Buying a job lot: calculate your maximum purchase price

Short answer

Your maximum purchase price for a job lot is the proceeds from the individual sales you plan to make, minus selling costs, collection, preparation, a risk reserve and your desired surplus. Count the units you can sell, their condition and a realistic price, rather than simply counting objects.

The CrowFlip job lot calculator combines these assumptions. It does not automatically value a collection or fetch current sale prices. Its buying limit is a planning estimate before taxes, your working time and ongoing overheads. Amounts in the calculator are euros.

Break down the collection before negotiating

Ten objects do not necessarily mean ten sales. Check completeness, condition and accessories. Group items with similar values. A board game with missing pieces should not automatically receive the same price as a complete copy.

Separate asking prices from achieved prices. An active listing at €80 initially tells you what its seller wants. Look for comparable completed sales with the same model, condition and contents. According to eBay's Product Research help, Product Research also shows achieved prices when a best offer was accepted.

The Sourcing Scanner guide explains the same limitation: its price sample comes from active listings. Use it to identify and assess individual items, then check plausible sale prices manually. Record the comparison date, condition and price basis for later review.

Hypothetical lot: ten units, eight planned sales

Every price and fee below is an invented calculation assumption, not a researched market price, current platform rate or documented sale. Each planned unit is sold and shipped separately.

Each bundle counts as one sale unit. The two excluded units receive no residual value.

The manual formula is 280.00 − 30.40 − 48.00 − 12.00 − 10.00 − 20.00 − 60.00 = €99.60. At a €90 purchase price, the model leaves €69.60 after the reserve. That reserve is money set aside, rather than an invoice already paid. The eBay profit formula explains how income and actual costs fit together.

What if one sale never happens?

Selling only one puzzle bundle lowers item revenue to €215 and buyer-paid postage to €35. Fees become €27.10, while shipping and packaging fall to €42. Collection, preparation and the reserve still total €42. Your buying limit is now €78.90. Paying €90 leaves €48.90, short of the €60 target.

Alternatively, keep eight sales but reduce all item prices by 20%. The buying limit falls to €56.40, and paying €90 leaves €26.40. These scenarios explore different risks without claiming probabilities.

A five-step buying checklist

1. Inspect the stock: Check condition and completeness; treat a bundle sold together as one unit.
2. Support your prices: Research comparable achieved prices and flag weak or missing evidence.
3. Assign costs: Enter buyer postage as income, shipping including packaging as an expense, and collection and preparation separately.
4. Set a limit: Choose a target surplus and a justified reserve; assess your working time separately too.
5. Test the downside: Calculate lower prices, then change planned sales quantities and calculate again.

Frequently asked questions

Is the calculated maximum automatically a good buying price?

It meets your entered target under your assumptions. Missing costs or optimistic prices can still make it too high. Use it as a negotiating ceiling while considering time and cash tied up in stock.

Does the percentage comparison account for unsold stock?

No. It lowers unit sale prices only. Change “Sellable quantity” yourself to model fewer sales. Buyer-paid postage and unit costs stay unchanged in the price comparison; the percentage fee is recalculated.

Can I enter different platform fees?

The calculator uses one shared percentage and a fixed fee per sale. It does not fetch platform rates or fully model different categories and fee tiers. Check those sales separately and adjust your assumptions.

What about combined shipping and other expenses?

The model assumes a separate sale for every sellable unit. Enter a bundle sold together as one unit. Working time and overheads have no dedicated fields and are excluded from the result. Include additional actual costs in an appropriate input without counting the same expense twice.