horse prices (again!)

[18hhOlls&Me]

yes horse prices go up and down due to environmental and social factors and admittedly I’ve seen some very average mounts advertised for far more than I’d pay. But 2 things I find strange is the number of adverts saying ‘wanted- perfect. bombproof with bags of potential, forward going and scopey enough for 20yr old eventer but also granny wants to ride it too. Must be 15.1- 15.3 mare, light bay Connie TB X. Low 4 figs.’ OK I’m exaggerating to make a point but when I’m looking for a horse I spend a long time digging through adverts on horse mart, horse quest, H&H, Facebook groups, preloved and more- and I don’t expect the owner to find me! And the other point that I find strange is that there are some nice ones out there for reasonable prices! As an experiment I found one of the many Wanted ads and went for a little look and found this, which if the wanted ad is honest about their experience sounds definitely worth a view at least. I get that posting a wanted ad might prompt a potential seller to see it and get in touch but if I’m advertising I’d rather see that someone has gone to the trouble of looking through the ads and liked the look of what I’m selling. There are overpriced horses undoubtedly and more than usual but there are still reasonably priced decent horses and ponies out there, you just need to get off your butt and have a look! Here is said second pony which sounds ideal for the experienced teenager that posted the wanted ad:

https://www.preloved.co.uk/adverts/...sifieds/horses-livestock/horses-ponies?page=2

 

[I'm Dun]

I'd rather sell through seeing a wanted ad. Putting an actual ad up is awful! Endless timewasters and annoyance from people. Whereas a wanted ad lays out exactly what people want and I know straight away if my horse matches.

The ad you linked to doesnt fit the wanted ad criteria at all? A 12.1hh cob isnt remotely suitable for someone wanting a 15hh + sporty small horse

 

[18hhOlls&Me]

I'd rather sell through seeing a wanted ad. Putting an actual ad up is awful! Endless timewasters and annoyance from people. Whereas a wanted ad lays out exactly what people want and I know straight away if my horse
The ad you linked to doesnt fit the wanted ad criteria at all? A 12.1hh cob isnt remotely suitable for someone wanting a 15hh + sporty small horse

I respect your opinion and we will have to agree to differ and just to clarify the wanted ad I made up as an example....

My main points were that people often rule out suitable and affordable horses/ponies because they may be the wrong colour, an inch too big or small, etc. The ad I posted was to illustrate that there are nice ponies and horses out there for reasonable prices. Perhaps I didn’t explain it well- I haven’t had my morning coffee yet!!

 

[18hhOlls&Me]

One suggestion would be to have a separate group for ‘wanted ads’ separate from sale ads- it can be frustrating looking at a group for horses for sale only to sift through heaps of wanted ads...just an idea

 

[I'm Dun]

I dont think people do rule out horses an inch smaller though. Everyone has a wanted list in their head or in an ad. No one ever buys an exact fit. I wanted a 14.2hh native mare to ride then breed a foal from next year. I bought an ex racer gelding!

 

[mini_b]

As a lovely pony that is for someone, a 20yo eventer isn’t going to want a 12hh cob are they?
I think being specific is good as it saves wasting time on both sides.

I don’t think in this climate people rule out nice horses due to “wrong colour” if it’s suitable. Some people have a preference to no greys if they’ve had previous problems with melanoma in the past which is fair enough.

I could in theory do everything I want to do on a 14hh cob but I simply don’t want to! I don’t NEED a huge horse, but always had big uns and I can’t see that changing.

 

[Britestar]

Yesterday I picked up a new horse for a friend.
She had put a wanted ad on her FB page, along with pictures of her current horse, saying she was looking for something similar. It was shared 30+ times.
About 5 horses were 'offered'. One was seen, and bought within a week.
None of these were on selling sites. We would have never found her. The owner wanted to place her and not have 100's of enquiries.
Totally worked for us.

 

[Red-1]

I'd rather sell through seeing a wanted ad. Putting an actual ad up is awful! Endless timewasters and annoyance from people. Whereas a wanted ad lays out exactly what people want and I know straight away if my horse matches.

The ad you linked to doesnt fit the wanted ad criteria at all? A 12.1hh cob isnt remotely suitable for someone wanting a 15hh + sporty small horse

Yesterday I picked up a new horse for a friend.
She had put a wanted ad on her FB page, along with pictures of her current horse, saying she was looking for something similar. It was shared 30+ times.
About 5 horses were 'offered'. One was seen, and bought within a week.
None of these were on selling sites. We would have never found her. The owner wanted to place her and not have 100's of enquiries.
Totally worked for us.

