Ebay Virgin at my age.

[#1]

I have been surfing for many years now and for the first time in my life I have decided to start buying things off Ebay. Problem is I have started bidding on stuff without knowing how to pay for it and the clocks ticking 
I have opened a paypal account the premiere one so I could also sell stuff if that's right? I guess a lot of people in here will use it all the time but I just usually give someone who knows what they're doing the money to get stuff on their account.
Can someone please explain what I need and best way to pay for stuff in Lamens term? All I want to do is buy stuff now and again and maybe sell stuff if I ever get round to it.
If I win a bid I don't want to be messing around and getting bad reviews.
Cheers

[#2]

If you win a bid you will be asked how you want to pay.  Check Paypal and it will take you to your Paypal account.  Enter your password and you will get a screen already showing the cost of the item you've won including any postage. If you're happy check 'confirm' and that's it.  You will get an email from Paypal confirming your transaction.

[#3]

I used to like buying and selling, Don't do It much now though, Too many con-artists on It now, And Please Please beware of e-mails claiming to be from PayPal and also bidders bidding on what your selling, They generally do not have any feedback and usually only joined on or around the date of when your selling.

[#4]

Ok cheers what about the account? I opened a premier one not sure if i should have. Which is the most cost efficient way of using pay pal with just buying or selling every now and again?
I'm not sure about paying in to the pay pal as well, is it best to have some money ready in there or transfer in as and when with a bank account or card. I'm not sure which is fastest for getting the money to the seller.

[#5]

If I remember correctly I'm sure you done the right thing opening a premier account, But don't hold me to that, My memory is not that great.

[#6]

Quote

Too many con-artists on It now,

Yeah it would appear, I generally just want stuff for my planted aquarium which even with delivery is cheaper from Hong Kong and Malaysia. Most of them I have bought off before using other peoples accounts. Would be handy to be able to flog some of my old equipment as well to pay for purchases.

[#7]

The first thing to think about is that many eBay sellers WILL NOT post their item to an UNVERIFIED ADDRESS, due to fraud and "lost in post" claims.
So in your PayPal account you need to follow the "Get verified" instructions.  This means adding your bank account details, then PayPal make two small deposits INTO your account.
You then get a bank statement showing the PayPal deposits, go back to the PayPal website and enter the value and date of each deposit.
Regarding the "premiere" account, it does seem to give more flexibility than you are suggesting you will use.
The benefits of that type of account seem to be that as a seller you are able to accept many more methods of payment.
However if you consider that nearly all eBay sales have PayPal as the primary payment method, the need for the other options is virtually unnecessary.
I don't know what the charges are like for that type of account, but if it doesn't cost you any more than a standard personal account, then you might as well keep it.

[#8]

I only use ebay for buying and been with them for around 5 years.  Never had a problem.  I have my Paypal linked to a bank account so when I confirm I want to make a payment they take it out of my account.  I don't leave any monies with them.
I would never buy from anyone who hasn't been an ebay member for at least 2 years and I would look for at least a 97% feedback.  When looking at a seller's feedback check to see why they have not got 100%.  Some buyers can complain about anything!!

[#9]

Each to their own on the PayPal front. 
I mostly buy and only sell occasionally.
Have an "ordinary" Paypal account linked to a credit card; I wouldn't trust them to go straight into my bank account!
With that type of account there are low limits on how much money (that you've been paid) you can withdraw, so I generally just let it sit there and spend it in due course. It saves on fees too.
Remember, you can use Paypal for online purchases at many outlets, not just eBay.
Probably a good idea to start with some buying so that you can build up a bit of feedback before selling anything.
And when you do sell, start with low-value low-risk (to both parties) items.
And be honest on the P&P charges; personally I hate sellers who are obviously padding a low price with excesive P&P.

[#10]

I agree with all what has been said here, Pet supplier's I must say have been great too me on there, I too have an aquarium, If you like I can PM you a couple Pet suppliers on there I used to use for my aquarium?

[#11]

Regarding buying on eBay, research is everything !
Make sure what you are looking at is what you think it is.
Find out how much the item would cost if you bought it from another source (Amazon and Argos are a good start).  I am constantly amazed how often I am bidding on something second-hand and it sells for nearly twice the price that you could get it new from Amazon !.
If you have ANY doubts - don't bid as your instinct is usually right.
Check the sellers feedback - not just the percentage, but what buyers have actually said.
Remember don't get carried away with the bidding,  if an item sells for more than you really wanted to pay,  there will ALWAYS be another one listed soon.
Don't limit yourself to the specific things you look at.  You can make huge savings on everyday items and consumables. For example Batteries are half the shop prices, and I always buy brand new genuine printer ink cartridges at no more than a quarter of shop prices.
Think about heavy or large items that are usually expensive, such as televisions or power tools.  Then eBay search for those items within a 10 mile radius of your home - and have "Collection" as a postage option,  so when you win you go and collect it for free.  You can often get a bargain as the postage is often too expensive, and collection severely limits the number of people interested.
Try and do your bidding in the last few seconds of the auction, bidding before the last 30 seconds only bumps the price up and should only be done if you really can't get to a computer at the required time.

[#12]

I've been an ebay member for about 8 years. Initially I used it to sell all the stuff I had stored in my loft . In recent years I've used it more to buy stuff - it's good for memory cards and the like.
Recently however I sold a laptop and was shocked at the fees -  10% final value fee!!!! So it cost me £37 to sell my laptop. In my early ebay days I sold an AV amplifier for £1100 quid and I think the final value fee was about 2%.
As has been said, beware of scammers and Paypal phishing emails.

[#13]

Quote from: HPsauce

And be honest on the P&P charges; personally I hate sellers who are obviously padding a low price with excesive P&P.

A few years ago I really wanted a PSP, they were not released in the UK at the time so I ordered one from Hong Kong so ended up with the Japanese version (which has a better screen), the cost of the PSP+Postage was about £50 less than the cost of the official PSP that Sony released in the UK!  I still have that PSP, it's still working fine.  Hong Kong is great for tech, the only issue is they stick "gift, value £1" on the label so the postman doesn't charge you tax at 879234% or something.

[#14]

beware bidding frenzy.  it's so easy to get into a 'bidding war' and keep bidding because you are determined to 'win', though it cost you an arm and a leg.  decide how much you intend as your top price and stick to it.  a similar item will surely be offered in the future, so missing one is no big deal.  'bid and forget' works well on occasion.  decide how much you're willing to pay for an item, bid your max and forget about it.  you'll get an email reminder shortly before the auction ends and can then review your bid.

[#15]

I often buy DVDs on ebay.  Before making a bid I check what the price is elsewhere and take the postage into account before setting my maximum bid.  If I am bidding for a higher priced item I will send an email to the seller with a question just to see how it is responded to by the seller.
Customs and Excise are aware of the dodge mentioned by David W so beware.  Generally items of £18 or less do not get charged.  Higher prices could attract a charge.