4 Tips for Shopping on Craigslist
Buying second hand is a great way to save money and help out the environment, too. Besides thrift stores and yard sales, a great place to shop is on Craigslist. If you live near a large city, it’s likely that city will have a local Craigslist classifieds site. Craigslist is great for so many things such as buying used (and even new) household items and furniture, finding jobs, etc. Today I want to give you four helpful tips to keep in mind when shopping on Craigslist.
1) Safety First: Keep in mind that not everyone on Craigslist may be as honest as you are. It’s always smart to stay safe. Never send money online via PayPal or any other method. Always meet face-to-face and only deal with cash. Be sure to bring someone else with you or at the very least meet somewhere where there are people around and tell people where you’re going. Most people don’t have any problems buying items on Craigslist, but it’s best to play it safe.
2) Search Smart: Searching is part of the game of Craigslist. If you’re looking for a new dining table, think of all the different words you could use to search for one. For example, “dining table”, “diningtable”, “kitchen table”, “dining set” or just “table”. People describe things differently so if you’re not finding what you’re looking for try a few more searches and you just might find the perfect piece!
3) Check Back Often: It can take days, weeks or even months to find the perfect piece. If you check back daily, you have the best chance at scoring exactly what you’re looking for at the best price on Craigslist. The best, most sought after pieces will go fast, so checking for them constantly will give you a better chance of getting to it before someone else.
4) The Inspection: It can be exciting to find the special piece you’re looking for, but don’t forget to inspect the item before buying it. Often times sellers will leave out small imperfections that you might catch. This can help in negotiations. It never hurts to offer what you think is a fair price, especially if you find some damage that you’ll either have to live with or repair.
Aileen is a wife, entrepreneur and animal lover. She lives in a small California town, with her husband and a handful of pets, where she spends her days designing blogs and running her online boutique. You can find more at Life by Aileen where she talks about chasing dreams and her attempts at a simpler life.
