Local pickup for speakers - should I let the buyer in the house or use the the garage?

I never do business at my home.  I’ll meet someone in town to pickup what I’m selling.  Some sellers have let me in their house but that’s what they’ve requested. 

??? zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

@foggyus91 ,

Sure good luck with that. 

Have him text you a picture of his driver license, with everything marked out but his picture and home address.

Thank you. And good luck to your next username aka earlflynn, aka jerryg123, aka skypunk, aka 20 others...

Better safe than sorry I guess, but the chances of problems are very remote. Keep it in the garage if you feel better, but what is to stop them from entering your house if they are armed or threaten? 

Have someone with you that you secretly hate.  So if things go south you have the right person to share the experience with....Cue Montgomery Burns chuckle

@allenf1963   +1

"There you have it, average ordinary retirees more paranoid than a homeless tweeker at the end of a four day binge."

Well, @devinplombier, this retiree knows the difference between a "tweaker" and a "tweeker".  In addition, this retiree had three Glocks pointed at his head by hood rats during a car-jacking armed robbery.  SOB's even refused to let me have my crutches out of the car (I was recovering from a bone fusion on my foot), asking me if the crutches "were worth dying over".  Instead of giving them the fear they wanted, I used my time memorizing every detail about them and their getaway car's tag number.  All three were caught within 24 hours after going on a 5 county crime spree including 3 stolen cars and 6 armed robberies.  They all are enjoying 15 to 20 years of being someone's girlfriend, mainly because of my detailed testimony. 

So no -- not a single person I don't know is entering my home to audition gear, which is a moot point anyway.  I don't ever sell anything.  I have every piece of gear I've purchased since 1976...even the boxes and manuals.  I hope you never have an experience like mine that changes how you view people, but if you do, maybe you'll understand why in today's world it's better to be safe than sorry.  I don't call it "paranoia", I call it "reality" and I'm fortunate to live in Southern states where we have the right to carry.

I had a younger person drive 5 hours up to my house from St Louis to purchase my

older B&W 801 S2's sent him pictures talked a lot on the phone got to know him.

Absolutly no problems other than getting them into his infinity SUV.

"There you have it, average ordinary retirees more paranoid than a homeless tweeker at the end of a four day binge."

Yeah, what he said. -John

I've allowed (from A'Gon ads) a lawyer, a Junior High School teacher and a movie writer/director into our home and I'm still here to tell the stories.

The movie director should still be in the spare closet (haven't checked for over a decade now).

DeKay

Sure good luck with that. 

Have him text you a picture of his driver license, with everything marked out but his picture and home address.

I've done probably 50 sale transactions out of my home. Never had a bad experience. Probably the worst thing that ever happened was a guy who stayed 45 minutes, talked up a storm, then told me he wasn't going to buy... he was definitely an audio person, and there was no 'ulterior motive' - just, don't waste that much of my time; you usually know within the first 5 minutes if you are going to buy or not...

And I have met close to 50 mostly very nice folks and gotten to share audio info / stories / etc. with them; a couple it ended up I bought something off of them later on because I found out they had something I wanted when they came to my place.

While I can certainly understand that WHERE you live might have some bearing on how cautious you feel you need to be... this does show that there are a lot of paranoid people out there. And (full disclosure) I say that as a 60-year old white guy, fairly clean-cut, living in UT (a gun-friendly state) and owning firearms myself. I have never felt the need to carry a firearm when selling anything out of my home. I HAVE gone to a few homes and had that done to me (homeowner answered the door packing and making it obvious) and, quite frankly, those particular folks weren't the same "very nice folks" I mentioned earlier. Instead they acted nervous, suspicious, and quite frankly if I knew what I was walking into - I would have decided against being around them, as I felt like A) they seemed to be generally 'angry' individuals that were almost looking for an excuse to use their weapon; and B) seemed like at least a few of them probably had legitimate mental issues with paranoia, etc.

