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General Guidelines
Auctions
At the seller's option, auctions last from 15 minutes to 14 days from the
initial listing of the item. Bidding automatically terminates at the end of
the auction.
When the auction ends, the seller and high bidder are notified by email.
Auction results are also available for everyone to examine. These results
indicate the final bid price, and the seller's and high-bidder's email
addresses. Additionally, the complete bidding history is available as a link
from the item's description page.
After an auction ends, the high bidder and seller should contact each
other within 3 business days to arrange payment and delivery. If within 3
business days the seller is unable to conclude the transaction with the
high-bidder, the seller may contact the next-highest bidder to purchase the
item. In summary, if a high bidder does not contact the seller within 3
business days after the end of the auction, the high bidder may lose his/her
place as winning bidder.
Bidding
Before you make a bid, you should verify the particulars about the item
you're bidding on, and as best as you can, investigate the seller's trading
practices. If you have any questions about the item, email your questions to
the seller. Make sure you clearly understand the shipping terms (who pays?),
payment terms (can you pay by personal check? credit card? and so on) and
other details. With respect to
water rights and/or real property purchases, you should ask the seller for
water rights documentation, a copy of a title report, or contact information
for a licensed practioner (such as an attorney or title company) who can
address your questions.
When you are viewing the item you would like to bid on, you can place a bid
by using the form on the lower part of the page. Please bid the maximum
amount you are willing to pay for the item. As other bidders increase the bid
price, your bid will be increased to your maximum bid, or increased by the
preset bid increment, to outbid other bidders. (Note: All bidding is done
with bid increments.)
By placing a bid, you are placing a legally-binding and irrevocable offer to
purchase the item at any price up to your maximum bid amount. If your bid is
accepted by the seller, you are then legally obligated to complete the
transaction. Your failure to complete the transaction is a breach of the User
Agreement, and may be legally actionable by the seller. You must provide your
Username with your bid.
Once you make and confirm a bid, you may not be able to retract it (depending
on the system settings and only for extraordinary or unusual circumstances).
Exceptional circumstances include situations where the seller materially
changes the description of an item after your bid, and clear typographical errors.
Exceptional circumstances do not include bidding on or winning a bid
on another (perhaps similar) item, not having the budget to pay for an item,
changing your mind, and so on. Please bid carefully!
Our system will automatically email you, subject to the reliability of email,
if your maximum bid is outbid by another bidder. However, you might be outbid
minutes or seconds before the close of an auction, in which case, you may not
have the opportunity to place a new bid. Therefore, you should bid the maximum
amount you would be willing to pay for the item when you make your first bid.
Proxy Bidding
When you place a bid, enter the maximum amount you are willing to pay
for that item. This amount will always be kept secret. Whenever someone else
places a bid, our auction software will automatically enter the lowest
possible bid for you, up to your maximum bid, until you are the winning
bidder.
At the end of an auction, if you are the high bidder, you are the winner. As
the winner of the auction, you only pay the lowest possible winning bid, not
necessarily your maximum bid.
Buying an Item
If you have not done so before the bid, call or email the seller to clarify
the terms of shipping and/or insurance. Negotiate with the seller for escrow,
sales tax, shipping fees, and payment terms. Pay promptly!
Selling an Item
It's fun and easy to start your own auction. Simply register, and then fill
out the listing form. Provide a short, descriptive title, and provide a
complete description of the item. You cannot use HTML tags in the title, but
you may use HTML in your item's description. This means that you can link to
pictures or reference pages, if you so choose. For example, if you are
selling or leasing a well, you may want to post your well registration and
other water right forms and then include a link to those posted forms. All content linked to the item
description must comply with the User Agreement.
To grab attention and get the auction going, you might consider setting the
initial minimum bid a little lower than you think the item will eventually be
sold for. If your minimum bid is too high, people may not bid on your item.
However, keep in mind that the minimum price you specify indicates the
minimum amount you will accept for the item, so set your initial minimum bid
wisely.
