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How to Make It on Craigslist

blog.priceonomics.com

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Re: How to Make It on Craigslist

#101

Post by Tichy »

thinkdevcode wrote: post #39
chc wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think you're missing a variable that equals "Having zero debt at all times is not everyone's highest priority".

Let's rephrase your statement: "Paying back on things you've already purchased with someone elses money is not everyone's highest priority" Now we take this statement and multiply it by 34 million, and we have the reason why America's total US consumer debt is 2.43 trillion. I dont mean to nitpick, but I get really annoyed when people do extravagant things when they can't afford it.

Lot's of people (mostly bankers) actually love it if you owe them money. So I guess you shouldn't feel bad about it.

Re: How to Make It on Craigslist

#102

Post by jccc »

reader5000 wrote: post #92
jccc wrote: post #33

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I doubt very much that sellers would appreciate this liquidity "service" if it were spelled out for them. They would feel cheated, as would the buyers.

There is nothing to "spell out" for the sellers since nobody knows at what max price an item will sell. When the original seller sets a price, they are balancing their need to move the item with how much they think they can get. When the arbitrageur buys an item they are offering immediate liquidity and accept not only the item but the risk that they will not be able to move it at a profit (or break even). Liquidity…

Does it matter at all that buyers and sellers ought to have that choice, to determine whether this really is a value to them?

If liquidity and risk transfer is such a value, wouldn't you want this service-for-sale to be clearly visible to all?

This is my theory: If a person doing this were clearly distinguishable on Craigslist from regular individual sellers (and buyers) a great number would be swayed away from doing business with him. I think most people on Craigslist see it as the lubricant between buyers and sellers, intended precisely to replace middlemen like him. I think his ability to sell that liquidity and risk-transfer for profit would depend on his ability to blend in.

You might reasonably argue that I'm wrong. But if you do, then not only would you not object if (in a hypothetical universe) we were to clearly and involuntarily distinguish dealers and Craigslist profit-makers like him from the regular buyers and sellers, but you would see it as beneficial to him.

Re: How to Make It on Craigslist

#103

Post by dangrossman »

dotBen wrote: post #100
dangrossman wrote: post #82

This sounds like a mess to keep proper tax records for. Assuming nobody's giving receipts on either side of the transaction, how do you keep proof of what price you paid and what price you sold for? Audits aren't that rare.

Not speaking for this individual in particular but in general its unlikely that businesses like this are going to report all of their earnings, are they? You can audit a cash business but with no receipts whole transactions never happened or have a paper trail. I'm not condoning tax avoidance but remember most of the people on HN either earn six figures a year, will do in a few years and/or building startups that mig…

At the same time, in that income range with that family, his taxes are gonna be 0-10% of his profits at most... without the threat of being imprisoned for tax evasion. If his "typical summer week" is his typical week all year, he alone is already earning more than the median household income for this country... lots of people are self-employed making similar income without benefits. Is it morally OK for a plumber to not report his income? An electrician? What's different about a CL arbitrage business?

Re: How to Make It on Craigslist

#104

Post by int3rnaut »

I really like your story man, and I'm glad you're succeeding but I just wanted to voice my opinion on one of the things you said-- "Back at home I immediately found out the cards were worthless. I had paid the kid $100 for the cards, and eventually pestered him". Even if the kid knew, I think it's wrong for an adult to come back and reneg on a deal with a child. There's a big power imbalance there. You seem like a great guy, I just kind of found that a bit unethical.

Re: How to Make It on Craigslist

#105

Post by jacalata »

jccc wrote: post #33
tocomment wrote: post #19

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Well, he is delivering them, and taking old appliances away when he delivers them. There is a lot of value in that. He is also adding "liquidity" to the "market" by immediately buying new listings, and holding them for a few days until the right buyer comes along. Without someone like him the seller would have to wait several days to find the right buyer.

I doubt very much that sellers would appreciate this liquidity "service" if it were spelled out for them. They would feel cheated, as would the buyers.

