Can You Really Fall in Love on Craigslist?
January 17, 2012 
9 Comments
So, I was selling my computer the other day on Craigslist.
Yeah, I know what you’re thinking right now, “Another blog post from David that has nothing to do with dating.” How do you know? How do you know this has nothing to do with dating, because—let me tell you something––it can have a ton of things to do with dating.
First off, when you sell something on Craigslist, you never know who’s going to come over and buy it from you. It could be love at first sight. Secondly, when you buy something on Craigslist, you never know who you’re buying from. She could be super hot, maybe she likes clothing swap parties, and the next thing you know, you guys are swapping clothes in your bedroom after meeting on Craigslist.
Yes, I said it. You can meet people on Craigslist. And it doesn’t have to be one of those cheesy Casual Encounters ads either.
But, I digress.
So, I’m selling my iMac on Craigslist and a guy writes back and tells me that he’s paying in CASH. Uh, well, what do you think we’re accepting on Craigslist? Credit cards? PayPal? Money order? Traveler’s checks? Of course you’re going to pay me in cash, dude—it’s Craigslist!
People are very funny. What, am I supposed to be impressed because you’re paying in cash? It’s just a way of negotiating. When I negotiate, I always tell them that I will come over with (usually much less than) what they’re asking for right now—no hassle, nothing. “It’s $500? Okay, I’ll be over there in 20 minutes with $400. Cash.”
That’s how you negotiate. You tell them you’ll be there in 20 minutes because they’re already dreaming about the money. And, they already know where the money is going. Maybe they’re getting a new computer. Or maybe it’s the Craigslist in LA and they have to pay their ridiculous rent for the month. Either way, they’ve already got that money spent in their mind and it makes the deal go so much smoother for you, the buyer.
So that’s the key to negotiating on Craigslist. And as for dates, well, you never know who’s on the other end.
Share with us today if you have any Craigslist stories. Any people that you’ve met on Craigslist via putting up an ad or if you absolutely fell in love with the person who you bought your car from or your new Mac computer.
You never know.
I’ve had great Craigslist experiences. No hookups (yet) but I’ve met a lot of cool people on there. I always seem to find people who are just like me on Craigslist.
I do fantasize about looking for a ride on Rideshare and having some older hottie in an Audi come pick me up and offer to be my sugar momma. A man can dream.
Although meeting someone on craigslist can be pretty shady I agree with the general message: always be ready to Mrs./Mr. Right.
I don’t have craigslist experiences… my friend does though. She dated a guy and he turned out to be a creep so she stopped seeing him. All of a sudden she started getting the most sexually explicit text messages from strangers.
He made an ad for her on Craigslist saying she was looking for everyone and anyone to have sex with. She had to change her phone number because of it :-s
And Max and Brian, I think you bring up the really good opportunities that Craigslist provides.
D: Dan, I know your friend definitely doesn’t think so, but that sounds hilarious.
that is where my daughters bought my black cat from for mothers day last year…ummm i wonder if someone could meet on face book…oh it wont be long before i start ur book naked it better be good…let u know what i think
I met my current girlfriend on CL 3 years ago this February. She was my first date after my “I’m a wuss and need to change” revelation. She’s a keeper. Props to Craigslist!!!
I bought my first motorcycle off CL. Damn, I still miss that little 1982 Kawasaki.
well im a woman, attractive, smart etc n last year after moving to a new city i was feeling sad , posted and add on cl i live in canada btw, i was just asking fot going out for drinks or dinner, talk to someone etc i specify i didnt wanted sex though but that i do wanted a date, adn guess what a great guy replied to my add, we had an awesome date, i went htere with no expectations cz it was cl but it was awesome, we talke n talked n talked all nigth, and well i went home with him, we made out n then fall asleep cz we wer drunk n he lived close to were we were meeting up n also it was too late for me to go back to my house in the suburbs drunk, we dated fro a year, he was awesome cute, sucessfull etc etc, i have after still posted on cl and meet some cool people, go to ok dates nothing awesome, but sometimes i have come across to weird people, of course i need to clarify i dont meet up with people i we havnet talked fro a while, saw pics of them, and i always always meet at a public place like hte mall or something that way if it doesnt work out we just hang out, see stores and then say good bye
I’m glad you opened this post for discussion. I have so many CL stories. I’ve sold, bought things, have even tried the personals. You meet some strange characters. I’ll share a few stories…
1. The Creeper
I sold a 17 inch monitor last year that I had posted online right before heading to bed. It was probably 10 pm. When I got up the next morning I checked my email and there were 12 messages from the same guy. All inquiring about the monitor. He wrote a very polite email the first time, then followed by emails every half hour where they were sounding more aggressive. The ones from 4 am were like, “Why the hell aren’t you answering my emails?? I want that damn monitor. I need it right now!” I thought it was a joke when all of a sudden there I am at 7:30 am and another email from him comes through. I answered and told him it was sold and he never stop emailing me for probably 3 months after… All were angry emails bitching to me about what an a-hole seller I was. I’m just glad I never met the guy.
2. The Couch
I ended up selling a couch that I just couldn’t fit into my new apartment. It was so big it would not fit through the door and we tried everything, so I had to keep it secured to the back of my truck for days until I could find a buyer. I even took the pic for CL of it attached to my truck. Well the first person who was interested was a girl who lived in a town about 25 min away. She called and we spoke and she said she wouldn’t be able to pick it up until a few days due to not having transportation. I couldn’t wait so I told her I’d drive it to her place free of charge. When I got there she turned out to be the most beautiful blonde. Her name was Heaven. I’m not kidding. A buddy and me drove out there together and we were able to carry it into hr place. I was so attracted that I took as long as I could unloading and getting it through her door. What should have taken 15 min I took probably a near hour. But it was worth it. We ended up meeting for dinner and I got a few nice dates, even though it later didn’t work out. The lesson I learned was that if you go out of your way, sometimes you never know what can happen or expect.
3. The date
I’ll add this one just because it was one of the strangest experiences I have had on CL. I decided to use the personals section and post an ad to see if anyone was interested in meeting a stranger for lunch. A young gal answered named Ashley and we met that same afternoon. She was Italian, pretty long dark hair, sassy, sexy, just a lot of fun. I had a great time and we decided that we’d continue seeing each other but would not tell people we met on CL. I guess the stigma is kind of embarrassing. Well eventually I saw her for about 3 months. We started having sex around the first few weeks and let me tell you she was incredible. One of the best women I have ever experienced in bed. I was getting nervous that I would start falling for her and end up in some kind of serious relationship. But she was always a little mysterious and we made sure never to get too into our personal lives. In fact, we never met each others friends or family. It was always one on one. Well to make a long story short, she told me from the beginning that she worked a 3rd shift for a call center. I foolishly believed this, and after putting two and two together I found out she was actually a call girl / escort. When I confronted her she didn’t lie about it and said, “yeah. I told her I work a call center.” I thought ‘call center’ meant like phone lines. Stupid me. Anyways she confessed to me how about 3-4 times a week she was out sucking other guys dicks and having sex for money. I was furious and then scared that maybe I would pick up an std. After breaking off the friendship, she became psycho. Started to follow and stalk me, and do things like park in front of my place for hours late at night. Eventually I ended up having to move from that place and change my number to finally rid myself of her. I heard she is still looking for me and it’s been almost a year and half. Oh and thankfully no std’s.