I've never seen a pastel lesser as low as $500, unless it was maybe for a quick sale...i think the norm, depending on male or female is $600-750 or so.
Rob, I saw 3 Pastel Lesser 1.0's today between 2 different stores for $450 each. The 2012's will probably be as affordable if not more.
Thomas "Slim" Whitman
Never Met A Ball Python I Didn't Like
What I do when trying to gauge what the price "should be", I'll throw out high and low ends of the spectrum and average out the middle. I've paid more than I "should have" for a few animals based on them being what I like, and I've gotten a few exceptional animals at a really inexpensive price. The ball python market is so arbitrary...sex, age, size, breeder are what I see effect prices the most. Quality should, but that's not necessarily the case. You really just have to look at as many ads, as many breeders as possible and settle on a number you're willing to pay.