Originally Posted by alex.s

how to negotiate:
price A = look up average prices that the bike would sell for in perfect condition. selling for is not what its offered at. bikes are offered at at least 20% higher than what they sell for. so find out what it actually sells for.

price B = find every single thing wrong with the bike. every tiny scratch, blemish, ding, anything at all that means its not in perfect shape. chain doesnt look perfect? new chain. tires not brand new? new tires. you want the largest possible number here.

price C, your initial offer price = price A - price B. this is what you want to pay for the bike. it will be lower than what you will get it for. but showing how you got exactly to this number will force the seller to come down, realizing you know what you are talking about. they haven't sold the bike yet, so they haven't got an offer they like yet. so your offer is perfectly valid. he will come down, you will say some of the scratches dont matter and come up a little bit, you two meet somewhere in the middle, which if you planned it right is right about $4k.