This is a very sensitive subject for me to talk about.
Craigslist.
I love Craigslist most of the time. But sometimes I hate it. Particularly when you get a crappy seller (ok, we aren’t really going to blame the seller because she might not know how to use gmail.)
See this couch?
Yes I know you are DYING right now. As was I.
$50.00
I KNOW.
I emailed the seller Sunday evening and was told that she wouldn’t be available to sell me the couch until Thursday. So I emailed her every other day letting her know that I was still interested and begging her to call me so that we could get a pick up arranged while I waited. Thursday rolls around and I still hadn’t heard anything. So I emailed her again this time a brand new email.
I got a reply saying that she received a higher offer and wanted to know if I wanted to counter. Let me make this CRYSTAL CLEAR. I have ZERO problem with people offering a higher amount for an item. I told her that I would gladly pay twice what she was asking.
Guess what?
I didn’t hear back from her.
So on Saturday Morning I sent her another email only to find out that she did not receive my last one (or any of the other ones that I sent by hitting Reply) and the couch had just been picked up.
Tears. Sobs. Wailing. And so much pain that I couldn’t get on CL for a week.
So. If you are the awesome person that lives in St. George that bought this couch, you are luckier than a duck. And I will buy it from you. Or trade for a furnishing of your choice from my house. Or my first born. Or a year of FREE Durangos.
Some of you who hate the way that I Craigslist will say that this is Karma, and I am not denying that. But I will say that its not going to change my approach, I will just have to make sure to send a new email and not just hit reply. (wink)
AND.
If you spot a couch similar I would love a heads up, there might be something fabulous in it for you…
Have you ever had a Craigslist heartbreak? Tell us all about it! And how do you feel about offering more for something?
Love Your Guts, Mandi
I hate it when things work out that way! I’ve definitely missed out on some great things too, and wrote a post about my favorite “one that got away” here.
https://www.dimplesandtangles.blogspot.com/2012/01/one-that-got-away.html
I’m still bitter over a missed CL transaction! I was pregnant (made it worse) and needed new flooring for the nursery. Found the perfect hardwood on CL, tried to go out there same day to claim it to pick up the next day. Instead we worked out that we would go the next day. I was super anxious and REALLY wanted this flooring. So imagine my mood when I get an email saying “sorry, I sold the flooring”. After the seller wouldn’t meet with me!! So I sent an email saying how it was really disappointing that I had tried to come the same day and I had been ready to buy. They sent back a shitty email saying the other person contacted them first. Um, then why are you making appointments with me if I wasn’t first in line?! My pregnant rage took awhile to subside. I know people flake out (or pull stunts like what happened to you) but I really wanted it!
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Mandy,
I know you wanted that couch and I’m sure you would have made it sing in a room, but something doesn’t quite add up for me on this one … the seller knew enough “techy stuff” to list the item with photo, and evidently was able to handle some emails because she had other offers and was able to reply to at least one of your emails … I don’t know, it feels odd, off. Perhaps you were fortunate this one got away. Better things around the corner, or the next corner, I know it!
Oh what a sad loss. The chairs in the post you linked were freaking awesome though. I bet sitting in them will help you feel better. Hope an even more awesome couch comes your way soon.
Off to check my local CL and see if there are any fantabulous couches….
One of the many reasons why I try not to get excited over anything on craigslist. I can honestly say I’ve only had ONE good transaction – and that was when I bought a barely used rocking chair a couple years ago. The guy selling the chair even dropped it off for me for no extra charge.
I recently replied to an ad for some side chairs that a lady an hour a way was selling (and was willing to negotiate on price). Problem was, she didn’t have the dimensions of the chairs posted and wouldn’t give them to me. All I got was “come on down and see them”. Um, no. I’m not driving an hour away without knowing if the chairs will even work; especially because of the escalating price of gas.
And last to add, I think it’s ridiculous that you had to send a separate new e-mail for that lady to “see” your e-mails. I’ve had that happen before and it’s SO frustrating.
