Getting started with Yahoo! Auctions in Japan

Well, now that I'm in Japan, I thought it would be a good idea to learn about Yahoo! Auctions without the need of a redirection company! I think I'd be able to navigate my way around website and probably bid/buy it now. But there's a few things I'm unsure about. The first hurdle is payment, since no one in Japan accepts PayPal, how am I suppose to pay these fools? I've just got internet banking setup on my bank account and I think I've found the direct deposit option. Do most sellers accept direct deposit? Or would I have to do something silly like pay cash at a convenience store? From my brief experimentation with YA, it seems like postage isn't automatically calculated like eBay does. You're expected to somehow work it out for yourself and pay the seller the appropriate amount. Any idea how that's done?

In terms of my address, I know how to write it in Romaji, but I don't know how to write it in proper Japanese. Would one of you guys be able to type it up for me so I can copy and paste it?

Thanks guys!

 

From my gathering it's through electronic bank transfers, and credit cards.

 

OK, it's been many years since I set up my accounts but here's what I remember. First you'll need a Japanese credit card and a fixed address in Japan. The you fill out the online info with Yahoo. They'll send you a number via regular post. You then use that number to activate your account. It may be a little different now but that's how it was a few years back.

 

You might also be able to use a service like Japamart or Noppin to shop if they don't mind shipping domestically. Having a middleman makes it slightly more expensive but it could be useful if you don't have the proper credentials to setup your own account (Japanese CC, fixed address, etc)

 

You can sign up and use Yahoo Auctions for free to bid on items up to 5000 yen. For anything else, you'll have to register with a credit card or bank account.

 

I've got the proper credentials (i.e fixed address and bank account) but I don't have a Japanese credit card. Planning to apply for a Visa debit card, so this should cover me for whenever I need a credit card.

Is adding your bank account simialr to adding your bank account on PayPal? Can they automatically make withdrawals from your account when you buy stuff?

Can one of you gentlemen convert my address from Romaji to Kanji? Send me a PM if you can and I'll send you my address! Please don't send me any anthrax once you know my address!

 

From a few years ago, they had someone come to my house and check my gaijin card to my address.

 

Yes but payment is delayed to the seller and some sellers won't send until they see the money come through. Also, you will be charged for the transfer fee.

 

Now that's hands-on service!

Sounds like a plain-Jane bank transfer would be best then. Hopefully it's not too complex of a process.

 

Japanese banks fail at everything: except for local remittance. It's easy as shit, and it's been around long before any of us. In the 90's you could do it with an ATM machine, but the trick was knowing the pronunciation of the branch. (Easy to look up on the webz now). Many times back in the day I had to ask the person behind me.

 

Okay, I've won my first item from Yahoo! Auctions (a launch model PS3, yay!) Payment isn't as simple as eBay, it can't even work out what shipping will be automatically, you need to look for your prefecture in the seller's listing. Payment involves choosing the net banking option then finding your bank's name, advancing to the payment screen, logging into your bank and then accepting. A shit-load more steps than eBay, but at least bank transfer is more automated than eBay (though really, who does a bank transfer on eBay?) Will be MUCH simpler once my Visa debit card arrives, and no fee either. Managed to get through it, though a hit a snag when Chrome's auto translate crapped out (as usual) on the "choose your bank" screen and they disabled highlighting so I coulden't copy the list of names and run them through Google Translate. But then I remembered that my bank's name is "Saitama Resona" and "Saitama" uses the kanji for "ball" so I just looked for the one with the ball kanji and "Resona" written in katakana. BAM! Education to the rescue!

 

Calculating shipping costs are going to be variable by seller. Some will list how much each shipping method is to your address... some wait until you've initiated contact through the torihiki navi. If you're expecting something streamlined like Ebay, you're in the wrong cuntry.

 

Actually I like the Yahoo system better. This way you can't get shafted by automated rip off shipping prices. Yahoo also just recently changed their credit card payment system. It's now much easier with only 3 clicks of the mouse unlike the mess it was before.

 

Yeah, I found that out just now when I was wondering why the guy hadn't shipped yet and I found a message from him. Does Yahoo! Auctions seriously not even tell the seller that the buyer made a payment? It's sitting right there in my profile as paid, so Yahoo! knows. It also seems like they can't even get your address, as he asked for that too. Anyway, I replied to the message with the information he asked so so hopefully it's all good now.

*EDIT* Yep, he just messaged me to say he sent it.

 

Yahoo will tell the seller if you make the payment using the Yahoo Kantan service but not if you pay via the bank or post office, obviously.

 

Which is fair enough, but I DID use the easy check out! Might be that he wasn't given my address (despite needing to give it to Yahoo! anyway)

 

Yahoo Kantan service does not provide any private customer info. You have to do that yourself.

 

Yes, this is true. I don't actually mind the way Yahoo Auctions works. Sure, there's a lot of manual input but that just makes communication between the seller and buyer more "personal" and better for not getting ripped off.

 

It certainly is a personal (if antiquated) touch. Though it means a lot of Google Translate and embarrassingly bad grammar for me!

 

It's all in the learning process I'm afraid.