I think I do have a pretty good market, but I was still going for basically exactly what you said(chromoly frame, 3 piece crank, alloy wheels) minus some old mixte stuff that I think the college campus girls will buy. They seem to love that stuff. Cute little mixte with fenders and a rack. Those things are quite often about the same price as the road bikes here around campus. $100-200 depending mostly on condition more than the model of bike (I'm guessing this is obviously just because they don't know what makes a good bike beyond nice paint and a comfortable seat/riding position).
As for the CL timing, actually I work afternoon/evenings, so I'm usually looking morning, early afternoon or late at night. I think being in a college based town, though, all hours are common hours.