Does Anyone Have Experience Listing with Craiglist

We've used it a couple of times.

Back when the Wii's were brand new and nowhere to be found, we bought our Wii from a person on CL. My hubby met the guy in a public area, got the tag number and description of the car for "just in case", and bought the Wii. He provided it in an unopened box with receipt. We were not gouged...basically we paid the going price and covered the guys taxes + about $10.

In Dec 08, we sold my Miata on CL in 3 days. It was in mint condition because I only drove it in the parade every year. A man from Kansas flew down here, hubby picked him up in another vehicle at the airport, I met them at the bank in the Miata. He looked under the hood and we went inside the bank and he paid the amount that was asked on CL.

Now, I have donated items to different charities where they come pick up at the house. I NEVER let anyone in my home. I prefer them not come here at all. In some cases that is not possible. When we donated a washer/dryer to a mom from Hope's Door and a dinig room table on another occasion, the moms had to have someone help them get the items. We had the items in the garage so they never came inside.

I was planning to donate a large screen working TV and fridge to Allen Community Outreach and declined becauase they basically send someone who is one their list of need to come pick up the items. I did not feel comfortable with that situation.

Remember the media will always broadcast the negative stuff. At the same time, keep safety in your mind and plan accordingly. Personally, I will not let anyone I do not know in my house. That goes for garage sales as well...it is a great way to case out a place.

Good luck

1 mom found this helpful

Hi there!

I do! I hate having garage sales but don't mind listing items on Craigslist since it's free. The way I combat the concerns over strangers I don't know is that if the interested purchaser is male then I have them come by to see the item/and buy ONLY when my husband is home after work or during weekends.

I'm a little less concerned about women because I am certain I can hold my own with those if I needed to.

I have found homes for kittens, birds, a hamster and have found each of the 4 cats we have, my canary and my doves this way. I've also bought furniture and sold furniture and many other miscillaneous items this way.

I typically have people come only during daylight hours but it's totally up to you and when the person is able to come as to how you set it up. You CAN choose to have the person meet you in a public place instead of having them come to your home. This is always a nice option if your house is a total wreck or you're just nervous about someone knowing where you live.

Also-the ads can be set up in such a way that NONE of your information is availible to anyone. They respond to your ad through an anonymous email sent through Craigslist. They don't even know your email that way until you resond. In this way you can choose WHO to respond to. I don't respond to anyone who sounds rude or seems to have a lot of attitude. That's the nice thing about it. :)

The only problem I have with using Craigslist is that some people will be no-shows and that really irks me. I'm talking about when you choose to contact a possible buyer-and exchange information and set up a date and time for them to come and then for whatever reason they DON'T come and DON'T call or contact you again in anyway. This DOES occurr and frequently but all they know is the name you give them (I often don't include my last name) and a cell number and my address.

I often put in my ads that if the person doesn't show or contact me within half an hour of our agreed time on the date we choose to meet up then I will respond to the next interested person and that the agreement with the first interested person is then nill.

I have NEVER had any one rude come and everyone who came was all politeness and eager and excited to see the item for sale. I've only had one person decline an item so the sell rate is VERY good. I used EBAY before Craigslist but switched to save on shipping and because Ebay ends up costing you if your auction isn't bid on.

Browse a little-read the ads and then set up your own. It's easy!

1 mom found this helpful

Yes, I have bought several things and sold a few things. Always good experiences, but I agree with the other posts.. just listen to your instincts and play it safe! I always moved what I could to the garage and had a well known male neighbor come over, if my husband wasn't home. I only showed one item when I was by myself with my 5 yo, and that was to a Mom coming to look at a bike caddy for her kids. I mostly dealt with some really nice people!

L.,

Craigslist is great! If you don't feel comfortable with people coming to your house, have them meet you in a public place. This usually works best anyway because sometimes people live far away from you and would want to meet in between. Have fun makin' some money!

I have sold and bought many things using Craiglist... and have never had a bad experience. I think the hardest part is deciding who gets the goods!! Be smart about the way you handle it... get their name and number when they contact you and make sure that you are not alone when they come to the house. Good luck!

