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Has anybody tried to buy anything on cragslist?

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Libertas:
Welcome to Thunderdome!

 ;D

I'll have to enter soon...got old car crap to shed...

I am trying to enlist my nephews to do the work and keep the money...I just want the crap gone!

AlanS:
I've bought and sold, though locally. My truck shopping has taken me across state lines with deals that were questionable. Not complete rip-offs, but not what they were showing.

kermit:
It's been my experience, if you snooze, you loose.
People cruise that place just looking for deals to re-sell.
I missed one of the prettiest boats I ever saw by 30 seconds. Didn't need it, but wanted it to put in storage. Nice.
A guy at work wears out his cell, just looking for something to re-sell.

richb:
When I was selling real estate,  CL was one of those annoying things you had to deal with.   You had to check it often to make sure that nobody was stealing your real estate listings for rental scams.  They would even steal your pictures and descriptions of the property.  Hear its still a major problem.   

BigAlSouth:
I've been buying and selling on Craigslist for 20 years. I think I know all of the scams by now. Some or the most innocuous "email capture" scams and some are outright fraudulent. It's the wild, wild west of commerce. If you are careful, you can weed out the chafe and get the wheat. Here are some things to watch out for:

1.  For a vehicle, boat or large ticket item, beware of the "low price, low mileage and one picture" Rule. They are 100% scams. They just want you to opt out of the Craigslist private email communication and to contact them at a Gmail address. They only want your address. Beware of being asked to direct all future correspondence to another email provider. I take some joy in hitting the "prohibited" button when I come across them.

2. The "oh, my secretary adding the shipping cost to your check" scam. They want your to cash their check (sometimes a forged Cashiers Check) and wire the "balance" to them for shipping costs. I once had some time on my hands so I toyed with the "buyer" and made him send me multiple certified checks via overnight. I figure I cost him about $60.00.

3.  Never, ever meet at your house. Go to a well lit, public area in the daytime preferable with CCTV cameras. Walmart is good.

4. Out of state area codes are a red flag. Deal locally. Since there is a military base nearby, I often get some weird area codes, but they verify as military.

5. Only take cash, or in the case of a certified check, require it to be drawn on a national bank like BankAmerica or Wells Fargo. Schedule the transfer at the local branch. They will cash the check for you and verify it's legit. NEVER EVER deposit their check in your account. It could take weeks to come back as a forgery, then you are on the hook.

My best Craigslist deal? I sold a 2000 Jeep wrangler to a guy who lived on the Outer Banks of NC. I even agreed to take his certified check for $7,000.  Why would I do such a thing? Because I have a special skill set which allowed me to independently verify EVERYTHING the seller told me. I even hunted down his residence and found his mailing address through county tax records. ( I did draw the line at him taking my license plate and turning it in for me.)

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