Flipping bikes...

[rc26]

Is it really a bad thing to buy a bike (or anything for that matter) with the intentions of selling it to make a profit? Yeah, individual morals and or conscience come into play.

Personally, I don't think so. Especially if you are unemployed and trying to make some extra $ to pay the bills.

Views?

[Bigshankhank]

Hell I've long contemplated this idea while I've been off of work this year. All over CL in my town are cheapcheapcheap bikes w/ titles that need little work to make them streetable (or dirtable as the case may be) by people desperate to make their next loan payment. Alas I lack the capitol to snap them up and flip them or else I would have a little cottage industry going in my workshop. I would even stomach the idea of parting many of them out.
My grandfather was a bootlegger and a bookmaker when times were tough, ya gotta do what ya gotta do when your family is hungry.

[motorpsycho67]

Nothing wrong with it at all!

Do it!


I have friends that do it for a living.

[Bigshankhank]

Actually it brought to my mind whether you would have to pay taxes on any profits made from such sales. Presumably if you are selling complete bikes with titles, and assuming you go to the trouble of bringing the titles and taxes up to date then this would not be a problem, the state is getting their taxes on the sale, but at what point could any profit realized be considered "income" on your part?
It doesn't appear to me that selling parts on ebay would be much of an issue.

[Pancake]

Do it, man.. why would you even question it?

[WeAintFoundShit]

Ain't a damn thing wrong with it in the world.
You just have to choose your projects very wisely, and not get carried away with what you want to do to a bike; it's REALLY easy to lose money playing this game.

There are also bikes out there that are worth good money to part out. Take the Tuono, for instance. If you scour hard enough you can find one in good shape for $4K-$5K, and after seeing what Tuono parts go for on ebay and the AF1 forum, I'm convinced that they are worth more in parts than in resale.

Of course THAT also comes with the risk of having half of your money back, and half a bike that isn't selling. THEN what do ya do?

If I were seriously going to play this game, I would look into picking up bikes at auctions. Good deals can be had at auctions. There are a bunch of auction sites that I used to look at online, and might start again when I decide to buy another scoot.

[Pancake]

Ain't a damn thing wrong with it in the world.
You just have to choose your projects very wisely, and not get carried away with what you want to do to a bike; it's REALLY easy to lose money playing this game.

That's a good point.. You definitely don't want to just go buy any bike. Make sure you know what you're picking up.. check parts availability and prices.. That way you won't get stuck with a '74 TX500 that costs way more to fix than what its worth.

ahaha

[Photo]

+2 on what WAFS said. Brothah Maniacles did that here in Denver Metro area for quite a while, but found that the shaky economy put a serious dent in people's desires for used bikes. If he's still checking the board, you might PM him or send him an email for some advice. I'm sure you'll do alright with your knowledge about motorcycles, but more info from an experienced flipper never hurts. My Dos Centavos...

[12ci]

another hearty "do it" here.

just check the VA law to see at what point you graduate from a private seller to a dealer.

Anyone in the business of buying or selling vehicles in Maryland must be licensed. A person selling 3 or more vehicles within a 12-month period may be considered an unlicensed dealer. Unlicensed dealers may face up to a $5,000 fine or up to 1 year in jail. Subsequent offenses may bring stiffer penalties.

and your newly developed painting skills can work for you, too.

[EIF]

Is it really a bad thing to buy a bike (or anything for that matter) with the intentions of selling it to make a profit? Yeah, individual morals and or conscience come into play.

I was a serial bike breaker for two years solid, about 25 bikes, mopeds, and ATVs came and went. In that time the "profit" allowed me to purchase and maintain Tina the Seca, fund my Cub 50 project (sold @ 75% completion), and provide a few extras for the family, and support my British bike magazine habit. Some of those bikes were relatively rare and a few were worthy of restoration. The education I received about motorcycle mechanics and the research involved in each model to price and market appropriately was worth more than the money.

I only stopped because I got ripped off four times in a month through the new Ebay/Paypal system. I still have three bikes to be parted and one bike to be restored in the yard.

I have gotten some shit from people about the bikes I have bought to part. I politely tell them to fuck off. IMO morality does not come into play as long as there is no direct, intentional deception. I walked away from a complete GT750J that was for sale "best offer" and told the owner what I thought it was worth so he did not get ripped off when he sold it. By the same token when I traded for the TL125, the guy asked if the parts were worth money. I answered yes, to the right buyer, but the real answer was "first year model seat, covers, and tank, oh fuck yes they are worth money (if I can find a buyer)"

So, you assign value to your labor in addition to the value of the materials processed (i.e. parts) to generate a product. You are a one man bike factory. Think nothing of it as long as you have justified to yourself the price you assign. Tell people to cram their opinions up their nose with the rest of the boogers.

[FastCat]

Most states have a limit to how many vehicle titles you can put into and out of your name in a single calendar year without having to pony-up for a dealer's license...

[WeAintFoundShit]

There are ways around that.
Shady ways, but ways nonetheless.

[Pattio]

Is it really a bad thing to buy a bike (or anything for that matter) with the intentions of selling it to make a profit?

I've bought a lot of things in my life that I thought I could 'make' money on. Sure it can happen. Personally I have more losses than successes under my belt thus my advice is 'forget it'. You just like to buy bikes, like me. Pretending there's profit in it is like thinking diet soda is as good as a trip to the gym. Real results take hard work and buying things is not hard work.

[12ci]

Real results take hard work and buying things is not hard work.

buying/selling/flipping complete bikes may not be "hard" work (more papercuts than callusses) but it is/can be real work, especially if the goal is profit.

breaking bikes to sell off parts is the callus-building part.

[mtne]

Well I don't get the impression from the initial post that your talking about trying to do it for a living. When an easy turnover falls in your lap go for it. I generally try and have the seller leave the title open so I can just pass it on without it ever being mine as far as the state goes. Being a bike whore for a while tends to have these opportunities come to you a bit more often. Most recently it was an older thumper that I turned for $550 and only had in my possession for a day. When those things are offered take them...............................

Being on the constant hunt for things that are going to be profitable? That gets tiring and eventually you'll take something that won't pan out while the profit margin keeps getting squeezed. There are lots of people out there doing it with all manners of items. Go play on in the local auction circuit for a while. With bikes it's easy to get upside down especially if your going to count your labor.

I'm a cheap bastard when it comes to most of that stuff and am happy to say I feel like I've only gotten hosed by one motorcycle deal out of the many I've gotten into, and only one or two others with random auction stuff. Patience and the ability to not be desperate enough to have to sell something for less than it's worth to me combined with the liquidity to buy when the opportunity presents and the restraint to pass when it's not a sure thing are the keys to making the occasional side business work.

Retail is against my religion.

[xtian]

hell, your helping someone to get rid of a bike they want to sell, and helping someone else to find a bike they want, it does allow for some reward other than karma .

[rc26]

I wouldn't do it for a living. If something popped up, I'd consider it.

[rolly]

Is it a bad thing to make a profit on an exchange?
What are you, a communist?

[stiles]

If you're going to do this more than a few times a year at most, you'll need space, time, patience and ready cash. Most of all, you'll need knowledge, both of which bikes are worth what and to who, and also what stuff is really broken and what that costs to fix.

Do be aware of your state's laws on the threshold for qualifying as an unlicensed dealer. Paper trails can bite you in the ass, as can local zoning if you keep anything outside.