But, in the end, I do agree with others who have said you should do what feels best for you and your situation. The only thing I would add is that I think it would be extremely rare that someone is pretending to want to buy audio equipment as an excuse to either rob you or 'case' your home. 

Most of the robbers will not pick a speakers that big, or sacrifice to be identified.Talk to him about his audio experience what is favorite artist? You can tell if he is really legit. He can’t give you the right answer if he is not audiophile or he has wrong motives.To be fair since you have his address to him you can also for his driver license, if he has no bad motive he will surely give it to you. Make sure it’s daytime when you meet.

@hotei  +1

Don't take this the wrong way but why wouldn't simply make this decision rather than posting it on a forum for strangers (53 of them) to opine on? Do what feels right, safe and smart. Good luck. 

......some really good responses here. I sold my Esoteric Grandioso K1x to an Audiogon member who drove 6 hours to come into my home. I asked for photo's and driver's license prior to the sale. I took 50% down on Pay-Pal first ......so get a down payment and then when the buyer saw that it was as advertised and in good working condition, he sent me the other 50% through Pay-Pal while listening. I think the buyer does have a right in listening to it first, I know I would. If you are new to the area , call the local police and see if there is an off duty officer available after hours to stop by and just be there and pay them accordingly. I agree I would be really careful but the buyer does need to listen to them first. I also would ask for a deposit before you go through all that work and then have the buyer say they do not like them.......that also could happen. Good luck on your sale.   

For me, it’s not someone robbing at time of sale. But, scoping out my residence to see what’s there and and returning when I’m away.  So, I would do it outside or somewhere else.

Have him text you a picture of his driver license, with everything marked out but his picture and home address.

Now you have his ID, home address (so you can check out his house on Zillow) and positive identification when he shows up. If he's not willing to do that, bid him adieu. Whenever I buy something and am going to someone’s house to pick it up, I always look up the house on Zillow. Lets me know what I’m driving to, plus I’m nosy. 

Once I went to look at HT speakers from craigslist. The seller lived in a forlorn subdivision that even google maps was confused about, but eventually I got there, rang the doorbell, the guy swung the entry door open, and lo and behold the speakers were set up right there behind the door, and behind them a table barring entrance to the home.

On that table sat one of those dinky Dayton tube amps with bluetooth. Soon the guy started blasting horrid Spotify pop crap right out of his phone while I stood there bemused on the concrete walkway two feet out of the threshold.

When I don’t feel I’m being treated reasonably, my reaction is to offer 50% of the asking price. That goes for meeting in supermarket parking lots and such. But that day, I just turned around and walked away.

My brother once sold a IPad inside a bank. Gave him comfort. I thought that was a overkill. 

@devinplombier +1

@devinplombier + 1 

Think what you all will, but people have been robbed and killed in situations like this, just as it could easily happen if you meet somewhere. Yet if this guy is legit, you should be able to tell just during your conversation. Does he know what he is talking about, does he sound like an audio guy or gal !

That said, I have had people here to buy several times, and zero problems. But I am rarely here alone, and I am wearing my CCW. I have met all great people !

There you have it, average ordinary retirees more paranoid than a homeless tweeker at the end of a four day binge.

kerrybh has the right idea. There's post's here from dreamers and realists I am the latter. A good con man can fool anyone. Have a couple guys there with you , if you don't know anyone hire them easy to do and have a pistol racked and ready hidden but within easy reach. If the buyer has someone with him they wait in the car. If both need to hear them they can switch. House demo a must. If they don't sound great you may lose the sale

...as long as they bring bail, you'll be fine...

I always have people meet me at the Police Station. 

If I sell something smaller or portable, I usually meet someone at a Starbucks or some other neutral site. When I have sold more expensive or larger items, I use a local hi-fi store that sells new, used and vintage equipment and they sell it for me for a 10% commission.  I don’t really want to let a stranger in my house.  

