jhm Posted November 25, 2018 Share Posted November 25, 2018 This has been bugging me since receiving my latest invoice from the last auction. The book below could cost some folks $935 more than what I ended up with as the final hammer ($13,800). Backstory: I recently moved from IL to NC. I didn't yet have my NC sales tax number on file with Heritage, but I had changed my address to receive catalogs. I got my invoice and it had an additional $935 for sales tax. Since I use my own system, I saw this book pop up on my GoCollect watch list and it hit me... we have no idea who does and does not pay sales tax. I checked my GPA account and apparently they don't either. Here's the thing - I would have paid a few grand more for this book, so if the confusion of the sales tax didn't flesh out, I would just pay it. But then the world would think I paid $13,800 instead of $14,735... that's pretty significant difference! And even though I have no intentions of selling any time soon, I'm well aware that the price I paid will be a consideration to the next buyer.... whenever that day may come. Most of us use past sales history to determine the prices we're willing to pay at these auctions. And Heritage is a special player in that they get great GA inventory and generally command top prices (at least for the stuff I hunt down). All while charing a lot of folks sales tax now. So, is it possible that by not factoring sales tax into sale history that we're artificially keeping valuations down? Part of me thinks "Phew! Please keep them as low as possible!" but that doesn't feel good for the hobby as a whole. Or who knows - maybe we all have sales tax numbers and it's meaningless. At the end of the day, I was super happy to land this beauty I hope the colors pop in-hand as much as they do in the pictures! Ltpink2002, lbcolefan and Larryw7 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PUNYHUMAN Posted November 25, 2018 Share Posted November 25, 2018 Good Lord!! That's a beauty. Those colors sure pop. Larryw7 and jhm 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
szav Posted November 25, 2018 Share Posted November 25, 2018 (edited) I’m interested to know how the tax is affecting auction prices realized too. Couple questions that would need answered relate to the populations of states that: 1) were already paying tax prior to the Supreme Court ruling (CA, NY? Don’t even know if I’m right there. But there’ll be no difference in how these people bid. 2) states still not hit with the tax, probably jinxing myself but it hasn’t hit AZ I know 3) percentage of people who get around tax using a resellers license vs 4) population of states just with the new taxes Any number crunchers wanna take a crack at it? Edited November 25, 2018 by szavisca Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
batman_fan Posted November 25, 2018 Share Posted November 25, 2018 I am in Colorado and we got hit with the sales tax this auction. I thought about the tax for about two seconds but it didn't affect my bidding. When I got my invoice it was over $1300 which is quite a bit. I could buy a decent 8.0 GA Batman for that money. Will I consider it in my bidding downstream, not really sure. Sqeggs and 1950's war comics 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sqeggs Posted November 25, 2018 Share Posted November 25, 2018 You would think it's bound to have some effect. Bidders who are in high tax states might well be deterred from buying on HA. Some people have posted that they are no longer going to buy on HA. Whether there are many people who take that position or whether even those who made those posts will follow through when it's a question of a tough book that they can't find elsewhere, who knows? And, of course, collecting the tax increases the wedge between what buyers pay and what sellers receive. Nailing down the size of the effect, though, would be difficult, certainly for GA books where there are so many factors at play. Maybe you'd have some chance of detecting the effect on sales of modern books by comparing sales on HA with sales on CLink or CC. Even there, though, it would be difficult to see it unless there's enough of a negative reaction from buyers that HA's hammer prices become consistently lower. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sqeggs Posted November 25, 2018 Share Posted November 25, 2018 7 minutes ago, batman_fan said: I am in Colorado and we got hit with the sales tax this auction. I thought about the tax for about two seconds but it didn't affect my bidding. When I got my invoice it was over $1300 which is quite a bit. I could buy a decent 8.0 GA Batman for that money. Will I consider it in my bidding downstream, not really sure. I'm pretty much in the same boat. It's definitely an owie when you see that line on the invoice, but if it's a book I really want .... 1950's war comics 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dark Knight Posted November 25, 2018 Share Posted November 25, 2018 Living in CA where cost of living is already pretty high enough, yes the sales tax has deterred me from bidding on Heritage. I have not won a book since. Spiderturtle and path4play 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrBedrock Posted November 25, 2018 Share Posted November 25, 2018 (edited) Heritage is based in Texas. As someone who also has a business in Texas I can personally attest to the vigor in which the State of Texas pursues and collects sales tax. We don't have a state income tax so sales tax is an important part of the state budget. My business has been audited three times in the last nine years. I would bet that Heritage, with their size and reported income, has been audited as well. Businesses here don't get to keep the sales tax. We have to give it to the state. Neither the seller or the consignor get any monetary gain from the collection of the sales tax, so sales tax shouldn't be considered part of the sale price, just as shipping shouldn't be considered part of the sale price. It is simply a necessary side cost of conducting the transaction within the State of Texas. And the Federal government is quickly moving to make all online transactions subject to sales tax based on the residents home state. Edited November 25, 2018 by MrBedrock Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robot Man Posted November 25, 2018 Share Posted November 25, 2018 I get the tax issue. Also as a CA resident, our taxes