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What is the deal with Craigslist bait & switch with fish tanks?

6K views 21 replies 12 participants last post by  talontsiawd 
#1 ·
What is the deal with Craigslist bait & switch with fish tanks?

I think on Amazon and Ebay marketplace, 99% are honest.

I think on Craigslist, 99% are scammers. I don't think I have ever purchased 1 thing on Craigslist that was not a scam. (Ironically, on the bottom of the page it said " Avoid scams, deal locally" I hate to break it to them but everyone local to me is a scammer.

When I search for Acrylic Aquariums in my area, I am hoping someone might be moving and they can't take their aquarium with them.

People either will list the Aquarium for more money than a New aquarium will cost or they will list it for $1.

I have been to a couple of fire sale auctions where everything must go because a restaurant has gone out of business. My friend was trying to clear out his old TV which was a large CRT and he could not find anyone who wanted to buy it. Finally, someone offered said they would take it for $40. He was like the deal, the guy took it, threw it in the dumpster and sent him a bill for $40 to take his CRT TV.

So anyway, I'm not sure if these Aquariums are in this type of situation where they need it out of there quickly and are basically giving it away to anyone willing to move it.

So I respond to an advertisement for a large aquarium listed for $1 and the guy basically threatens to murder me and calls me every 4 letter word in the dictionary.

I usually buy most of my Aquarium stuff from Ebay, Amazon, Petco and Thatfishplace however never really deal with Craigslist.

Is this a common thing on Craistlist to list something for $1 but go nuts if anyone accepts your deal? Is this code for something?

Does $1 mean $1,000 or something? Why not list the price you think the item is worth or say " best offer,etc.." Why list it as $1 then go crazy if someone agrees to your asking price?

I am very confused on how Craigslist works compared to every other type of online marketplace.

Thanks.
 
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#3 ·
I see many people local to me do this all the time. I have no idea why they won't post a price, but CL won't list their item without a price (I believe it's a requirement when posting, so they just enter $1). If they can't put in the effort to give me a rough idea on price, I just avoid them because they're usually trouble.
 
#4 ·
They should list a starting price and say OBO( or best offer) or say starting at $100 and up if there are multiple items listed.

It's like saying you are going to do an RAOK(Random act of kindness) then go absolutely crazy when someone does not give you the $50 you wanted for the plants or coral.

In Ebay/Amazon/Aquabid, if something is listed for $1, it means you pay $1

The area that I live is usually listed as having the #1 medicare scam for the country as well as other scams, so it's funny when they said "avoid scams, deal locally"
 
#5 ·
I also never understood why people always try to rip you off on there. No matter what price you put something, people will always ask for it ridiculously cheaper. You could put something on there for 20 bucks, and probably half the people who respond to it will say would you take 10 for it? Like, really? It's okay if you come down somewhat to sell something if that's what you feel like doing, but not if you post something say for example for 250-300 dollars and someone comes along and says will you take 75 dollars for it?
 
#6 ·
I just saw something similar. A guy on Letgo was selling a Dewalt drill combo for $199, saying "factory sealed, never used". The photo was of the new model currently in stores. I happened to be looking for the new Dewalt cordless drill combo, and it's normally $299 at Home Depot, so I said I would take it. When I met him, it was the combo from like 5 years ago that sells on Amazon for $89.

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#7 ·
I've listed a few things on CL and I've always listed what I consider is the fair price I want for the item. But what irks me are the low-ballers trying to get a lower price. I end up listing it higher so folks think they're getting a deal if I take $10 or $20 off. Just the way it works I guess.
Then again, I like the idea of listing for $xx.yy or BO. If somebody offers $5 less, just say sorry, I've had an offer for $5 more from somebody that knows a bargain when they see it.

I think whenever you see $1 listed, you contact them and ask them what their real asking price is or you just pass.
 
#8 ·
You've got to be a little cautious when using craigslist as there is no one watching over it. But you also have to be smart about it. Obviously if a deal seems too good to be true it probably is! Its a classified section for used stuff so everyone should expect there is some room for negotiation and when something is listed for $1 its almost always pretty obvious thats not really a price the seller would accept. (wouldnt it be easier to simply throw something away instead of going to the trouble of listing the ad, and dealing with random strangers all to make a single buck?!) Its an ad made to pique your interest and get you talking and negotiating about what the real price might be.

That being said, I've bought and sold a ton of stuff (aquarium hobby as well as lots of other things) and really have one had one or two deals that didnt go quite as expected. I wouldnt say I've ever had a deal really go wrong though. I've had to walk away when a seller wouldn't come down more in price a few times and conversely sent a potential buyer away when they wouldnt come up to what I wanted. But thats how negotiations work for used stuff! Keep looking though as you really can get great deals via craigslist and other similar sites.
 
