion, imho. Maybe let the data tell the story before throwing felonious accusations around - look at the number of bumps (which equates to time on market) overpriced guns get before they are sold compared to the number of bumps fairly priced guns get before they are sold. I think you'll see that actual sales (not just asking prices) are driven by fairly priced, well described, and well photographed posts. We all see overpriced guns listed here and a few reasons that I've noticed personally for this are:

- Misinformed sellers who don't really know what the fair market value of their firearm is.
- Sellers basing their asking price on what they paid for their gun. E.g. - during times of political uncertainty, demand increases faster than supply, so if a seller purchased during a time like this, they could have paid considerably more than today's 'new' price.
- Sellers wanting to get the full value they paid from a gun because of the belief that firing a gun even several hundred times, in some cases, does not appreciably reduce the usefulness, reliability, or lifespan of a gun.
- Sellers wanting to get money back on all the accessories and 'upgrades' they have purchased.
- Sellers being emotionally attached to their gun.
- Seller really wants to trade into something else, but would consider a cash offer if it was high enough, but this site is not an auction/best offer site, so seller may put a high cash price to increase the value of both the cash and trade offers they receive.
- There are normal economic conditions at work as as well - sometimes new guns are not available to purchase locally or online - this enables sellers to ask more.

It makes me wonder if they are trying to sell to people with criminal records who otherwise wouldn't be able to purchase a gun. (quoted from above)

THAT IS EXACTLY WHY THIS ALL STOPS JULY 1st , unfortunately. You aren't the only one who has wondered that. So did a bunch of state legislators so private transfers without going through a FFL will soon be history. Whether this much beloved board even survives after July 1st is a huge question. Meeting someone for a transaction is already a huge pain. Meeting during business hours at a FFL for a transfer ? How many people will do that when sometimes you don't really save much more than $50-100 ? You can save that at a gun show.

The end of "parking lot sales" along with the pandemic has caused handgun prices here to pop a bit. Right now there is a guy on here with 1/2 dozen used handguns listed at full retail as if new. They don't seem to be moving but they are listed. Nothing a board operator can really do but shake their head and wonder why God created some really stupid people. There is also a shotgun listed $300 over full retail. LOL
If moderators even emailed every idiot every time they overpriced a listing , It would be a full time job and require a salary & benefit package. This site couldn't exist without a high membership fee and commission on every sale. Ad revenue wouldn't cover the overhead.

That's the real reason you see so many overpriced listings.

The real benefit to this site to me has been the amazing people I have meet, that I otherwise wouldn't have. For that I will be eternally grateful to the board owner & moderators that have made this little corner of the internet a pretty special place.

Thank you both for the serious answers. I think you made some good points.

I will add that I did do a quick google search on this topic before posting and did not find any answers, although I did not search specifically on this forum.

I'm not a huge fan of Glock but I have noticed they seem to be overpriced more than other brands so that is why I asked (yes, I realize that even a "fairly" priced used Glock goes for very close to retail). A glock that is $500 new can be sold for $450. I wouldn't pay it, but plenty of people would so that makes it a fair market value. People asking $550-$600 just does not make any logical sense to me or anyone else who has a brain between their ears.

My question has been answered for the most part. There's always going to be people who are misinformed on the value of their stuff, but it definitely seems to be more common with guns than other things that I've bought and sold.

I would also say that in the current times, when someone puts a price out there people automatically throw some low ball offer. I know for me it aggravates me when i put a good price on something say 600 and someone comes in and is like "Ill give you 250 for it" I just started putting retail prices on it and someone will come along and offer me what i want for it. JMO

Panic buyers who want something and want it NOW! You can wait to pick up your NIB Glock from a gunstore in 10 days or you can get it from armslist from some dude this afternoon.

Because it is VBT. VA Bump Trader.

Why wait 10 days?

The market is high right now. Not just glocks, but everything! Have you checked in store pricing lately? I visited two stores in NOVA over the weekend. Glock 17’s new we’re priced at $599. 34’s were around $640 I believe.

Shoot Vienna Arsenal had Sig P365 (not xl model) & Springfield Hellcats new priced $150 over what you would pay at any other store!!