are already high. But you combine it with a healthy buyer's premium, high shipping and stiff competition from other bidders, it just knocks me out. I also don't like the Texas law where auctions houses can shill bid their auctions or buy items outright. Kinda shifty... I just don't deal with them anymore. too rich for my blood... Shaolingoat 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spiderturtle Posted November 25, 2018 Share Posted November 25, 2018 3 hours ago, Dark Knight said: Living in CA where cost of living is already pretty high enough, yes the sales tax has deterred me from bidding on Heritage. I have not won a book since. Yes, the books that I’ve won from ha have always been about 10 percent less than gpa b/c the max bid that I have with ha always accounts for the 10 percent Califofnia tax Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrBedrock Posted November 25, 2018 Share Posted November 25, 2018 1 hour ago, Robot Man said: I get the tax issue. Also as a CA resident, our taxes are already high. But you combine it with a healthy buyer's premium, high shipping and stiff competition from other bidders, it just knocks me out. I also don't like the Texas law where auctions houses can shill bid their auctions or buy items outright. Kinda shifty... I just don't deal with them anymore. too rich for my blood... I agree...but the original question was should the sales tax be reported to GPA as part the sale price to figure value. As a retailer I wish I could have a dollar for every time someone asked me knock off the tax. I don't get to keep the tax. I am responsible for paying it. I would get fined if I were caught sidetracking it. I know it affects my sales. It affects any sale in any line of business. But since we are dealing in comics, "and nobody takes those seriously", I am expected to just not charge the tax or I don't get the business. And if I say that I can't just knock the tax off (effectively discounting an additional 8.25%) people get all indignant. Walk into the local grocery store and try that shiznit. entalmighty1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zolnerowich Posted November 25, 2018 Share Posted November 25, 2018 13 minutes ago, MrBedrock said: I agree...but the original question was should the sales tax be reported to GPA as part the sale price to figure value. As a retailer I wish I could have a dollar for every time someone asked me knock off the tax. I don't get to keep the tax. I am responsible for paying it. I would get fined if I were caught sidetracking it. I know it affects my sales. It affects any sale in any line of business. But since we are dealing in comics, "and nobody takes those seriously", I am expected to just not charge the tax or I don't get the business. And if I say that I can't just knock the tax off (effectively discounting an additional 8.25%) people get all indignant. Walk into the local grocery store and try that shiznit. How much tax do they charge for purchasing a shiznit or two? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karl Liebl Posted November 25, 2018 Share Posted November 25, 2018 Taxes and death can't be avoided. It is funny you will go to jail longer for cheating the tax man than armed robbery, murder etc... I watched all seasons of The First 48 and yes some guys only got 5 years for murder... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
batman_fan Posted November 25, 2018 Share Posted November 25, 2018 At a high level, requiring online businesses to collect sales tax is a more fair system. I know in the past I have bought various stuff on line because buying local adds more than 8% to the cost versus amazon prime not charging tax and “free” shipping. path4play 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
telerites Posted November 25, 2018 Share Posted November 25, 2018 11 minutes ago, Zolnerowich said: How much tax do they charge for purchasing a shiznit or two? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robot Man Posted November 25, 2018 Share Posted November 25, 2018 24 minutes ago, MrBedrock said: I agree...but the original question was should the sales tax be reported to GPA as part the sale price to figure value. As a retailer I wish I could have a dollar for every time someone asked me knock off the tax. I don't get to keep the tax. I am responsible for paying it. I would get fined if I were caught sidetracking it. I know it affects my sales. It affects any sale in any line of business. But since we are dealing in comics, "and nobody takes those seriously", I am expected to just not charge the tax or I don't get the business. And if I say that I can't just knock the tax off (effectively discounting an additional 8.25%) people get all indignant. Walk into the local grocery store and try that shiznit. Not disputing the tax. Part of life. It’s all the other costs involved as well as paying through the nose for “privilege” of buying funny books under the possibility of shifty conditions. I’m not ashamed to admit I’m just not their target demographic any more... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RareHighGrade Posted November 25, 2018 Share Posted November 25, 2018 Are Clink and ComicConnect now charging sales tax? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dark Knight Posted November 25, 2018 Share Posted November 25, 2018 I dont think Comicconnect is charging sales tax, just a % if you use a cc to pay. I know CL charges state tax on certain states, not CA as of this writing so i'm good with it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BriD. Posted November 25, 2018 Share Posted November 25, 2018 19 minutes ago, RareHighGrade said: Are Clink and ComicConnect now charging sales tax? They both are in Illinois. I knew Clink was already but was surprised by a recent comicconect purchase. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
telerites Posted November 25, 2018 Share Posted November 25, 2018 (edited) 32 minutes ago, Dark Knight said: I dont think Comicconnect is charging sales tax, just a % if you use a cc to pay. I know CL charges state tax on certain states, not CA as of this writing so i'm good with it Yeah, I thought it depended on whether your state is doing it. In OK, I get charged now by HA but not by CC or CL yet. CL does do the 3% which is why I send a check for CL purchases. Edited November 25, 2018 by telerites Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