By auctioning an item, you are irrevocably (except as described below) and
legally committed to accept the high bid for the item (or the highest bidder's
bid who does not renege). If you receive one or more bids above the minimum
price you stated you would be willing to accept, then you are legally
obligated to complete the transaction. Your failure to complete the
transaction is a breach of the User Agreement, and may be legally actionable
by one or more of the bidders.
Note: The seller has the right to cancel a transaction with any user
with whom they are uncomfortable completing a transaction.
You may place any merchandise up for auction that you have the right to sell,
so long as it complies with the User Agreement, and all federal, state, and
local ordinances. Please list your item in its appropriate category.
You can advertise your auction by using the auction URL sent to you in the
confirmation email.
In the description of your item, you should clarify any additional terms or
expenses associated with the item, such as who will bear shipping and
insurance expenses.
We, and your bidders, expect you to be truthful in your listings.
Disappointed buyers are likely to leave you negative feedback.
Bidders or potential bidders may email you during the course of the auction.
It's good business to respond to all inquiries promptly.
Notice of End of Auction/Account Status
Once the auction is over, you will be notified via email. However, if you are
bidding on an item, you are responsible for checking back at WESTERN-WATER
to see if you have won. If you do not receive notice, and think you may be
the top bidder, you need to check the auction status at WESTERN-WATER.
After the auction has ended, the top bidder needs to contact the seller
within three business days. Likewise, you can check your account at any time
online. The notice is provided as a courtesy to you, but does not invalidate
your responsibility to check the auction results, directly. Note: If
your account is past due, you may incur late fees, or find your account on
suspension. Keep your account payments current!
Pricing
Some guidelines regarding pricing:
- First, we encourage sellers to set the
minimum bid for their auction at the lowest fair price at which they are
willing to sell their item.
- Second, a seller may employ a reserve price
auction. This allows the seller to set a price below which he or she
does not agree to sell the item.
Reserve Prices
At the seller's option, auctions may be conducted with reserve prices. The
reserve price is the lowest price at which a seller is willing to sell an
item. The reserve price is not disclosed to bidders. A seller might specify a
reserve price if he or she is unsure of the real value of the item, and would
like to be able to refuse to sell the item below a certain price. If the
seller has specified a reserve price, an annotation will be displayed on the
item's information screen indicating a reserve price has been set.
The seller specifies the reserve price when he or she lists an item. This
price should be above the minimum bid price. The auction begins at the
minimum bid price. When a bidder's maximum bid is equal to or greater than
the reserve price, the item's current price is raised to the reserve price.
At this time, the item's information page will indicate that the reserve
price has been met. The bidder is also notified that his or her bid met the
reserve price.
Feedback
We encourage everyone to leave feedback about experiences with other trading
partners. However, please do not abuse the privilege. If posting negative
feedback, stick to the facts, and avoid inflammatory speech.
User Information
During your transactions, take the time to record the member information you
obtain permission to use. That way, should you have questions regarding your
transaction, you can contact that member at a later date. For the safety of
our members, WESTERN-WATER only gives out contact information to
registered users.
Registration
When registering to become a member of WESTERN-WATER, you must enter
complete and correct contact information. This information is only available
to other registered users, enabling them to contact you regarding
transactions.
Fraud
Most fraud complaints tend to be misunderstandings about the product,
shipping terms, or shipping addresses. Therefore, you should clarify all of
these elements before you bid, and definitely before you send money. However,
fraud is a reality of doing business, both on and off the Web. You should
report it to the authorities if it happens in our community.
Illegal Items
Some items are not legal to sell at WESTERN-WATER. Please do not list
an item that is illegal to sell.
Spam
Members of WESTERN-WATER do not tolerate spam. Do not add a member's
email address to your address book unless you have permission from that
member. Spam is unsolicited, commercial email.
Defamation
Please be careful of what you say about other people online. Again, stick to
the facts, and don't post slanderous comments.
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