I once used craig's list to sell a concession trailer and it sold quickly, but, it was not in the house so I would suggest that if you use craig's list, have a male to list it for you and make sure to have him there when people make appointments to come by to see your things, it is true that there are a lot of crazy people out there and you don't want to take any unnecessary chances, so give it some thought and whatever you do, be sure to be safe.

We had a very good experience, but you do have to be wise and careful. I would advise checking neighborhoods on a map first and to be smart about meeting places.

We purchased a china cabinet...it is beautiful, in great condition, an amazing deal. The neighborhood where we went was a very nice one; we met at their home (gated community)during the day.

We still look there from time to time.

I've bought and sold lots of things. You can schedule the pickup in the evening when your husband is home or meet at a Starbucks or something. I really like CL.

Craigslist scares me too. I haven't listed anything, but I have gotten something. I would suggest a porch pick up, i.e. leave the goods outside so you never even have to see them. Then you can set up the payment through paypal or something.
If it's something you're not looking to make money off of, and just want to get rid of it, I would suggest Freecycle. You can google it.

I love CL, too! I've bought several items and usually for most I've just picked them up at their front door. Recently I sold several items and did the same thing. But I don't think I would do that again. I sold a file cabinet and some guy came to pick it up in the garage during the day while my kids were sleeping and my husband was gone. I have to say that all I could think about the whole time he was here was about bad things that could happen. He probably was a nice guy, but I really don't know that, and I really put myself in a vulnerable position. If I had to do it over, I would have him come while my husband is here and have him deal with it. Another situation: I sold a crib tent to a mom with 5 kids. She came in my house and was here for like 2 minutes. For some reason I can trust a mom with five kids wanting to buy something to protect her little one from climbing out of the crib.

Bottom line, I need to be less trustworthy and be more pre-cautious. Better safe than sorry!

I have used Craigslist quite a bit and have had only positive experiences...i'm not married and have had people come to the house on several occasions. I've both sold and purchased.

Good luck - you should be fine. :)

Hello L.,
I sold a lot of things from my House on Craiglist when I was moving and also bought something as well....but Thank God whoever came to my house were genuinely nice people.. of cource never fall for the trap of responding your emails to the buyers who offer you a Cashiers or Certified check. But there are all kinds of people in this world just keep your eyes open and follow your gut feeling.

Good Luck,
R.

I list and buy things on CL all the time. Usually meet people in a public place, but with heavy stuff like furniture, I make sure that my husband is home with me. I have met some great people! You will love it!

I've used it.

I'd say the biggest thing is not to give out your address until you know the person is definitely coming to buy whatever you are selling. I also wouldn't say anything about being home/not being home when making arrangements with a buyer.

I personally show items in my driveway or in the garage when they have to come to my home to buy something, I don't let people into my home and usually I will have my husband conduct the transaction. For smaller things that are portable, I meet at a local Starbucks.

There's no way to guarantee safety except just not using Craig's List. But if you are careful to communicate only needed information, it's usable. The number of these bad incidences is low compared to the number of successful sales, unfortunately, the bad stories are all that get reported on in the media.

Soooo, how are you with teaching swim lessons at your home? Seems to me you could employ similiar precautions for selling things on Craigslist.
FWIW, we've sold many items on Craigslist and never had a problem. There are going to be bad experiences, bad apples, if you will; whether or not they affect your decisions is only up to you. Whether or not those decisions turn out ok is a risk. We've been fine with it though.

Yes, i list with craigslist often. If i am offering a service or selling, once in awhile i will get someone trying to get me to work for them. These are few and far between, but it has happened. Other than that i have had no problems. If you are selling something, only accept cash, period the end, no other means of payment.

Hi L.,

I'm a Craig's List nut!

What I do is pick a nuetral meeting place and always let someone know who I'm meeting and a phone number.

Call me if you have any questions on how to post and I can help.

Best Wishes,

C. Roeschen
The Trinity Group
Keller Williams
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www.TheTrinityGroup.org