Too good to be true?

[skramer360]

I have bought and sold multiple items on Marketplace. Most recently was an inexpensive car. It was in another state. I contacted the seller, set up a time to meet and inspect the car. The car turned out to be better than I expected and I bought it for slightly less than the advertised price.

 

[4570Man]

I have hate, hate, hate relationship with Facebook. Nothing but scammers, "...My father is on a 6 month submarine deployment in the Pacific, if you will take a PayPal check and ship it...blah blah blah..." 3 Different versions of that scam. The ad read "In person transactions only." Somebody from about 50 miles away was going to put an Australian Shepherd puppy on a plane with a handler for $250 bucks. I replied that I would just drive up there and get it. They ignored that comment and just kept asking for the $250 check. Different experiences, I guess.

There’s even more scammers on Craigslist than marketplace. And Craigslist will let people spam post the same thing 100 times. Marketplace requires a different picture.

 

[Mike0616]

why anyone even considers buying online is beyond me

There are no legit items on FBM at all. NONE! People must like being ripped off, must get off by being cheated / abused.

 

[Spanner]

If it sounds and looks to good to be true - it is. Lots of scammers out there

This.

 

[4570Man]

why anyone even considers buying online is beyond me

This is a little outside my comfort zone I’ve only done it twice but I bought this machine online sight unseen in New Jersey. I live in Tennessee.

 

[big bubba]

good to see honest deals out there, in that case you done good.

 

[CliffordK]

There are good and bad purchases online.

E-Bay has been generally good in the past. I have snagged a couple of scammers generally overseas with the too good to be true new parts sales. There is always a little funky of a tell.

One of the new things on E-Bay is drop shipping. Perhaps even a seller that is selling on E-Bay and ordering on Amazon to cover their order. Not particularly a scam, but the actual stocking and shipping is out of their control. I did have someone drop shipping car tires. They marked the ad as shipped, except their shipper was out of stock, and it wasn't until a few weeks later I reported not receiving the item. They got negative feedback.

Most of my Craigslist/Facebook purchases have been in person, although I did have a roofing machine shipped to me from Alaska. Odd... I was pretty careful that everything seemed to be coming from a legit business.

One of the things I've seen on Craigslist in the past is that a single ad would literally be posted as local to 100 different cities. I've gone on flagging binges in the past. Now that Craigslist allows searching up to 500 or 1000 miles, those types of ads are easier to pick out.

I have considered purchasing a skid steer or mini excavator in the under $10K price range. But to be in that market there is something that throws them below others. Ancient? Blown Engine? Burn? Blown final drive? Etc.

Oh, one of my general rules when buying broken stuff... the sellers that give a simple description for why something doesn't run are generally WRONG. Whether that is intentional or not.

 

[JimR]

There are no legit items on FBM at all. NONE! People must like being ripped off, must get off by being cheated / abused.

Maybe where you live but not here in the N.E. I am scoring deals on there all of the time for cheap money. I also have sold a lot of things on FBM. I have bought cars out of State on there. My only request from sellers is honesty and lots of photos.

 

[paulsharvey]

There are no legit items on FBM at all. NONE! People must like being ripped off, must get off by being cheated / abused.

What are you talking about? Do people where you live not sell used boats, cars, tractors, RVs, lawn mowers, mud tires? If they do, they use FBM. Nobody just drives around looking for a used car parked with "for sale", they get on FB Market. Heck, most dealers run ads on FB Market, as its the most viewed source for about anything. You might have some scams, but I would say 90% are actually items; and the only way to get scammed is by being an idiot. Deal in cash, go armed, and I dont see how you get scammed? Ripped off. sure, but scammed, nope.

 

[paulsharvey]

With that above, can FB Market be a bit of a pain at times, sure, but thats not FB, thats people. Yes, you list something, people will want to see how low you will drop. That is part of the game, but it can also serve as a reality check. I dont care what you Paid for you item, I care what im willing to pay you for said item. If I need to pay what you paid, no reason to talk to you, might as well buy it at the store/dealer/Amazon. Also, your $4000 do-dad, that is available from Temu/Ebay/Vevor for $600; yes, im likely to offer 50-75% of what I can get it for on those, not what you paid.

On the flip side, as a buyer, its frustrating too. Sellers descriptions, bad pictures, not answering messages, and selling something while you are on the way. Well, yep, that sucks; But if im selling, and you call and want to come look, and some other guy shows up with cash, hes getting it. I donr know if you are actually coming, or if you will have the money, or what, so... First guy with cash gets it. Yes, I would shoot you a message and say "sold" to keep you from driving an hour or 3 for something thats gone.