That makes me think... I wasn't planning on a wanted ad, because the twice I tried it (once for me and once for an organisation) I got loads of people... well the equivalent of offering as 12hh cob for a 15hh sporty horse. There were LOADS of them, then some people got pushy when I didn't reply.

 

[Ample Prosecco]

When I was considering selling Toby but had not quite decided, I responded to a couple of wanted ads as he sounded absolutely perfect for the homes. Neither viewed for some reason - put off by my exhaustive disclosures probably!!. Given that once he was posted I had literally dozens of pms, they would have got a very sellable, very sought after horse off market had they responded. And priced for choice of homes not max value. So it is definitely worth doing. I understand it less for horses who are advertised elsewhere. I was inundated with queries so no way would I have spent even more time on wanted ads.

As for reasonably priced horses - I have found that the vast majority of horses I have ever viewed are not as described.

In the current market, most horses I see that I like have sold before I get a chance to view them. And I am looking regularly and not faffing. Yet there are 3-4 ticking all my boxes who are still there and have been on the market for weeks. One in particular keeps being re-posted on FB with 'still available due to CONSTANT TIMEWASTERS'. Well when I sold Toby I arranged 2 viewings and had 10 people on the shortlist for the next set of viewings so that post makes me suspicious. That horse looked so good I almost travelled 5 hours each way to see it before deciding against that. I have a 3 hour rule and am sticking to it. Now that the horse won't sell I am very glad I did not bother because there HAS to be a reason. As far as I am concerned horses that stick around are not selling for a reason. They are probably lame, won't jump, super-spooky, obese, covered in ring worm whatever. (All those issues have been present in horses I have viewed).

 

[Ample Prosecco]

I did put a wanted ad this time but had very few responses. I think because what I want is highly desirable just now! If I was wanting somethign a bit different and less sought oafter maybe I would get a better response.

Red-1 in the past I was inundated after posting wanted ads and yes some people got quite pushy with me too! One person kept pming me "why haven't you viewed my horse. What's wrong with her!" So I did not like that aspect.

 

[Bernster]

I think putting wanted ads in a different is a good idea if you’re a buyer, as imdid Have to scroll past a lot of them in the for sale section. I can see that some might have an advantage, if eg someone isn’t actively selling but sees a nice potential new home. I would think they have a pretty low success rate though. I’ve never done it, have always gone through sale ads. In this market, sellers don’t need to make the effort either. But I can see how it avoids lots of messages.

 

[ycbm]

I found one wonderful horse from a wanted advert, who wasn't on the market. My other two attempts resulted in more hilarity than anything. My latest one "minimum mature height 15.2" resulted in offers from three different sellers of 13.2 ponies ?
.

 

[spacefaer]

Every Wanted ad I've responded to over the years has resulted in a timewaster.
Sometimes people put wanted ads as they can't find what they're looking for, because what they think they're looking for, doesn't exist!

 

[mini_b]

Every Wanted ad I've responded to over the years has resulted in a timewaster.
Sometimes people put wanted ads as they can't find what they're looking for, because what they think they're looking for, doesn't exist!

my wanted ad would be to replace my current horse when the time comes to retire him, he’s one in a million to me but certainly nothing special...so they do exist!

 

[ihatework]

Yesterday I picked up a new horse for a friend.
She had put a wanted ad on her FB page, along with pictures of her current horse, saying she was looking for something similar. It was shared 30+ times.
About 5 horses were 'offered'. One was seen, and bought within a week.
None of these were on selling sites. We would have never found her. The owner wanted to place her and not have 100's of enquiries.
Totally worked for us.

Ive used wanted ads a number of times over the years and very successfully. They have yielded nice horses from honest owners that weren’t on the open market.

I think the key is to sell yourself, don’t be excessively prescriptive in the ‘must haves’ and be prepared to sift through a lot of dross that invariably gets offered. But overall I have found it a far more effective buying strategy.

 

[SOS]

Wanted ads have worked well for me too. I found a very good loan through a wanted ad to buy! The owner saw my ad and thought I’d be perfect but didn’t want to sell, so ended up getting a free horse. Unfortunately the owner moved to the other end of the country after 6 months and decided to take him with her and retire him but it could of been perfect.

