Yes, but Craigslist is a huge pain in the ass.

1. Craigslist is slow. On eBay, you're done in 7 days. It can be pretty hard to get full market value on Craigslist in anywhere near that amount of time, if at all, especially if you're in a smaller city.

2. People on Craigslist are flaky. I have no idea what compels someone to email a seller with interest, schedule a time to view an item, and then just not show up, but they do it all the time. Why even bother?

3. People on Craigslist are needy. On eBay, I list and then I sell. I am selling two items on Craigslist right now. You should see my phone's messaging app. It's full of the unknown numbers of un-serious buyers asking pointless questions they'll never follow up on.

4. People on Craigslist are, well, people. That means I have to meet them somewhere. Arranging that always ends up being more difficult than a trip to the post office.

I view the tradeoff like this:

eBay = simple, easy, fast, but with a nonzero likelihood of total loss

Craigslist = nearly guaranteed to be difficult, slow, and annoying, but with a very low chance of total loss

I don't think it's an easy decision. They are definitely not interchangeable.

> 2. People on Craigslist are flaky. I have no idea what compels someone to email a seller with interest, schedule a time to view an item, and then just not show up, but they do it all the time. Why even bother?

I was moving and had to sell a lot of stuff fast. I scheduled around 6 people to come look at a futon. 0 showed. Even after I offered to give it away for free. Huge waste of time.

Unlike eBay, Craigslist transactions carry a nonzero risk of you getting shot.

http://www.wmcactionnews5.com/story/31621453/2-people-shot-d... http://www.cbs46.com/story/26038628/two-people-injured-in-kc...

> 2. People on Craigslist are flaky. I have no idea what compels someone to email a seller with interest, schedule a time to view an item, and then just not show up, but they do it all the time. Why even bother?

I was beginning to think that buyers on Craigslist are instructed to act this way. :P

What's interesting is that it is the opposite for buyers. So much easier to buy of CL than eBay.

What do you do if you discover something wrong with the item post-transaction?

Small claims court seems nicely suited.

I'm not going risk wasting a day of my life for $100 or get my life more entwined with an avowed criminal.

Even so, there's a good possibility of old-school fraud, with fake cashier's checks, or getting mugged. A recent trend has been for police departments to allow CL transactions to take place in their parking lots.

I do all of my Craigslist transactions in the lobby of my bank. They have cameras and a security guard, and as an added bonus I can deposit the cash right away.

Even worse, "Man sued for $30K over $40 printer he sold on Craigslist"

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=11847858

In person, cash transaction, crowded place? Pfft, then you get arrested because the cops think you're selling stolen goods.

Lots of police stations now have "Safe Exchange" places either in the station or in the parking lot. Cameras in place and well lit.

That's a nasty corner case of PA state law, combined with a defendant who failed to respond to claims.

I read that when it was posted, and I got the I pressing the conman was pulling some trick to claim he had informed the other party, but hadn't actually done so. If that's the case then you'd need ESP to avoid being scammed.