ummm, sticky situation, long post

[lowie]

i know that there is nothing i can do to change this situation but want to hear opinions. i was talking to some people at work the other day, 3 people in the office and i was talking to 2. i mentioned that i had some things i wanted to 'get rid of', including furniture and work out equipment.

one girl mentioned that her son and dh would like some of the work out stuff and i joked with her that i could charge her dh extra and give her some of the cash.

the 3rd girl walked in and mentioned that her and her dh would love a new sofa and what was mine like. i told her it was a lazy-boy, about 3 years old and we paid almost $2500 for it. she said that her and her dh would stop by to look at it.

well, they showed up today in 2 seperate trucks for what i thought was going to be to look at it. next thing i know they are loading it onto their pickup. pretty much said thanks and left. never offered any money, never asked if i even wanted money for it. i was too stunned to say anything and thought maybe it was my fault for saying i wanted to 'get rid of it'.

i know used furniture doesn't fetch a ton of money, but heck i was hoping to get something!

 

[mrsv98]

Lesson learned. If it had been me, they never would have loaded it without a specific agreement on price. You need to speak up and be assertive or people will take advantage every time.

In the future, make up flyers with prices and take them to the office. This way there can be no "misunderstanding."

 

[SwedishMeatball]

Wow, you should have spoke up. They should have asked if you wanted anything, but maybe they were waiting to see if you'd say something. Perhaps they were prepared to offer something if you'd even hinted around at it, but when you didn't then they probably thought it was their lucky day.

 

[skuttle]

Oh wow. I think it's too late for you to do anything now. You definitely should have said something before they started loading it in! I can't believe they just took it, without asking how much you wanted for it.

 

[Serena]

Um wow! They just rolled right over you without so much as a look back. That's pretty darn cold.

 

[poohandwendy]

Yeah, I agree with the others that you should have spoken up. Actually, you should have mentioned price before they ever came to look at it. The way you taked about 'getting rid of it' rather than 'sell' probably gave her the impression that you just wanted it out of your house. When you did mention money, you were making a joke. That was your opportunity to tell her exactly what you expected in regards to payment.

What they did was definitely rude, but I think the fact that you never mentioned a price gave them the impression that the items were for free.

Lesson learned the hard way.

 

[doxdogy]

You definitely should have spoken up and/or mentioned price ahead of time. But then again, when someone tells me they have something to get rid of and do it want it. I will ask how much they want.

 

[Sherri]

WoW! Talk about a miscommunication.
What did they say as they were leaving? Was it something like, thanks so much? Or did they just pull away?
Maybe she thought you were getting rid of it and not selling it.

 

[bettyann29]

Um wow! They just rolled right over you without so much as a look back. That's pretty darn cold.

I guess I dont see how this is the case.. If no price was ever spoken of and the phrase "wanting to get rid of" was said and no price was mentioned up front or at any point, I dont see how they would have known that the furniture was being sold.. Many people give furniture away because they dont need it any more.. I dont think this other person was taking advantage of anything.. she got what she obviously thought was something free..

I think its a lesson learned at best..

 

[Uncle Remus]

What else you wanna get rid of?

 

[DisneyBlonde]

I agree the 'getting rid of' led me to believe you weren't looking for compensation. When you told your co-worker the 3 yo sofa was worth $2500 when new, my first thought was 'why are you giving it away?' I think when she asked about it, that would have been where I would have said, "i'm looking to get $x for it".

 

[Micca]

I think you could say something like "I wasn't planning on just giving that furniture away but you got away before we could settle up. I was hoping to get around $XXX but tell me what you think it's worth." I don't see what you have to lose. They may say "too bad" but you might get a couple of hundred dollars out of them.

 

[Mermaid02]

Unfortunately, I think you're out of luck.

 

[preb]

I was actually once in the exact opposite situation! My mother called me and said her best friend was moving and had a beautiful, expensive dining room set that she thought would look perfect in our house. I explained to my mother that we didn't need a dining room set, because we didn't have a dining room! She said her best friend insisted that it would match our other furniture perfectly and that we could just put it away until we "moved up".

Well, I didn't want to look a gift horse in the mouth and cause hard feelings, so my DH and I went to look at it. It was very nice and did match our decor perfectly. Her DH and mine loaded it up in our truck. I gave her a big hug and said "Thank you so much. I'm sure we'll really enjoy it one day" and she replied, "I think $500 is a fair price. Take your time sending me a check".

I was floored! We never even wanted it and had to store it for 5 years!

 

[jennobrn01]

Ugh. That is terrible. She probably thought you truly just wanted rid of it. Still, to be gracious she should've said, "What can I give you for it?".

I have learned to never mix business and friendship. Or do business with people you have to relate to frequently.

 

[Va-bear]

I think you could say something like "I wasn't planning on just giving that furniture away but you got away before we could settle up. I was hoping to get around $XXX but tell me what you think it's worth." I don't see what you have to lose. They may say "too bad" but you might get a couple of hundred dollars out of them.

I _WOULD_ try this - its certainly worth a shot since it _IS_ true. You deserve money if you had planned to sell it.

But, I also agree that I think someone is giving something away when they say "get rid of..." (as opposed to, "I'm selling some stuff....")


All that being said, I am SO SORRY this happpened, it sucks!!! I hate when I feel like I've handled something wrong (which is almost every day!) Take care.

 

[Va-bear]

....one of the reasons I LOVE email is its non-confrntational. Why not, QUICKLY send her anote explaining the whole thing? I saw quickly because the more time that passes the more awkward it will get. Plus, by doing it tonight it can be dealt with away fomr work....plus, it will be handled before you actually have to see her. Ofcourse, you'll have to offer to come get it if she decides she doesnt want it - but well worth it if you can get some money for it.

Good luck!

 

[poohandwendy]

I agree that if you are going to bring this up, you really need to do it it soon...like today.

 

[DisneyfeverTN]

It does look like you are out of luck. That is really too bad about the misunderstanding. I have sold some of our furniture and given away some of it. Every time I have let someone know that they could have the furniture, they have offered to pay something for it. I guess she really thought you were giving it away. Although I would have thought you were giving the furniture away since you said you wanted to get rid of it, I would have definitely asked you if you wanted to sell it.

 

[disykat]

I also think she thought you were giving it away. Unfortunate, but I think it's too late now to mention money.