As the title reads, I posted my dads Subaru Forester for sale on craigslist in Denver, CO. The car is still owned by the bank. My father thought he had a remaining 14.5k balance before he could receive his clean CO title. After going into bank with our potential buyer this morning- it turns out he only owes 3.5k to be done with the loan.
--
The potential buyer contacted me yesterday via craigslist saying he was very interested in taking over the lien on vehicle. He told us has never bought anything on credit as he is usually a buying in full type of guy. After picking him up and his business consultant /family friend we went to bank to apply for the refinancing of the loan. However to his surprise when we went into the bank he had 2 collection notices and a 575 credit score.
The man of about 38 years old, lives just 1 block away from us. He currently rents out a condo with family members. He says he would use this vehicle for his booming business of signage / work clothes / clothing. He assures us he has been in business since 1998 and has plenty of repeat business. He was very polite and had many many questions about our vehicle. He really came across as a good responsible man.
He tried negotiating on price but believes the car is worth the full amount. He said he is not sure he can pay in full but is able to pay in larger payments as private parties. He is prepared to visit a notary and sign an agreement of $500/month payments (he verbally said he will likely make payments higher than 500 depending on month). I have already taken a picture of his CO drivers license today without hesitation. He assured us he can pay $1000 first month but I am thinking maybe a higher down payment such as 2000 or 3000.
My question to you all is this. If my dad and I choose to move forward with selling vehicle to this gentleman, is there any problems you see with this situation? Has anyone else gone through a similar experience ?
------------------------
The man seems like he is one of his word but I assume most people are when they break promises. My biggest worry is what happens in the case of an accident while he is making payments. Would a simple contract assure he will pay back his debt to us? Can he get insurance under his name since he can't really register the vehicle in his name.
I would prefer to business with him simply because he is a very polite, calm, seems like a decent man of his word, and he lives so close to us. Also, he showed how good of a man he is an offered to help my dad with his newly started food truck and his signage needs.
-------------------------------------------
Any suggestions, or comments on this are appreciated. We told him we will let him know by tonight on how we would like to proceed tomorrow morning (Saturday). Thanks.
UPDATE 2: Craigslist Post (for those curious): https://denver.craigslist.org/cto/d/aurora-45k-miles-must-see-subaru/6889758619.html
UPDATE 1: Thanks to all for quick feedback. I am coming back to senses and you all have great points. I have done several sales on craiglists of cash or cashiers check. Taking a step back to think about this, there is a great number of risks. I think building emotion for the man and our eagerness to get this sold was creating haziness, making this ridiculous idea a possible option.
Submitted May 24, 2019 at 06:18PM by livelife_noregrets http://bit.ly/2QljFdy