I know when I moved out of my last apartment, I sold my washing machine for a couple hundred dollars less than I could have made, because it needed to be gone by the end of the week. I don't have storage, I don't want to keep something that size sitting around my new apartment. I totally understand and appreciate what we're both getting out of the deal.

Re: How to Make It on Craigslist

#106

Post by colton36 »

int3rnaut wrote: post #104

I really like your story man, and I'm glad you're succeeding but I just wanted to voice my opinion on one of the things you said-- "Back at home I immediately found out the cards were worthless. I had paid the kid $100 for the cards, and eventually pestered him". Even if the kid knew, I think it's wrong for an adult to come back and reneg on a deal with a child. There's a big power imbalance there. You seem like a gr…

I disagree. Letting the kid get away with this teaches that there won't be any consequences to questionable actions.

Re: How to Make It on Craigslist

#107

Post by dangrossman »

kevinpet wrote: post #97
dangrossman wrote: post #82

This sounds like a mess to keep proper tax records for. Assuming nobody's giving receipts on either side of the transaction, how do you keep proof of what price you paid and what price you sold for? Audits aren't that rare.

Presumably the email would cover some of this. Records don't need to be something out of CSI, you just have to have them.

I was just reading a long comment thread about craigslist on reddit yesterday. It seemed like most transactions take place over the phone, not e-mail. Whoever calls first at the right price gets the stuff, a good deal will be gone before the e-mail would be read.

Re: How to Make It on Craigslist

#108

Post by mpeg »

r00fus wrote: post #62
redthrowaway wrote: post #51

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I wonder if it would be possible to scale the business. If you wrote a script that could flag potentially lucrative items for manual review, you would likely be able to cut out much of the searching, allowing you to target CLs in multiple cities. If he's making $38/hr in one city, he could hire someone for $18/hr in another to drive around and pick up / drop off items and pocket the $20 difference. I'd be interested…

As he mentions several times in his posting, time sensitivity is critical. Minutes, even seconds can make/break a deal... automation may be much slower than a human who's constantly scanning. Furthermore, it's clear that it's not just "pickup" and possibly "delivery"... the author is making a clear buy/sell/bargain decision on the spot... what happens when the pickup results in a fraudulent item? Clearly this means t…

uhh, automation is going to be much, much faster than a human who is constantly scanning

of course, it can't analyze the data as efficiently, but it would definitely be faster to have an automatic filter that saves time in looking through obviously overpriced or useless postings

Re: How to Make It on Craigslist

#109

Post by mapster »

int3rnaut wrote: post #104

I really like your story man, and I'm glad you're succeeding but I just wanted to voice my opinion on one of the things you said-- "Back at home I immediately found out the cards were worthless. I had paid the kid $100 for the cards, and eventually pestered him". Even if the kid knew, I think it's wrong for an adult to come back and reneg on a deal with a child. There's a big power imbalance there. You seem like a gr…

If a kid acts unethically, its your duty as an adult to correct a wrong, and if needed, discuss the kid's actions with his parents.

Re: How to Make It on Craigslist

#110

Post by dotBen »

dangrossman wrote: post #103
dotBen wrote: post #100

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not speaking for this individual in particular but in general its unlikely that businesses like this are going to report all of their earnings, are they? You can audit a cash business but with no receipts whole transactions never happened or have a paper trail. I'm not condoning tax avoidance but remember most of the people on HN either earn six figures a year, will do in a few years and/or building startups that mig…

At the same time, in that income range with that family, his taxes are gonna be 0-10% of his profits at most... without the threat of being imprisoned for tax evasion. If his "typical summer week" is his typical week all year, he alone is already earning more than the median household income for this country... lots of people are self-employed making similar income without benefits. Is it morally OK for a plumber to…

All good points. Part of me, in making my overly-simplistic moral argument, is assuming that his summer months are reflective of seasonal fluctuations and not a consistant representation of his income.
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