im gonna be buying a car today off offerup & this is my first time using an app or Craigslist to buy a car. What should I expect? Really the only thing that has me worried is getting robbed. I'm trying to avoid anything that'll steer me in that position. The guy sounds legit but he said his phone broke so I've been just imessaging him & he's been using his iPad. Still don't really know the area but he's located in the southeast side but I'm really not trying to go to an area like that for the transaction. Any ideas and advice? Thanks
Never heard of this app, and your story about the seller sounds super shady. I don't have any advice, but i wouldn't rely paying thousands of dollars using an app. Are you trying to buy new or used? (Sounds like used)
Your username is pretty sad in itself. And I wouldn't buy a car on an app from a guy you never met who said his phone is broke.. Sounds pretty fishy to me.
Buying a used car is a crapshot right now. Just don't do it...we just went thru a historical flood and you may end up with something that falls apart in the time to come.
Meet in public place, make sure there's a title (a clean one), and you know what to look for (not a flood car etc etc). Sometimes it's best to just meet at the tax office to get the title transferred then and there, if they're a legit seller they'll meet you there. You don't want to get stuck with a stolen/no title car.
I bought a piano on Offerup and it was a huge mistake. Got a good deal (obviously), he told me it was in great working condition and sent photos that looked great, but kept coming up with excuses why we couldn't come by and inspect it. I had it delivered to my house and discovered that it's unable to be tuned, rendering it entirely unusable. I was out the money I paid for the piano as well as the two people I had to come by and examine it to determine its craptitude. I tried to take it up with the seller, but he was a complete a-hole (shocking, I know) and knew my address from when we sent the movers. I figured my family's safety was worth more than this guy stole from me and didn't press it any more. Offerup was absolutely no help in the matter. They basically said they are just a middleman and hold no responsibility for what happens between a buyer and seller. I learned a very expensive lesson. But hey, at least I didn't buy a car.
Right, there's ways to check, but if you don't know what you're looking for or know how to fix it later... Then you're screwed for sure.
Yea a used miata & im real glad I didn't only get that vibe. I mean the app is just a more local craigslist honestly.
I agree honestly need a car pretty bad right now to get to and from & my credit sucks. I agree with you I'll make sure to double check everything but in honestly have no choice
Yeah Craigslist/offerup/5mile etc etc have to be super careful with (such bs how they're just the middleman with no liability), always see item/car and meet-up, no delivery etc. You should see all of the wonderful scams people have tried on me when selling/buying a car on Craigslist... Lol, one scam was like "I'm the the military and just needing to get it gone, send money order and I'll give you an address to get it", the car was $5-10k under trade-in, such bs. Or "I'll give you a couple extra thousand if you deposit this check for me..." haha, "sure!!!!" *deletes/reports.
With all the flooding, I would try to buy a used car from a dealership if you need a car right now. I would not trust anyone on Craigslist right now either. And reading everyone else's response to the app, i would not suggest that as well Miata / MX-5 are pretty sweet cars. I'd buy an S2000 if you could afford it, but they are super expensive for how old they are. But the future resale value will also be high
Yeah the s2000 will hold its value really well due to that engine and chassis. That said, after test driving one, I don't think I could live with it day to day. Feels like it's from the 80s on the inside.
I'm trying to sell my Denali and nobody wants to buy it because they think it's flooded lol. But I understand I mean so many cars were flooded. I buy a ton of **** off craigslist. Been ripped a couple times. Most of the time it's legit. I kind of gauge the situation. You can get super lucky too and get some good as truck for cheap. I tend to stay away if I get any kind of bad feeling about the situation. I don't like dealing with 16 year olds. I know how I was treating my stuff when I was 16
OP it's worth it to pay a mechanic to come with you or at least tell the guy you are bringing a mechanic is there anything you should know before hand
I took my mom up to Dallas to get a car. But she bought used from the dealership anyway. Just the way to go unless you are buying a toy.
The owner said he has the title but it's not under his name. Can someone please help me and tell me what to do. Is it illegal to do what he's doing selling me a car under someone else name but he does have the title?
