Is CL for real?

I've had great luck buying and selling on CL.

About 50% for me. Or about half the time my time is wasted...

I started having great luck after I dumbed down my emails. The morons around here seem to think that a 2 paragraph email must be a scammer, when in reality I'm just trying to buy something.

ClemSparks wrote: Having sold, bought, and traded a lot of stuff on CL...here is my advice: Make sure the seller knows you're an actual person who is interested in buying their "item" [no that you would...but don't call it an "item." Any response that says, "I'm interested in purchasing your item...can you tell me it's latest conditions and asking price?" is a scam. Always.] Important rule: never send an email asking if it's still for sale. That is the most often received scam/spam phishing tactic.

You might have nailed it here.

I spend plenty of time looking for the spammers, never thought about someone trying to sell something thinking a buyer might be a scammer.

And yeah, I've been guilty of the "Is it still available" error. I guess I (innocently) just kinda wanted to know if it was still available... (sigh) Too bad. Several folks missed a cash buyer.

It's a little weird listing something for sale, but being afraid to connect with a person who wants to buy it.

Ok, I'll take your advice.

In reply to Tom Suddard:

You've probably got a point on the "dumbing down" thing, too.

Thanks.

SVreX wrote: It's a little weird listing something for sale, but being afraid to connect with a person who wants to buy it. Ok, I'll take your advice.

As bad as you think it is as a buyer...it's worse as a seller. This, I say, from experience (I buy more than I sell, to be sure).

CL has been hit or miss for me. Got burned on a set of tires last summer. Seller stated they were 205/55/15 and when I spent an hour driving to meet up with him, they were 205/65/15. But on the flip side within the past couple months, I've picked up 3 bmx bikes that were in decent condition from two different sellers for less than $150.

I proceed with caution and YMMV

I've seen people use MS paint to write their phone number and/or email and upload it as a picture, this helps root out the undesirables.