eBay Tractors: A 'Before You Buy' Guide!

Long gone are the days where we relied only on word of mouth, a trusty Yellow Pages book, or a community cork board to find and make major purchases, including tractors. Thanks to internet auction giant eBay, that task has been made a whole lot easier, with listings of new and used tractors of all makes and models, national and international, including attachments. For the busy agricultural professional, is it practical to buy a tractor on eBay?

Let's take a look at the eBay tractor market, as we take note of its advantages and shortcomings, versus traditional face-to-face sales.

The obvious downfall to buying a used tractor on eBay is the fact that you miss out on the tangible act of the sale: there will be no kicking of the tires here. Unless the eBay action is local, you won't be able to see or test drive the tractor. The best resolve is to contact the seller and ask all of your pre-sales questions (be sure to have them ready in a bulleted list), so that he or she will be able to address each one in their reply. Typically, tractor sellers on eBay will provide their phone number due to the nature of the purchase.

Since you can't actually see the tractor in person, and are limited to a handful (or possibly less) of tractor photos on eBay, you'll have to ask all of the "descriptive" questions that your eyes would have otherwise answered:

1. Previous tractor accidents or damages
2. What tasks was the tractor mainly used for by the current owner? What kind of terrain? Did it have any other previous owners?
   
3. Which repairs, if any, have been done on it?
4. What (if anything) has been replaced, or is brand new, on this used tractor? (i.e., tractor tires, PTO, ignition, etc.)
5. What are the shipping terms? Be sure you know of this before you ship an Iowa tractor to Ohio...or California!

This is why it's important to already know the difference between a Kubota and a John Deere before shopping around for either...or any other brand name, for that matter.

Since eBay does not provide any kind of direct mitigation or tractor inspection services, (nor will the used tractor sellers found within the site), it's up to you to gauge the validity of the seller. You can do this by looking at their current seller's rating: click the number next to their user name, which denotes the number of "praises" or "jeers" they have received from past customers on eBay. You'll notice how a "good" seller typically has a rating in the mid to upper 90-percentile, or simply a 100% positive seller rating. Look through the customer comments left on that particular seller, and decide for yourself if the negative comments are immature and overblown, or if they warrant any degree of suspicion or distrust in the seller. Don't forget - when it comes to buying anything online, people who have positive experiences rarely return to write a good review...however, those with negative experiences feel obliged to take their time out and write a complaint.

In terms of risk mitigation and buying a tractor on eBay, a service is available for ex post risk mitigation services for buyers such as yourself. It automatically covers tractors for sale from $100 to $20,000, protecting you in rare cases of fraud or defects.

There is good news: the eBay community has fostered a buyer & seller feedback forum, in which prices are debated, discussed and deliberated over. This community of equipment experts is quick to dismiss dishonest pricing and selling tactics. The trading partners forum provides information used to spur conversation about sellers and their transactions, ensuring that the tractors being sold on eBay are realistic and have a high degree of integrity.

Unlike traditional tractor auctions with a live auctioneer, eBay presents tractor auctions that start and end at different times of the day and week. If you're not there to place a winning bid at 7:05 and 34-seconds A.M. for that one particular auction, it will be lost to another auctioneer [assuming that your top bid has not been over-bid at the last few minutes by another interested person].

By knowing the nature of an eBay auction, you'll be better prepared to win that used tractor you've gotten your eye on. Here's a tip: don't bid on a recently placed auction, you're sure to be outbid before the auction ends. Since eBay auctions typically last 5-7 days -- each auction listing exactly how many -- it's worth your while to leave a note and come back on the final day of the auction to place a last-minute bid. Otherwise, you'll just contribute to jacking up the bid reserve, which is an unseen number based on how much the last person bid as the previous 'high bid.' So, if person #1 bids $501, you'll have to bid at least $501.01 to outbid him. However, you won't be able to see that $501 reserve bid, because it will remain hidden until someone has outbid it.

The possibility of securing a used tractor on eBay for a price better than a live auction is entirely possible. For instance, live auctions will not end until one of the final two bidders has given up. However, eBay auctions end when the time is up - plain and simple. So, if you're there while your bidding colleagues are asleep or at the supermarket, you'll achieve success in winning the auction, and quite possibly, winning it at a lower than expected price, due to an absence of competing bidders.

On the positive side, eBay's listing schematic makes comparison shopping easier than ever. Note how you'll be able to sort by tractors for sale by make and model, year, price, start and end date, and number of current bids. Print and line up your final choices, note their ending date and time, and be ready for the final bidding day.

This presents another huge advantage over visiting that old Case dealership or used tractor lot around the corner - eBay's tractor listings mix and match many various deals for your comparison convenience, rather than a handful of models, and a wasted weekend driving around to different lots in your county.

If you've already visited used tractor suppliers and are looking for an alternate comparison venue, eBay should be your first stop. Who knows - you just might find a better deal on a name brand tractor that you've just seen in person at the dealer's. Browse through a current list of eBay tractors, and do some research on what's out there. Note the pricing and quality of each tractor, while minding the seller's reputation, and the auction's overall value to you and your budget.