Robin @ Happily Home, I totally agree. Sounds like the seller was working to up the price and keeping you in the wings as back up. You’ll find a new love, Mandy!
I feel your pain…I miss items constantly like just this morning when I found something posted late last night and waited until a respectful 9:00 a.m. to call but someone was there looking at it already…ugh!!!!
I use Craigslist all the time for my furniture work and have had similar frustrating happenings time and time again. I’ve actually driven an hour out of my way with the babies in tow, only to arrive with someone else driving off with the piece I had come to pick up. In the mania to just get rid of stuff at all costs, it seems people forget common courtesy and basic consideration. But we keep coming back, don’t we? 😉
Poor Mandi! I will keep an eye out for a similiar piece of loveliness, and let you know when I find one. But at the same time… maybe Court bought it. You never know…
I have learned sellers and buyers can both be shady, I am afraid that is just a sad statement about our society. But I will also admit this guy sounds like a major looser with a third nipple!
Ok I’ll be the first to admit I am super duper leery of CL because we have NEVER had a good experience. Every SINGLE time has been a case of bait and switch… gorgeous old windows… make that ONE gorgeous old window that they decided to keep, the rest had dry rot and ANTS! pavers… all broken and stained except for the top ones. Thankfully each stop was local or on our way but still… what ever happened to integrity???!!
And I do think there was something shady about the sofa… SO something much BETTER is definitely in store.
Have a great day!
I never have CL heartbreak because I believe things happen how they’re supposed to. I know all about jumping on a good deal, but if someone else gets them, oh well… obviously I didn’t need it, right?
Sometimes this approach works out. I was the animal shelter thrift shop and found an old bar cart/tv cart. It had the coolest cut out sides and it was 7 bucks. I hemmed and hawed over it and left. Came back two days later and it was gone. That was about… oh… 4 months ago? Fast forward to Saturday and I was at Savers looking for a desk or table. I saw the same exact bar cart for 10 bucks. I rolled that sucker to the register! I wasn’t going to let it get away from me this time. 🙂
I guess I’m very “zen” about all deals thrifty. lol.
That whole situation sounds shady…such a bummer though!
That couch reminds me of one I saw on the side of the road for FREE, almost identical but black. It was right after we had our third child. We were heading to the 5 day old doctor appointment and saw it. But, the extremely sad part was we traded vehicles with my sister in law and we were in a tiny convertible. She had our mini van at the beach with our other kiddos. The couch would have fit in the mini!! There was no way it was going into the tiny car. Of course it was gone when we went back by. I try to tell myself something must have been wrong with it. 😉
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At least your seller presumably had the couch. On our CL, we get people who post pictures of current trend items, and then when you inquire they tell you someone else already beat you to it, but, hey, they just so happen to have a sample dental cleaning kit that is super amazing and they know because they work at the dentist’s office and this $1,000 kit can be yours for the low-low price of $225. Seriously!
Better luck next time.
Karma is a bitch, isn’t it?! Welcome to how other people feel when you weasel a sale out from under them 😉
I too had a Craigslist heart break over the weekend! I found a Ralph Lauren Writer’s Chair and Ottoman that together retail for $11,000 (with taxes and shipping and handling included) on Craigslist for … wait for it … $150!!!
The post was 4 days old but it was listed as “House of Furniture” and the chair/ottoman was labeled as “leather recliner” so unless you’re “in the know” there was no way to search for Ralph Lauren Writer’s Chair on CL. I called and e-mailed the guy and patiently waited and then had my boyfriend e-mail him again only to get a response of “Sold”. UGH! Heartbreaking!
Maybe it had a bad smell (and you will not have to deal with it)…I have not had a bad experience…but I do not buy off of it very often. It is so easy to get obsessed over a bargain that was missed, this I know for sure! Keep your eyes open…your next piece of ggod luck is right around the corner.
i am right now waiting for a seller to e-mail about a set of chairs she had another person come to look at before i could get there. grrr
Ok, this is a test comment because I seem to have the hardest time commmenting on your blog. If this works i’ll be back with more.