All I’m trying to say is new or used the market is high right now and with July 1st around the corner then the Presidential election, prices will likely continue to rise especially if Covid-19 sticks around for awhile.

Very true, but this has also been going on before the COVID-19 crisis as well

If you think the resale on Glocks is high, look at the resale on Anderson AR receivers/guns. I mean, you can polish a turd, but why?

I propose 2 changes

This board should allow members to post links in all "For Sale" posts. Links only - no comments

Example: A poster advertises a Glock 20 for $675 with no comments.

A member could post this link...
https://www.esramey.com/handguns/semi-au...ock-oem-rail-15

or

https://www.basspro.com/shop/en/glock-20-sf-semi-auto-pistol


Posting such links could accomplish several things.

1. Aid the seller in establishing a reasonable sale price. His item would sell promptly rather than sitting in a stagnate post because the seller unknowingly over-priced his item.

2. Aid potential buyers in establishing a value on a desired purchase (new vs. used gun).

3. Provide a service to folks browsing for a specific item (the seller probably has only 1), so it would be nice to know about a good deal on a new one elsewhere.

3. Prod the seller to give further details on their item justifying the extra asking price i.e. modifications, add-ons, finish, shipping, scarcity, etc.

4. Prod the seller to post photos to show the fantastic condition of their firearm.


If the seller wishes to continue with the inflated price, for whatever reason, he can simply ignore the links.



I ran a study on this site a couple years back. I posted several items at about "new" prices then bumped the items every few days and reduced the price slightly each time.

I started getting responses at around 90% of Cabela's normal inflated price. If the price got to my bottom acceptable limit I pulled the ad.

The other change to this site I would like to see is a 1-2 week post being allowed, then each bump must be accompanied with a price drop. ($5 or a %, whatever).

dream on, dreamer. :-)

I think those are great ideas, allow 1 or 2 bumps then after that they must require a price-drop

Why are folks on here so insistent on meddling with someone's pricing? There's this great thing called capitalism where people can attempt to buy and sell how they want. Free market economy. If someone wants to post a bone stock used and abused Glock 17 for $30,000 so what, that affects none of us, you aren't forced to buy it. Also, if you don't have the cash to buy whatever it is you are looking at and whining about, go drum up more cash OR move on and find something within your price range. Not that hard to figure out fellers. I'm always very amazed that folks on here seem so keen to tell the gov to keep their nose out of someone's business but they're more than happy to pounce on an opportunity to get some sort of extra pricing regulation or bump requirements. And stick their nose where it doesn't belong, since it doesn't affect you.

Seriously how hard is it to just NOT click the ad or just click BACK if it's priced too high?

Mind your own business and mosey on now.

If your first thought is "there should be a rule..." just because something annoys you, YOU ARE THE PROBLEM.

The point missing in all of this is the reason you see the overpriced guns is the fact that they aren't selling at their dumb price. The ones that are priced reasonably are gone within one or two days, and you never see them bump. And complaining about the effort of using your middle finger to scroll the mouse down a little bit further to the next listing on a free website is ridiculous.

Yup - people usually adjust price eventually. Often the best deals are on over-priced - poorly described stuff that has sat for weeks.

Maybe you’re looking at it all wrong? You could call firing a gun as “breaking in /final fit and finish/polishing” and bill it as a gunsmithing service so it’s worth more now right?

Sounds like you've got some overpriced guns for sale

You've been here since February with zero feedback and all 6 posts as of today are in this thread. Pretty sure that means you've either created an account to be a purposeful troll, in which case congratulations, you've done an excellent job sir! This will continue to be highly entertaining and I look forward to shill posts and more Glock vs 1911 firestarters!

If this isn't an account purposefully created to troll folks on here, that means that you created an account, scrolled aaaaaaaaaaaaallll the way past the yeet cannons, bang sticks and 30 caliber bullet clips and ended up here, where your first and only posts are to complain about somewhere you've only been a member of since February. To me, that doesn't make a whole lot of sense, but to each his own I suppose.

No, its just new members always whining about prices because they think this site somehow defies the laws of capitalism (supply and demand etc.) We get one post a month from new members about why prices are high and it gets old. You join during a "panic" and then complain. Go live in France.

