Home Forums Gear Free Classifieds If you have specific payment terms - please list them in your ad

Time and time again I want to buy something, send a pm and get told "postal money order only", when there was no trace of that demand in the ad. The other day I got told "no payment by mail. Walmart, western union, or bank wire only"

If you have specific payment terms, list them in your ad, so I won't waste our time.

Postal mail orders are being counterfeited more easily today than in the past. My hometown bank is very cautious when cashing them. Research and communication with the seller is always the safest bet. Luckily I've always had good luck dealing with you and the other members on the fire.

I just cant use postal money orders anymore. My bank wont even cash them and my post office tried to confiscate some one time as fraudulent when they werent. Too much trbl for me...

I hadn't heard anything about postal mo's being a PIA now. I've always had real good luck with them but I guess I need to keep my eye out for bad ones. Thanks for the info.

Reno

Easy enough to put the payment terms right in the ad and eliminate all doubt about what forms of payment will and will not be accepted. Simple really, but simple is hard on some folks.

Reno, the problem is you cannot tell the fake from the real Postal Money Orders just by looking at them. The crooks have got forgery down pretty good. I have looked at and compared good and bad MO's side by side and they look the same.

Postal MO's like everything else can be counterfeited but my financial institution calls in the number and verifies them prior to deposit. This is not a big deal and is much more secure than a bank check which may, or may not, have funds on deposit to cover it.

drover

Paypal is the way to go. Immediate transfer and safe.

Just a little inside baseball for those of you that don't know -

A personal check is often the best form of payment these days. Most banks offer online check deposits ( a trip the bank isn't required). In the Check21 digital age, checks clear in 24 hours or so ( your bank may hold funds longer than that, but trust me, if a check is no good your bank knows about it in certainly less than 48 hours, if not less than 24).

That makes it convenient for a lot of buyers and sellers. Not everybody of course but a lot. Still if you want a certain form of payment, or don't accept a certain form, I guess that's your right as a seller. Just let us know up front.

Don't ship until the funds clear?

Correction, it's not a big deal for you. Personally, I have to drive out of my way, then stand in line for a period of time (37 minutes the other day for a $95 MO on a forum where I've conducted no less than 100 transactions.)

If I'm going to trust a seller to send me an item, I should be trusted to send whatever form of payment That is convenient for me.

But as I've said, I'm not going to jump up and down, I'd simply like to know ahead of time so I can move on and not waste any bodies time.

My view is that postal money orders are the best way to go. If the Post Office cashes a bad one, it's their problem. If they refuse to cash one because it's bad, then it becomes the purchaser's problem. I'm out nothing, and don't get a surprise debit back to my bank account a week later.

In case you guys don't know, you can call USPS and verify a postal money order. The number is 1-866-459-7822. Its all automated, you just type in a few key numbers off the m.o. and it verifies if it is a good one or not.

https://www.usps.com/shop/money-orders.htm

Until Paypal discovers that it's a gun transaction, and freezes your account, AND keeps the money...........

This thread is getting sidetracked (really?!) into what is or isn't a good form of payment, but I sure agree with your original post.

State your terms up front. The seller can request whatever type of payment he wants but just say so. I've been rightfully accused of being too verbose but at least you know what's for sale and how to pay for it and whether you can return it and under what circumstances.

Folks are free to buy from whomever they choose but I tend to judge the seller as well as the item for sale. If someone puts minimal info in their ad - "Remington rifle for sale, good shape" - they may be the nicest, most honest person in the world but their ad tells me they can't communicate worth crap and good communication on internet sales is a huge part of a successful transaction. We see countless call out threads here where some communication or clarification up front could have avoided any problems.


On the other issue, I am tending more and more these days to ask for cash in small bills delivered in person by a scantily clad, well endowed woman. Haven't been paid like that yet but I figure it doesn't hurt to ask...

Yeah, put the payment terms in the add...and what the hell is a "check" and who the hell wants to patronize the USPS, home of the highest population of slow, knuckle dragging lazy fuggers in the country.

I usually include my phone# and sure do like people who do. I'm old fashioned and like to talk to a person.

What he said.

These days I try to remember to make it plain in my ads that I'll take whatever form of payment is handiest for the buyer.

Have been selling stuff through the mail since my first book was published in the late 1970's, and have only been screwed once. Was sent a check for a book during the mid-1980's and shipped the book before waiting for the check to clear. It bounced, and I never got any response from the sender. It was only for $15 or so, so no biggie, but the return address was a seminary in the Midwest.

I thought you were supposed to pay them???? Before delivery!!!