Bob LeFridge  Mar 4

This news will be of interest to anybody in NZ who uses TradeMe auctions. They're changing their fee structure in a major way.

For a start, they're killing their 7.9% success fees for ordinary traders. This is a response to Facebook Marketplace taking a big chunk of TM's bread and butter listings.

But it's not all honey and roses.

All sellers will now be required to accept both Ping and Afterpay. Ping (owned by TM) charges sellers a 2.19% fee. Bank transfers will be forbidden, which seems stupid to me. But then I've accepted over 5,000 of them with no problems.

And they're introducing a new "service Fee" for buyers, on a sliding scale.

$0.00 - $20.00 = Free
$20.01 - $100.00 = $1
$100.01 - $250.00 = $2
$250.01 + = $5

(I've rounded TM's annoying 99c increments to the nearest dollar).

Regular sellers confirm that TradeMe is going through a sluggish period during the current cost of living crisis, with listings attracting lots of watchers but few bidders.

TradeMe will have done the sums and must be hoping for increased turnover. But for 27 years, it's been possible to be a TM buyer without ever crediting any money to your TM account. How asking buyers to stump up a credit card and start paying fees will affect sales is anyone's guess.

https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/business/588674/trade-me-drops-success-fee-facebook-snapping-at-its-heels

#TradeMe #NZ

Trade Me drops success fee, Facebook 'snapping at its heels'

The new fee structure will remove success fees from next week with a Trade Me spokesperson saying casual sellers will be better off.

RNZ
Bob LeFridge  Feb 13

Today we have a converted Masonic lodge in Lumsden with a GV of $540k. Check out the unique interior styling -- there's 500m of floor space to fill -- then be amazed at the near original Masonic meeting room.

This unusual place is looking for a very special buyer. I'm told it's currently used as a tattoo parlour.

https://www.trademe.co.nz/a/property/residential/sale/southland/southland/lumsden/listing/5779997597

#NZ #TradeMe #Masonic #Lumsden

Show threadBob LeFridge  Oct 2

Just TM's latest step in enshittifying what was once a perfectly good trading site.

By mandating this, they guarantee themselves a handy 2.19% commission on all in-trade sales. That's on top of their success fees.

The 2.19% Ping fee applies to the *total payment amount including shipping*. They take a cut of postal fees as well.

If you sell $2 widgets Ping can be handy. But once you're selling items for hundreds of dollars, the ping fees really start to hurt.

Any warm feelings I might have had for TradeMe disappeared a few years ago. And they just keep making the site worse.

@Niall

#TradeMe #NZ

Raglan Niall  Oct 2

This looks like a step on the road to the #Enshitification of #TradeMe
They're locking you in to their payment system if you're 'in the trade'

Also when I copied the text for the alt-text on the photo, the headline image name revealed itself, "Ping mandate"...

Jack Yan (甄爵恩)Sep 30
Cannot find my way around #TradeMe—for anything, but especially cars. Auto Trader is still the better site for car shopping.
Bob LeFridge  Sep 24

Fancy a property with a difference? Well, channel your inner thesbian because the Omakau Community Centre is up for sale... 430 sqm of 1950's public meeting space, complete with a stage.

The GV is $255k and they're asking for offers over $279k.

https://www.trademe.co.nz/a/property/residential/sections-for-sale/otago/central-otago/omakau/listing/5541024398

#NZ #TradeMe #Omakau

7 Wilson Street, Omakau, Central Otago, Otago

Please note: This offering includes land & buildings. Refer full property pack for further information. Space? Street frontage? Central Otago? Town hall? You...

Trade Me
donkeyJun 5, 2025

Lowered the price and added some photos. iMac 27” 5K l for sale.

https://www.trademe.co.nz/computers/desktops/apple-desktops/auction-5360591968.htm

#fediSale #forSale #Mac #Trademe #AotearoaNZ

iMac 27" 5K 2017, 4-core i7, 16GB RAM, 512GB SSD, 8GB Radeon Pro 850 | Trade Me Marketplace

My son's 2017 model year 27" Retina 5K iMac, was purchased brand new in January 2019. It has spent the last year powered off because he got himself a gaming PC....

Trade Me
Bob LeFridge  Jun 3, 2025

In NZ media news, TradeMe has agreed to take a 50% stake in Stuff Digital.

"Under the agreement, Stuff's property section will become TradeMe Property branded, with listings, ads and some content shared across both platforms."

Life is one big commercial opportunity, for some.

https://www.odt.co.nz/business/trademe-buy-50-stuff-digital

#NZ #Media #Stuff #TradeMe

TradeMe to buy 50% of Stuff Digital

Online marketplace Trade Me is taking a major stake in the digital operations of media company Stuff. In a statement, the companies say TradeMe...

Otago Daily Times Online News
Show threadBob LeFridge  May 31, 2025

You're right about that @kesara. I was a heavy user of the site for years but once Covid hit I took a break that lasted for five years. I've recently returned to selling and can't believe the enshittification that's taken place.

Notifications used to be optional. Now you can't turn them off and they piss me off.

Removing a completed auction from your watchlist used to be easy... just one click of the little X and it disappeared. Now it takes five clicks because you have to go through some script-driven edit mode first.

And their search engine is still crap.

There have been dozens of 'competitors' to TradeMe over the years and not one of them has been a viable alternative. TM own the NZ market, and they really don't give a damn about their customers. But they're it and nobody with brains is going to try to take them on any longer.

#TradeMe

Raglan Niall  Apr 9, 2025
What have I done to upset TradeMe?
#TradeMe