Craigslist isn’t very popular here in Canada. We have our own version called kijiji. I’ve had GREAT luck with almost everything I’ve bought and so has my husband. We’ve bought and sold and haven’t really had a problem. Every once in a while i miss out on something due to technology issues but it’s usually just that I didn’t jump on the item fast enough. Most sellers stick to the unspoken first come first serve policy. The issue we have is the treasures are few and far between so people up here can charge a pretty penny for them. Like that sofa would’ve gone for $$$$ of dollars. The biggest lessons I’ve learned are: if there is a phone number listed email first and then call IMMEDIATELY so they know you are really interested. The second lesson is to jump on an item if I totally love it and the price is right. I’ve missed out on SO many vintage chest of drawers (I;m slightly obsessed with them) and most recently a PAIR of turquoise and coral lamps because I’m too indecisive and worried about where to put it. Actually, I’m more concerned about having the convo with my hubby. You know the one that’s like “what the heck did you buy that for? You mean, you bought another one? Where are you going to put it? When will you get around to that project? What a piece of junk!” Yes, this from the man who has 7 atv’s. Yes. 7. Ok, so 3 of them are for the kids and 1 is for me but still. i have hoarding convo fear. How do you navigate this convo with the hubs? Any advice? i mean I buy everything with cash I’ve saved up so I should have free reign for bargain shopping, right?! Thoughts?
One time I found a piano on CL for free! I went to look at it and found out that it needed tuning but was in otherwise great shape. I told them I’d take it and would have to call my brother (who had a truck) to see what time he could come and pick it up for me. A few hours later I called to tell them what time I could pick it up and they told me that they had given away to someone else who could take it away right away. I was so upset, I wrote them a nasty email that explained how they had just given away my daughters’ surprise birthday gift (even though I didn’t have kids at the time). I just wanted them to feel a little bad about what they did.
I thought you meant stolen from your driveway. My mind automatically goes there since one of my awesome thrift store treasures was stolen off my driveway (also in St. George) while I ran to Home Depot for some spray paint. I was gone for 15 minutes! I was thinking that we could complain together:) But just so you know, I’ll be on the look out for your couch in my friends’ houses! HAHAHA!
Just lost a 70 drawer library card catalog that was listed at 150$. I KNOW!!! (had seen a similiar one listed for 1500$ on etsy)
Sent one email Sat. night, then Almost, Almost sent another offering more in case there was another offer. but i did not and received a reply sunday am that it had just been picked up! 🙁
TO help ease your pain, or not. I have a couch just like this that we got from a Wells Fargo that was remodeling. We got it for free and I was thrilled. We have had the couch for 7 years now, and it would be great if it didn’t have so many buttons in the bottom cushion…do you know what falls in there from little children?!? Snacks, juice, pee, puke, you name it. just puddle up in those button holes and get under the buttons and everything, and it grosses me out. I have lost so many button holes to vacuuming it so much. I love the look, but with kids this couch is a pain!! So maybe it’s not as bad as you think 🙂
HEARTBREAK!!!! AH so sorry… this happened to me once too it was so sad.
I’m so sorry about the couch. Oddly enough, I live in St. George too but I promise I did not buy your couch, 🙂 We just moved into a new house. I check craigs list almost daily. I’m looking for so much stuff. Hopefully I won’t have any disappointments
Just keep telling yourself it smelled like cat pee and was made of cheap vinyl that would stick to anything that sat on it! Better will come!! 🙂
I have had a my fair share of Craigslist heartbreak…but it just doesn’t take away from all of the amazing finds I have purchased. My favorite came about when I was trying to sell our old hand-me-down dining set and was wondering how to price it. I came across this nearly new Pennsylvania House dining set complete with 6 fabric covered chairs, solid mahogany wood and a buffet with marble top for $2000. It was still being sold in the stores for over $10,000 and was exactly what I was looking for. The girl selling was so sweet. People kept offering her more, but she told me she had promised it to me and kept the original asking price. Check out the set in my dining room on my home tour at http://www.home-with-heather.blogspot.com And PS…you will find an even more amazing couch…I just know it!