Let them in, offer a drink and be cool. Buyers are human too! 
 

in all seriousness, just be nice. I had an amazing time as a buyer at a sellers place. I ended up there most of the day we had some nice coffee and a couple of cocktails. Listen to music, put the world to rights. 
 

he’s the one who’s probably slightly more at risk. It’s far easier to take money than run off with heavy hifi gear. 
 

you will get a read on them within a few minutes and just be careful but nice. Who knows, could be a long friendship over a shared interest. 
 

I've had many people in my home to demo gear before purchase. It's the right thing to do. Or don't do local pickup. 

Do it in the house as you would normally listen so the buyer knows what he’s getting.   But, have someone(s) else there with you in case things go sour.

If you are built like a offensive lineman and look like you've done prison time, then by all means, let them in.

If you are at all hesitant, then demo in the garage with the door open.

What a world that we have to wonder about things like this,

I've never had an issue personally. In fact I'm about to thin the herd and will probable have people in the house.

Love the wannabe rambos living in the wild west here. what a sad state of affairs.

Sus out the buyer as best you can and then go with your gut.  

Treat the buyer the same way you would want to be treated if you were him.  Remember, he thinks you might rob him.

All of my customers drive a beater car, look like they have just gotten out of jail, and have a broken down meth still in the back seat. You don't need to always take cash, sometimes trade is fine.

After you have talked to them on the phone and they seem ok, then look at what they drive up to your house in. if it’s an old beater, they look like they just got out of jail and they are buying thousands of dollars’ worth of gear maybe run,  if they drive up in a decent car/truck, dressed well etc, they are probably ok. I assume you have insurance. 

Very high probability that this is fine, but I'd try to find someone to be with you if, for no other reason, you'll be more comfortable in your interactions. I'm maybe a little cynical - was a federal prosecutor for several years-but the really talented bad guys can make you believe they won the Nobel Peace Prize and ended world hunger. I'd have someone with me. 

talk on the phone and ask questions about his/her musical journey, equipment owned, favorite music.  Listen to the answers and the comments.

Listen for obvious signs of BS.

@hbarrel + 1 - I've sold 3 or 4 sets of speakers this way and never had any trouble; I also live in a secure apartment house and I don't worry about burglaries, either. 

@balooo2 +1 

beside who doesn’t want to hear a good story about a stranger coming into your house and doing bad. Trust me, you can take that story well into your aging out. 

Reminds of this from a couple years ago -  somewhat off topic, somewhat not.  

Man loitering outside of Aldi: Hey man, you got a cig?
Me: Nah man, I don’t smoke.
Man: You need help with them bags?
Me: Thanks but I’ve got them. 
Man: Well, can I rob you for those shoes?

[Joint laughter as I walked off toward my car.]

True story.

Wow, guns on your person 3-4 male neighbors present all to sell a set of speakers "news" has really done a number on many. Very sad state we are in.

No judgement here I'm simply taken aback by the level of fear many live in day to day, again very sad.I am not naive (I grew up in the Bronx NY) and I can spot fear and mistrust a mile away which in turn makes me nervous so no keep your speakers...

I wouldn’t even let them in the garage.

I’ve had multiple people trave over 1000 miles to listen and to pay cash for speakers and turntables. I had a 150lb tt with all the boxes to ship but I won’t ship tt’s or speakers. When these guys come down, I ask a few of my neighbors to come by so the buyer is greeted by 3 or 4 guys. I’ve had no problems. Btw: our states are gun friendly which is a plus.

"I never ever purchase from or sell to anyone with no feedbacks"

At one point in time no one on here had any feedback for someone else to reference

Ozzy... I read you post fast and missed the word "whacker". I went and re-read it for clarification.

I have sold a LOT of audio stuff online. I have always invited buyers into my home and even demo the system with/without the item they are buying. Never had an issue. It seems that most people that are into our hobby are generally good guys.

Now when I sell a weed whacker on FB marketplace, that's a whole different story....

Have the person join Audiogon and post a cable review as a precondition of the sale.

We'll check them out/pick them to peices.

DeKay