I posted about a week or so ago about the fact that I bought an older used truck and am selling my 2006 Toyota Tacoma. I need some advice on how to handle the transaction.
Here are the details:
Received a token few hundred dollars via Paypal to hold the truck
Buyer is from Vancouver BC (a few hours north of where I live)
He is happy to pay me in whatever method I request
So, here are my questions:
What is the best way to have him pay me for the truck?
Is there a way to have his bank wire my bank instantaneously?
What about dealing with the currency conversion?
Could I have him Paypal me the whole balance or would Paypal take a chunk?
Are there any sites or pages that you’ve seen that offer any advice?
Also, do I have additional responsibilities when selling to a Canadian?
Basically I’m trying to make sure that the transaction is safe for me. HELLLLLLLLLP!!!!!
This is all going down next week. He is trying to arrange a ride down for early next week so I’m not going to have too much time during “business hours” to research this. I’m hoping the PF blogging community might have some experience with this collectively. I appreciate anything you can tell me!
Thanks!!!
I know this is only going to be marginally helpful information, but with Paypal, the buyer can claim fraud if they use a credit card (or via Paypal directly), and I’m not sure how much the CC company or Paypal checks those claims. Paypal can pull the money out of your bank account if you have it or not, so I’d be hesitant to use it for large purchase prices.
I honestly don’t know the best method for fulfilling payments, regardless of the size, so I’d be interested in learning how to get it done too. I sold my bass for $750 through paypal and I’m still worried. However, in 90 days or so, you should be clear.
With certified checks, they could bounce days or weeks (not sure the limit) after cashing them, which would be well past when you handed over your truck. Personal checks are the same. I guess a wire transfer from a reputable bank would do the trick, but I’d ask if there’s a way you could verify the transaction with a bank manager (i.e. that it’s not coming from a phony bank account).
Ummm, why not avoid the hassle and just ask for it in US cash?
P.S. I don’t know how certified cheques work in the states, but they can’t bounce in Canada as far as I was aware. They have to be paid for up front with verified funds (or cash) and a separate account number is set aside just for that one cheque. The only way to get the money is cash the cheque.
I don’t know how it works across country lines though, I assume the same way.
I don’t think you have to worry about anything to sell the truck to him, but the buyer has to be careful about importing it to Canada. There are tons of rules from what I hear. Though since our dollar is higher it probably makes financial sense for the buyer anyway.
I agree with Traciatim. A certified/cashiers check is just like cash. Like when you close on a house, the buyer gets a check made out to his/herself, then signs is over by endorsing at the close of the deal. Not sure about the currency changey thingy though.
I have sold an $11,000 car before and accepted a personal check… (sucka) however, I held on to the title until the check cleared. After it cleared I mailed the buyer the signed over title.
I would only take U.S. cash. I sold my car for 5,000 and received it all in 20s and 50s. I have heard that you can get ripped off by fake cashiers and certified checks.
That’s true. Someone could make a fake check. How much are asking for the car? $5,000 is one thing, $15,000 might be another. That is a chunk to walk around with. Risk for him and you.
Most of the fake cashiers check scams seek to get cash, not something to chop and sell (cars). If the buyer shows up with a $6,000 check for a $5,000 dollar car, then (makes up some story) and asks you to write him/her a check for the difference. That is a red flag (obviously).
This happened to a friend of mine. Long story slightly OT but I am going to indulge anyway. He had a rental house available and received a cashiers check for first, last, security dep, and an ‘extra’ $2,000. Supposedly a relocating ‘doctor’. The bank took the check and credited my friend’s account. The doctor called and asked for the extra $2,000 to be wired back to him… his mistake. My friend got weirded out (trust your gut) and sent the lump sum back ($8,000). This larger amount flagged the wired money fraud alerts and they actually busted the scammers. My friend dodged a bullet.
What does you Spidey Sense say about the buyer? Could be counterfeit cash too…
I bought something on ebay and saw the seller was in the same town as me, so I contacted him to see if I can pick up the item and avoid shipping costs. He said sure, and he wanted to meet in the bank. This is a good idea, because it’s a public place, plus he deposited my cash before he let me leave with the item, in case the cash was counterfeit. You could do something like that.
I’ve bought many used vehicles, and I’ve paid w/a personal check every time. As far as selling goes, I wouldn’t have accepted a personal check for my own safety. I’ve only sold one car and it was paid by cash ($2000). This might be hard to do w/a more expensive vehicle like your newer-model truck though. Now that I think about it, I’ve always paid for cars at a car dealership w/a combination of credit card and personal check too. Just sounds like the personal check is the most common way to go.
I don’t know if this is possible, but after he comes to inspect the truck you guys can agree on a price. Afterwards, you can just go to a bank and have him give you a certified bank check?
Thanks everyone.
I called my brother in law and asked for some advice about doing the Canada deal. He ended up buying the truck which pretty much took care of all my issues. :)
In-law! I hope you only accepted cash. :)