Goodbye, Martin

I decided to see if I could sell my Martin through Craigslist (rather than Ebay - avoiding the shipping issues that would entail.) Friday morning, I posted a listing, pricing the guitar at $375. (I’d asked around previously and no one would give me an idea of a fair price, so I put a price that wouldn’t make me cringe.) There was an immediate reply from one fellow. And then I went to take a shower. When I can back there were seven more interested parties. Over the course of the next hour, I learned I had woefully under-priced the guitar. People were calling offering much more money – up to $700. I know that the $700 offer was trying to simply get first in line to see the guitar, so I tempered my expectation down to $500 – a price that would allow me to feel good about the sale being a fair price for both of us. I told everyone I’d be at a café for an hour – and if they wanted to come by, they could check out the guitar. After fending off one very aggressive buyer who would only offer $425, a gentle, middle-aged man handed me five 100 dollar bills and took the guitar away. May he enjoy it! (And if he doesn’t, he may be able to make $200 or more in a subsequent sale!)