4 ms·

Craigslist

lfowles 10y ago
Even worse, "Man sued for $30K over $40 printer he sold on Craigslist" https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=11847858 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=11847858
- lsaferite 10y ago
  In person, cash transaction, crowded place? Pfft, then you get arrested because the cops think you're selling stolen goods.
  - jaynos 10y ago
    Lots of police stations now have "Safe Exchange" places either in the station or in the parking lot. Cameras in place and well lit.
- dietrichepp 10y ago
  That's a nasty corner case of PA state law, combined with a defendant who failed to respond to claims.
  - ZeroGravitas 10y ago
    I read that when it was posted, and I got the I pressing the conman was pulling some trick to claim he had informed the other party, but hadn't actually done so. If that's the case then you'd need ESP to avoid being scammed.
chiph 10y ago
Even so, there's a good possibility of old-school fraud, with fake cashier's checks, or getting mugged. A recent trend has been for police departments to allow CL transactions to take place in their parking lots.
- covercash 10y ago
  I do all of my Craigslist transactions in the lobby of my bank. They have cameras and a security guard, and as an added bonus I can deposit the cash right away.
dionidium 10y ago
Yes, but Craigslist is a huge pain in the ass. 1. Craigslist is slow. On eBay, you're done in 7 days. It can be pretty hard to get full market value on Craigslist in anywhere near that amount of time, if at all, especially if you're in a smaller city. 2. People on Craigslist are flaky. I have no idea what compels someone to email a seller with interest, schedule a time to view an item, and then just not show up, but they do it all the time. Why even bother? 3. People on Craigslist are needy. On eBay, I list and then I sell. I am selling two items on Craigslist right now. You should see my phone's messaging app. It's full of the unknown numbers of un-serious buyers asking pointless questions they'll never follow up on. 4. People on Craigslist are, well, people. That means I have to meet them somewhere. Arranging that always ends up being more difficult than a trip to the post office. I view the tradeoff like this: eBay = simple, easy, fast, but with a nonzero likelihood of total loss Craigslist = nearly guaranteed to be difficult, slow, and annoying, but with a very low chance of total loss I don't think it's an easy decision. They are definitely not interchangeable.
- mason240 10y ago
  What's interesting is that it is the opposite for buyers. So much easier to buy of CL than eBay.
  - jfoster 10y ago
    What do you do if you discover something wrong with the item post-transaction?
    - superuser2 10y ago
      Small claims court seems nicely suited.
      - srtjstjsj 10y ago
        I'm not going risk wasting a day of my life for $100 or get my life more entwined with an avowed criminal.

Craigslist

Even worse, "Man sued for $30K over $40 printer he sold on Craigslist" https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=11847858 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=11847858

lsaferite 10y ago
In person, cash transaction, crowded place? Pfft, then you get arrested because the cops think you're selling stolen goods.
- jaynos 10y ago
  Lots of police stations now have "Safe Exchange" places either in the station or in the parking lot. Cameras in place and well lit.
dietrichepp 10y ago
That's a nasty corner case of PA state law, combined with a defendant who failed to respond to claims.
- ZeroGravitas 10y ago
  I read that when it was posted, and I got the I pressing the conman was pulling some trick to claim he had informed the other party, but hadn't actually done so. If that's the case then you'd need ESP to avoid being scammed.

chiph 10y ago

Even so, there's a good possibility of old-school fraud, with fake cashier's checks, or getting mugged. A recent trend has been for police departments to allow CL transactions to take place in their parking lots.

covercash 10y ago
I do all of my Craigslist transactions in the lobby of my bank. They have cameras and a security guard, and as an added bonus I can deposit the cash right away.

dionidium 10y ago

Yes, but Craigslist is a huge pain in the ass. 1. Craigslist is slow. On eBay, you're done in 7 days. It can be pretty hard to get full market value on Craigslist in anywhere near that amount of time, if at all, especially if you're in a smaller city. 2. People on Craigslist are flaky. I have no idea what compels someone to email a seller with interest, schedule a time to view an item, and then just not show up, but they do it all the time. Why even bother? 3. People on Craigslist are needy. On eBay, I list and then I sell. I am selling two items on Craigslist right now. You should see my phone's messaging app. It's full of the unknown numbers of un-serious buyers asking pointless questions they'll never follow up on. 4. People on Craigslist are, well, people. That means I have to meet them somewhere. Arranging that always ends up being more difficult than a trip to the post office. I view the tradeoff like this: eBay = simple, easy, fast, but with a nonzero likelihood of total loss Craigslist = nearly guaranteed to be difficult, slow, and annoying, but with a very low chance of total loss I don't think it's an easy decision. They are definitely not interchangeable.

mason240 10y ago
What's interesting is that it is the opposite for buyers. So much easier to buy of CL than eBay.
- jfoster 10y ago
  What do you do if you discover something wrong with the item post-transaction?
  - superuser2 10y ago
    Small claims court seems nicely suited.
    - srtjstjsj 10y ago
      I'm not going risk wasting a day of my life for $100 or get my life more entwined with an avowed criminal.