Originally Posted by
nlerner
FWIW, here in the Boston area I’ve sold 4 bikes via CL in the last 6 weeks. No flaky buyers, all paid what I was asking (I set my prices relatively low compared to the flipper crap that makes up most of what’s available), all transactions via Venmo. No complaints from here.
I don't know about venmo, never even heard of that one. I deal strictly in cash myself.
I had the first sale of the entire year this morning, some guy showed up who had been emailing me for two months, he bought every last Huffy in the back barn, all 31 of them at $50 each. I was pulling them out and listing them at $100 each, a dozen or so sold early last year but the rest weren't as nice. I don't fix up Huffy bikes and they don't have any parts I can use so they had to go.
I don't list very regularly, just when I come across something I can't use or don't want. Most of what I do list isn't bikes, but other junk found in peoples garages and barns.
Things that are a hard sell here, regardless of whether its high or low end is bicycles, any sort of art, sculptures, paintings etc., lawn mowers, garden tractors, and stereo electronics. Things that sell fast are furniture, kitchen things, used carpet, auto parts, and boats, outboards, and gimmick type lawn care items like odd ball weed trimmers, cheap chainsaws, etc.
What has amazed me over the years with CL and FB is how many buyers will drive long distances not to buy something. You get the email saying they want it and will you take a deposit on it, I'll be there on the weekend, I'm X miles away. I never take a deposit but so long as they sound legit I'll set it aside for a few days at best.
More often than not lately I get people who have driven 200+ miles to look at something only to show up without any money, or tell me they're just looking. Most are older folks but not always. I had a couple drive from Ohio, (to NJ), to buy a very clean Schwinn Tandem I had found. I had it listed cheap at $400 cash, firm just to get it out of my way. They drove here and kept calling me through the day telling me they're still coming, then showed up an hour after dark after getting lost several times. They showed up driving a tiny car with no hatch and no bike rack. They looked at the bike, even rode it, then came back and asked me how much to ship it to their house. I told her I don't do shipping, and the cost of shipping something that size would likely exceed what its worth. I told them the best bet would be to take it apart and take it with you.
They then said they didn't bring any money. They just figured they'd take the ride and check it out, if they liked it they'd pay me by check and have me ship it to them.
I again told them I don't do shipping, I don't have the time and most of the bikes I deal with have fenders and won't fit on a modern bike box without being nearly completely disassembled. The woman spoke up and she said she didn't want the bike taken apart, "Can't you ship it Whole?" I again said I don't ship anything, especially tandems. If she wanted it shipped, that was up to them to buy it, and take to a shipper. Keep in mind I was selling it cheap, most of those I see are listed for more than double. They finally left empty handed, they emailed me a few times over the next few months asking if I changed my mind about shipping it, so I finally gave them a price of $1200 to ship it, I never heard from them again. I got tired of all the idiots and raised the price to $1500 obo. The bike finally sold locally back around Christmas to someone who was visiting family up this way in their RV, they took it back to FL with them in one piece. I got $800 for it. It was here for over three years in all. Way too long to store and keep tripping over a tandem. Two weeks after I took the CL ad down, I got an email from the people from OH asking if I still had the bike, and that they'd like to come pick it up if I'd let it go for $400.