[/quote]
No, its just new members always whining about prices because they think this site somehow defies the laws of capitalism (supply and demand etc.) We get one post a month from new members about why prices are high and it gets old. You join during a "panic" and then complain. Go live in France. [/quote]

Dude you are totally missing the point. This isn't "supply and demand." I went into my local gun store yesterday and they are selling a G17 for $519. There are people on here asking $600.

What part of how foolish that is are you not understanding?

In fact, this is the exact OPPOSITE of capitalism because the people here clearly do NOT understand how pricing works.

Capitalism:

cap·i·tal·ism

noun

An economic and political system in which a country's trade and industry are controlled by private owners for profit, rather than by the state.


Free market economy:


free mar·ket

noun

an economic system in which prices are determined by unrestricted competition between privately owned businesses.



With both of these definitions, you can replace businesses with individuals.

Folks price how they want. You sound like a super duper price fixing socialist. Maybe America isn't for you. Like Execprotect said....move to France. Or Venezuela. You'll have far more legitimate complaints there.

If you can buy guns cheaper at a dealer than it makes sense to buy new. A lot of these over-priced Glocks (and AR-15) have been "customized" and people think they can recover the price of all the parts they added.

In reality custom guns are almost alway a money losing proposition. See the over priced guns as an opportunity and send the owner a polite message with a reasonable offer.

Then get it there and quit complaining about other people's "high prices". People selling their items on this and many other sites are not obligated to get you a good deal. Folks sell stuff for all sorts of reasons, and some of those reasons doesn't mean they are desperate to sell. Wanna deal? Haunt this place like the rest of us and be the first with an "I'll take it" when one pops up. Otherwise, keep waiting and don't buy anything. Unless you're willing to pay their prices, you'll leave emptyhanded every time, I guarantee you.

Complaining about high gun prices in a used market is like potatoes. If you shoot a lobster, I'm scared of toasters.

Its ok, I know you are one of the people that overpaid for their guns and now you are upset because I made you realize it. Just consider it a lesson learned!


Btw, I'm not a troll and thank you to the people who gave serious answers

If anything, you've made me realize how stupid most newcomers are that join during this "panic". But, trolls gonna troll. Keep it up man, this is fun!

Folks are always trying to recoup what they made customizing their guns. Start High cause you know folks will lowball. you end up coming out with a successful transaction. Or someone will pay your asking price, either way it's a win.

Reasons to pay more than retail:

a - you don't want to customize yourself
b - you would rather the government not have any record of your transaction.

This is a great read! Bump

Love it, MORE TROLLS MORE TROLLS

Bet it's one of those ThIn BlUe LiNe tHeYLl tEaR tHeIr BadGEs OfF DOnt TReAD On Me things.

10/10. Let the so called 'capitalists' price competitively.

"In a free market, the laws and forces of supply and demand are free from any intervention by a government or other authority, and from all forms of economic privilege, monopolies and artificial scarcities."

So sellers can set prices as they want. The buyers will let them know if they are in the ballpark of true value by either buying or ignoring.

The true value of anything is determined when a willing buyer and seller agree to transact business without duress or outside influence (panic buyer, eager seller, seller/buyer location, etc.).

I do wish that the board would make it a practice to more or less standardize the first line...if it is FS, a price is always required.

So why not require the price to be in the subject description if it is FS? And if it is only FT, or FT/FS, just say so right there in the subject line.

Way back when this board first started that was pretty much the way it was. ie- For Sale Firearm X; price $425... and then the description would be next.

With a zillion + members it is just to much trouble for the mods to try to keep up with that. I liked it much more 10 years ago.

When you buy a Glock at the store, you pay for only R&D and production costs. When you buy from bubba, you pay for T&E cost involved; cratches available at extra charge.

All kidding aside, ubc means 15% off to me not 15% premium. All the fudds with their bos got their wishes.

10 days? I got all gun show loopholes and buttholes to prove you’re wrong. I can also walk into any store and buy guns no questions asked, order full auto shipped to my Arizona’s ocean-front property, or print a bazooka off my printer.