So I don’t exactly have a CL heartbreak, but recently after paying for a desk at a thrift store and assuring her I would be back for it the next day she dragged me around for a month with promises of “tomorrow” and stories of “husbands with heart attacks” only to have sold it to someone else. Needless to say heartbroken isn’t the only word I have to describe my feelings for this situation.
You can read the rest of the story here.
Craigslist broke my heart when it/she promised me a beautiful shiny black (replica) Eames recliner & ottoman all. day. long. only to SELL IT TO HER BOSS while I was on my way to pick it up. Makes me mad just thinking about it.
Holy crap, I’ve been there way too many times to count. I live about 45 minutes south of the decent Minneapolis craigslist scene so I miss out all the freaking time. People always say “I didn’t get your email after we’d been chatting back and forth several times…bs. I have bought and sold on craigslist many moons now and that couch, I would’ve lost sleep for a straight month. (I know my tufted, mustard, vintage couch up for grabs is not a steal at $1200 so I won’t even mention it…wait.) I’m also going to be that person that puts a link to her site because I’ve posted my thoughts (i.e. rant) about craigslist too but it’s catered more to Minnesota (shameless) https://thewitsblog.com/?p=668
Also,I don’t think you’re shady (after reading the higher offer scandal) because I’ve done it, as a person who overhauls furniture I find mostly on craigslist, for keeps and sells, and have picked things up as a “dealer.” But there should be some arm wrestling or something for this piece because I feel your pain. It’d be like you gain superhuman strength as if your child were in danger to win this loveliness.
I did not steal your couch, but wish I had 🙂 It’s just the way CL works,… I don’t think you can feel guilty when you do it to someone else. In fact, it is not really the buyers doing it…it’s the sellers! I’m sorry this happened to you 🙁
Stacy
We have had so many positive Craiglist experiences, but one bad one can really sour you. Craigslist has forever won my heart though as we sold our condo on it five years ago, realtor fee free!
That really sucks! She should have put it up for $50.00 or better offer – with a deadline. $50.00 is fifty dollars – if you were the first one to respond,she should have sold it to you. I’ll bet it has a funny smell that will never come out – you didn’t want it anyway.
Craigslist can be totally hit or miss. This new site Replyboard lets you create a Craigslist user profile or check out other user profiles to see what kind of rating they have before buying their stuff (kinda like Yelp meets Craigslist).
girl, i seriously can’t believe that you are complaining about losing a cl deal and in the same post linking to a post about stealing a cl deal! it is a great couch, but i think you’re getting some craig’s list karma…in the end that couch is way cooler than those chairs. something to think about.
Even at $100, that couch is a steal. I suspect the seller got your reply just fine — the other buyer just offered more. Once a CL seller starts that “do you want to counteroffer” business, I look at it like an ebay transaction — figure out how badly I want it and make my best offer. Then I at least know that if I don’t get it, it was because it was more expensive than I was willing to pay — it’s a small consolation.
@Lisa with the piano above — that does stink, but having been the person on the other side, with some big heavy thing I need gone and an interested taker promising to call their “friend with a truck”, I can’t tell you how many times the interested taker disappears off the face of the earth never to be heard from again. Then I’m screwed because I have still have the big heavy thing and I’ve turned away other takers. There are flakes on both sides of the transaction so while I feel bad that that happened to you, I could definitely see why they did it – “a bird in the hand” and all that….
I have to agree with Robin, sounds shady & something did not add up. Not a fan of CL. Always feels creepy to me.
