Black Belt Shopper
(featured column)

Craig's List and Other Great Sites for Buying and Selling New or Used Items

by Larry Wiener

Looking for an entertainment center?  How about a
Thomasville cherry wood for $25?   How about a DVD recorder to put in that entertainment center for $30?  More...

These are but two of the items I found in Craig's List, a website that acts as a clearinghouse to bring private party buyers and sellers together.  It has listings in all 50 states and many foreign countries.  Its listings include community, personals, housing, for sale, services, jobs, and gigs.  You can even post your resume on Craig's list.  Most of the listings are free to private parties.  It is organized by item location and category so you can easily find what you are looking for.  Here in California it has become one of the premier sites to facilitate person to person commerce.

Of course you'll have to haul that 300 pound entertainment center from the fourth floor, but it's probably worth the effort because a piece like that even used would sell for several hundred dollars.  The DVD recorder, however, has all the manuals and cables, according to the seller.

Some sellers list their phone numbers and/or e-mail addresses, but others ask you to reply to an e-mail address provided by Craig's List. Most ads give a general idea of where the item is located so you won't be driving 50 miles to buy a hand mixer.

Of course, as with any private party transaction there is not necessarily a warranty and it's buyer beware.  Therefore, you'll need to ask a lot of questions, especially on expensive items.  Descriptions vary in their usefulness.  For example, one person advertised an average sized refrigerator.  You may want to find out what that means before you drive a long ways to look at the item as one person's average size is different from another's.

Craig's List isn't the only place to find good used (and sometimes new) merchandise at good prices.  If you live in the western United States, there is always the Recycler.com which is similar to Craig's List in many ways.  Its classification system is a little more detailed, but it doesn't cover as large a geographical area as Craig's List.  Of course your local classified ads have good used merchandise.  Movies, books, and CD's are often available used at Amazon.com and Half.com.  Those online resources give you the ability to see the history of the seller because buyers regularly rate sellers.

And how can I not mention sources of good used merchandise without mentioning the famous eBay?  There you will find auctions and fixed priced offerings for everything you can imagine and quite a few items you can't.

For more ideas on how to buy used, you can look up my article Tips for Buying Used Merchandise at a Great Price.  Often on big-ticket items buying a good used article is better than buying a mediocre new one if you are on a tight budget.  You do need to be careful.  This article will give you some tips.

And for tips on buying all kinds of merchandise and for making good use of the money you save, check out my e-book, The Black Belt Shopper's Guide available on this website.

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Copyright © 2007 by Larry Wiener. All rights reserved.