Every year I buy a few extra iPhone's to sell. It pays for my yearly upgrade, and normally only takes a few hours to do. It's a good return on my investment. However, this year, I'm noticing more and more 'slimy' resellers doing things that I'd never even think of considering doing.
For example, I had someone call me looking to sell a phone they got "free" at T-Mobile on JUMP. What's the problem? The seller needs to make payments on the phone, or it will turn into a brick in a few months... They're trying to sell a product they have never made a payment on! (Then, the ultimate end-user will end up paying for a phone that turns into a brick in a few months.. Great..) Oh, they also claimed it was unlocked (which it wasn't, since it was purchased from T-Mobile via. JUMP).
Another guy called me a bit ago wanting to buy Verizon phones, "even if they're on contract". When I mentioned that those phones might become blacklisted if the seller stopped paying for them, he said, "Who cares? I'm sending them to Mexico where the US blacklists don't matter".
Even on Amazon, there are people selling phones well below the full-price cost of the phone.. Why? because by the time the phone gets blacklisted, they're LONG gone.
It's pathetic, and criminal. And, I as an honest seller, pay for the phones up-front from Apple (i.e. full price, no contract, no payment plans, etc), and make sure the buyer knows exactly the model, color, size, etc. they're getting. I won't sell a T-Mobile or AT&T unlocked phone to a Verizon user (even though they'll technically work), because Verizon says they don't guarantee they'll work on their network. I'm honest, considerate, and knowledgable; and I'm being beaten out on price because I'm doing things honestly. The crooks are making a ton of money, and honest sellers are finding the sales harder.
Absolutely insane.
For example, I had someone call me looking to sell a phone they got "free" at T-Mobile on JUMP. What's the problem? The seller needs to make payments on the phone, or it will turn into a brick in a few months... They're trying to sell a product they have never made a payment on! (Then, the ultimate end-user will end up paying for a phone that turns into a brick in a few months.. Great..) Oh, they also claimed it was unlocked (which it wasn't, since it was purchased from T-Mobile via. JUMP).
Another guy called me a bit ago wanting to buy Verizon phones, "even if they're on contract". When I mentioned that those phones might become blacklisted if the seller stopped paying for them, he said, "Who cares? I'm sending them to Mexico where the US blacklists don't matter".
Even on Amazon, there are people selling phones well below the full-price cost of the phone.. Why? because by the time the phone gets blacklisted, they're LONG gone.
It's pathetic, and criminal. And, I as an honest seller, pay for the phones up-front from Apple (i.e. full price, no contract, no payment plans, etc), and make sure the buyer knows exactly the model, color, size, etc. they're getting. I won't sell a T-Mobile or AT&T unlocked phone to a Verizon user (even though they'll technically work), because Verizon says they don't guarantee they'll work on their network. I'm honest, considerate, and knowledgable; and I'm being beaten out on price because I'm doing things honestly. The crooks are making a ton of money, and honest sellers are finding the sales harder.
Absolutely insane.