Facebook takes on eBay with a new page showing users’ second-hand goods for sale

Facebook is testing out a new option in news feed that shows a unified view of items on sale across user groups and adds the ability to search public groups.

We reported earlier this year that the company has begun allowing users that are a part of ‘buy and sell’ groups to attach prices, locations, photos and descriptions to posts about items for sale. Now, it’s taking the tool to the next level.

The new ‘all sales groups’ option shows items available for purchase across all groups a user belongs to, providing a unified overview of what’s for sale.

It also provides a search engine — which only partially functions right now — that provides the ability to search for items across public groups and filter results based on a category.

TNW has learned that this feature is being tested right now, but will be rolling out worldwide in the coming weeks.

The move indicates a greater push into the territory of companies like Craigslist and eBay. Selling goods directly on Facebook avoids fees associated with third party sites and keeps users on the social network.

I’ve both purchased and sold items on Facebook and while it feels decidedly more shady — there’s no system for verifying a seller’s credibility — it’s also much faster, cheaper and overall easier than going to eBay.

With categories for items like event tickets, sporting equipment and even real estate, it’s clear that Facebook sees the opportunity to capture a significant amount of the second-hand goods market by simply making it easier to sell things directly.