#11 · (Edited by Moderator)
I went to a few auctions for the movie studio of Burn Notice and Magic city and they were giving away like thousands of dollars in memorabilia for pennies on the dollar. They finish filming and were scheduled to be out of there in like a week and everything had to go. If they did not sell it, it was going to be scrapped or thrown out. In these auctions, you could literally bid $1 on something and as long as no one bids higher, you pay $1 for whatever it was.

There was a large monument that said " Police station" that was used in the studio and the price was dropped won to $5 and someone won it for $5. This item probably cost several hundred to construct in materials and time.

If I listed something on Ebay for $1 then tried to back out the deal saying it was a joke, ebay would ban you as a seller for not honoring the deal. Seem like a bait&switch. They need to come up with a fair market value and put that dollar amount and negotiate down.

Timeshares will give you a free weekend vacation if you listen to their 2-hour presentation or however it works now. They don't say " oh, we were just kidding, we can't actually give you a free weekend stay at our hotel/timeshare just for 1 or 2 hours time"

People should not list something for a price if it just baits in order to get you interested then switch the terms on you. I think this is very dishonest.

The value of used stuff is not your asking price but the sum of what someone is willing to pay. I expect negotiations to take place for used items.
If you look at used furniture, it cost a lot of money to buy new however if you try to sell it, it's almost worthless.

I purchased a house and the previous owner tried to sell it to me for like 80% of what he paid for it. He also had theater equipment that he spends a lot of money but it was 20 years old and obsolete. The projector had NO HDMI, NO 4K, No 1080P, don't even know if it had 720P or 480I,etc..

He ended up taking the equipment and probably cost him more money in transportation and warehousing than he ever got for that stuff. Who wants to be 20-year-old theater equipment without 4K or even 1080P and pay almost the price it cost while new.

Also, there is some real sicko on Craigslist. There are even people selling used diapers on there! USED DIAPERS. Someone called them and placed the prank call on youtube.

I am hoping to find a rainforest cafe that went out of business and selling the aquariums.
 
#10 ·
You get what you pay for. CL is full of bottom feeders and scams. Good deals are out there but so are scams. Buyer beware as usual and if it sounds too good to be true it probably is.
 
#12 ·
I find Craigslist is a really fine place to meet the best and the worst in folks. If you live in an area infested with scammers, lowballers and jerks, you will meet a lot of them. If you live in an area where people still have some self respect, you are more likely to find honest people. There are some areas where it is just normal business to try to chisel you down, no matter how good the deal. So you have to be aware of the fact that there are all sorts of folks doing all sorts of things.
Kind of like leaving your laptop in the car? Got to know it isn't very smart or be willing to live with the result.
I never expect to find a $50 item for $1 so assume that means they want an offer. Part of the problem may be that you are expecting to rip off somebody dumb enough to sell it that cheap?
 
#13 ·
I've sold and bought a lot of stuff on craigslist. I live near Detroit and if I get a phone number with a certain area code I won't deal with them.

I search craigslist a lot and there are a lot of delusional people that think their junk is worth top dollar. I avoid these people all together. If you're going to sell something clean it out and make it presentable.

When I sell on craigslist I clean my stuff out and I post it for half of what it costs new. When your selling something the buyer is taking the risk of whether it is broken or something wrong with it.
 
#14 ·
Wow, Detroit, that is like a war zone. I have seen that Pawn reality show and I would not want to deal with those people. Either the customers in that store nor the store employees. I feel like I need to take a shower after watching that show but the dirt not coming off. LOL. :grin2:

You really take your life in your hands on craigslist. I think there have been a couple of shootings on deals gone bad.
 
#16 ·
You guys do realize that those shows are made to keep you watching, not really inform you and truth may be really hard to find?
Have you ever walking into some place and had a camera recording it all? That might make the deal a bit different for most folks! Somewhat like "Naked and Afraid"? Not like they are really dying as long as the camera crew is there!
 
#22 ·
Is this a common thing on Craistlist to list something for $1 but go nuts if anyone accepts your deal? Is this code for something?
Yes, $1 means I want to show up first when people sort by price. Typically they say prices in the post, and if they don't, it is assumed that it means then "make an offer". Some people just do it because they want you to make an offer so it's kind of code for that if nothing else is stated.

I typically don't do the $1/make an offer as I find those people typically don't want to set a price because they want more than other people selling the same thing. I have made a ton of reasonable offers, only for them to start negotiating up, and I just am not interested in that when it's not even necessary for me to do. If it's rare, different story. The only time I do is when they really don't have a price because they are open to trades so they really don't have a price in mind, just other things they would trade straight up for.
 
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