Without blowing my own trumpet I know I can offer a good, unique home to the right horse so would try sell myself. I can’t compete with the people with £££££ of cash so try find someone where home is genuinely important but I’m not expecting it for free. I would be embarrassed to post one without a reasonable budget.

It’s very annoying when people post completely unsuitable horses on the post. The best is when you ask for a horse with some hunting experience but potential for big country, must be over 16.2hh as tall rider … ‘unbroken 3 year old’ ‘13.2hh cob that’s done UA dressage’ ‘he’s never hunted or jumped but he really likes my Labrador’s’. That’s the downside to wanted ads!

 

[18hhOlls&Me]

Seems it can work both ways..a lot like many things in the horsey world

 

[mariew]

Lol especially now I would think. I think the days are gone when you can find the 5-7yr old safe horse with a bit of experience for around 5k. It will price a lot of people out of the market but I think maybe the way it should be.

 

[Britestar]

Ive used wanted ads a number of times over the years and very successfully. They have yielded nice horses from honest owners that weren’t on the open market.

I think the key is to sell yourself, don’t be excessively prescriptive in the ‘must haves’ and be prepared to sift through a lot of dross that invariably gets offered. But overall I have found it a far more effective buying strategy.

The amazing thing with this horse is that she turns out to be the full sister of her current horse! What are the chances?
She was 2 hrs away.

 

[18hhOlls&Me]

I dont think people do rule out horses an inch smaller though. Everyone has a wanted list in their head or in an ad. No one ever buys an exact fit. I wanted a 14.2hh native mare to ride then breed a foal from next year. I bought an ex racer gelding!

yes but I’ve seen so many ads with an exact description, and no one comments because they think the horse they have for sale won’t be right...I was exaggerating to make a point to be fair, but on a sales group, around 60-70% are wanted ads, and often very specific. I am growing on the idea of having a wanted group that prospective owners can look through, and sales groups with only actual horses/ponies for sale. I find often younger people may prioritise looks over what is suitable for them, or may overhorse themselves....by putting an exact description of what their ideal pony looks like, size etc without including what they want to do with the pony or what their experience is could cause trouble and time wasting...

 

[Meowy Catkin]

I'm not looking, but if I was my ad would read something like - Wanted. Arab or high % Arab. Unbacked youngster, ideally a yearling or two year old. Filly preferred but will consider a gelding.

So very, very specific. I don't understand why it's a bad thing? I've bought two that match that description before so I am a genuine buyer (when I am actively looking).

 

[18hhOlls&Me]

I think its that the groups for selling horses seem to have been overrun with many adverts just saying Looking for such and such and I wonder how many private owners looking to sell actually go to selling pages to find a buyer....when I bought my two I searched through selling sites and contacted the sellers directly to discuss suitability. There is a reason people advertise their horses on selling pages!

 

[18hhOlls&Me]

I'm not looking, but if I was my ad would read something like - Wanted. Arab or high % Arab. Unbacked youngster, ideally a yearling or two year old. Filly preferred but will consider a gelding.

So very, very specific. I don't understand why it's a bad thing? I've bought two that match that description before so I am a genuine buyer (when I am actively looking).

out of interest did the sellers approach you from a wanted ad, or did you find either on a selling page?

 

[Meowy Catkin]

Well it's a while ago since I bought anything (10 years maybe?). The filly I saw an ad and enquired by phone. The gelding was an odd one. We had a rabbit problem, someone came with ferrets, they noticed I had Arabs and said they knew someone who was looking to find a home for a yearling.

When I buy again, if I couldn't find what I wanted by looking at for sale ads, I definitely would put a wanted ad up. It just seems sensible to me.

ETA - I guess that thinking about it, the gelding counts as a 'word of mouth' sale as no advert was involved?

 

[marmalade76]

I'm not looking, but if I was my ad would read something like - Wanted. Arab or high % Arab. Unbacked youngster, ideally a yearling or two year old. Filly preferred but will consider a gelding.

So very, very specific. I don't understand why it's a bad thing? I've bought two that match that description before so I am a genuine buyer (when I am actively looking).

Arab people tend to be a bit different though, they often prefer to advertise within the Arab community rather than the open market and I can see how they'd more likely respond to a wanted ad or sell by word of mouth.

 

[SatansLittleHelper]

I've put up wanted ads and done just fine with them...though in fairness I tend to write humorous ads that get people talking...we just found my friends new pony that way