tips on taking payment for a car
 

I am selling my car and am looking for advice on how to take payment to avoid being scammed. My thinking was for the buyer to get a cashiers check and I go to the bank with them and deposit the check in my account. Is it possible for cashier's checks to bounce?

Any other options/opinions would be wlecome

Re: tips on taking payment for a car
 

Cashiers checks can bounce if they are forged or stolen. The problem is that it can be a day or two before you hear that the check was bad.

Personally I would go the opposite way - and accompany the buyer to their bank to collect the payment. ..... Or even have them (the buyer's bank) transfer the proceeds direct to your account.

In any case I would find out as much as you can about the buyer, even during casual conversation - where to do they live? who do they work for? ..... Anyone who is cagy might be a greater risk.

Re: tips on taking payment for a car
 

this software sucks

Re: tips on taking payment for a car
 

Transfer directly into your account.
When the funds are there sign over the title.

Re: tips on taking payment for a car
 

Some municipalities have set up "Craigslist safe zones" for meeting and conducting such business.

Re: tips on taking payment for a car
 

Get paid in cash. Bring two other people with you to safeguard yourself and the money.

Re: tips on taking payment for a car
 

It's a lot of cash. The person coming today is looking at getting a loan from a credit union that I am a member of. That might make things easier.

Re: tips on taking payment for a car
 

A newly retired couple in NC went to sell their Accord a few years ago. What possessed them to meet the "buyer" where they did, who knows, but the buyer took a revolver with him, ..... and well, you can guess the rest. :(

Cash these days is just a bad idea. Period. .... There are better alternatives.
The problem may be finding a buyer who is prepared to trust a provide seller who is going to have both cash and car for two days. If a private seller offered me such I deal I would walk away.
That sounds optimal, if your bank and his bank are the same bank.

Re: tips on taking payment for a car
 

If you are buying another car, then doing a trade-in of this car will save sales tax for you on the new car.

The value of the trade-in is deducted from the total cost of new/used car for sales tax purposes. Saved us about $900 and meant that the trade -in deal was about the same as selling on craigslist but without any of the messing around.

Re: tips on taking payment for a car
 

Thanks for the advice, unfortunately this would save me $0 as we don't pay sales tax. I did see that on the carvana advice on selling cars.

I will be in the position of sharing one car for a while. I may have to resort to smelly buses while we decide what car to buy. We want a model with active braking which limits our choices.

Re: tips on taking payment for a car
 

Really? Certainly wasn't deducted from the price on which the sales taxes on my last car purchased.

Re: tips on taking payment for a car
 

We sell in a niche market and will hold the car after payment till shipping is arranged.
I just sent one to Colorado, sent over copies of the title and my license to plus import docs, the buyer wired the money into my account then I sent him the title and bill of sale.
It took around 10 days to find a transporter.

Re: tips on taking payment for a car
 

yep, done for the last 2 cars we sold.

Carvana made it particularly easy - I didn't even have to deal with awful car sales people.

Re: tips on taking payment for a car
 

That depends on the state. Sales tax rules are specific to each state, not uniform across the whole country.