First of all, what is wrong with that person wanting to sell that couch in the first place. I’ve been wanting one like this forever.
I just sold my 9 year old couches on CL and had 4 people in a bidding war. Never expected that one but I didn’t complain.
But the shadiness of CL is why I love going to auctions. It’s like craigslist with a referee, aka the auctioneer. And you don’t have to go to strange peoples homes. Seriously the situations I have gotten myself in just to get that one unique piece of furniture are not recommended…
I rarely have heartbreak over Craigslist (or KSL in Utah) anymore but I NEVER e-mail, I always call or text (if they say in the ad to text) because I find that a lot of people listing items in the classifieds RARELY check their e-mail. If I want something really bad, I risk being annoying and staying on top of it. I also almost ALWAYS tell them I can pick it up that day so that someone else can’t beat me to it. Since I quit e-mailing and started calling, the heartbreaks have been far fewer.
We’ve had this kind of experience twice with HOUSES.
Agents (working for the sellers) have led us on whilst actively pushing the seller to accept the other buyers’ bid and denying us the opportunity to formally raise ours.
It is hardly in the best interest of their client either (who incidentally is paying them a MASSIVELY over-valued fee of around $10K to get the BEST price for their property). They have done it so as to get on side with an ‘investor’ they think they may get more business from.
It is illegal, immoral and frustrating as heck. But they get away with it time and time again as it is almost impossible to prove. Hence my intense hatred of all real estate agents; never met one that wouldn’t look good stuffed over my mantle.
I was rv shopping on craigslist earlier this year. every single time I found something cool no one ever got back to me. it was so frustrating!!!! finally I found one, dropped everything and drove 1.5 hours to see it and we made a deal. I gave $400 deposit and we made an arrangement to finish the transaction in 2 days. you can bet I was on pins and needles that whole time but it worked out well. no haggling over price what-so-ever either.
Girl, that sofa looks so uncomfortable! And the price was too low. I would be suspect! Bedbugs, perhaps?? Something else will come along!! 🙂
We’ve mostly had great luck with CL. Hot tub, freezer, treadmill, several sets of outdoor patio sets, etc. etc. But one time, we got to an appointment only to be told there was someone in front of us. We waited, hoping they wouldn’t show up, or to possibly offer to buy the wrought iron furniture from them! Alas, they wanted it as badly as we did, so we lost out. A long ride to get there too, by the way. Geez!
This is interesting to me, because I have had several pretty awesome items up for sale on CL, and I use GMAIL. I will receive inquiries, that I reply to in a timely and courteous fashion, and then I never hear anything back. So maybe there is some weird connection between CL and GMAIL that keeps emails from coming through. I am always disappointed that I don’t get return emails, and I have pretty much given up selling on CL.
This is interesting to me, because I have had several pretty awesome items up for sale on CL, and I use GMAIL. I will receive inquiries, that I reply to in a timely and courteous fashion, and then I never hear anything back. So maybe there is some weird connection between CL and GMAIL that keeps emails from coming through. I am always disappointed that I don’t get return emails, and I have pretty much given up selling on CL.
I have this couch! I bought mine at a yard sale. Still trying to figure out where to put it! It literally sits in my dining room, and has for 2 years, kind of in the way! I was searching for legs (it currently has wheels) and ways to spice it up and low and behold one of my favorite bloggers posted one exactly like it. Mine is black though, and vinyl…I think your picture is vinyl??
I sell my milk goat kids on CL and have had a potential buyer get mad at me, through no fault of my own. I had put an ad up around midnight. Fifteen minutes later (midnight, I tell ya!), I rec’d a text from a man that wanted to buy them and said he’d come the next day. That morning, when I checked my email, I had two or three other responses from different people. I wrote them all and told them the goats were spoken for, but if the buyer didn’t come at the appointed time, I would contact them in the order of the emails rec’d. One woman wrote a nasty email back about how she should be the one getting the goats. Eeek.