out of country buyer

Well, I might have a buyer for my boat, I'm in california, and he's in Canada. I want to make sure I dont get burned here in any way. I have not decided to sell it to him, but he made me an offer that I could accept. the question is, how do I do this? I need a cashers check drawn up on a U.S. bank I presume. transportation, I dont think he'll be driving down, so I think it will be shipped. How do you trust someone to send you a cashers check for a large sum?

Take the cashiers check to your bank and tell him that you wont ship the Boat until the Cashiers check clears. It will usually clear or be returned within 5-7 days.
There are a lot of scams going around and people making fake cashiers checks so be careful. But if he is legit then his cashiers check will clear within 7 days.
Good luck

You could call the issuing bank as well to make sure it is a legit check. Any more, cashiers checks arn't worth the paper they are writen on with all the fraud.

Yes,Yes be very, very carefull!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I just sold mine to a guy in Canada. There are a bunch of extra steps and precautions to take, but can go through well.
-Have collected funds before shipping or letting him take it.
-He will need to have title for the trailer to get accross the boarder, but not the boat so if you have some collected and some not collected only give him the title to the trailer
-I had a wire transfer for a large portion up front and then had a cashiers check once he got into town. I verified funds in that account and that they could put a stop payment on it. I sent him the boat title a few days later when it cleared.

Just be smart and cover all your bases over and over again.

isnt almost any western union thing a scam?!

I would think they way to go would be wire transfer only.

If he is telling you he will WU the $, I would first ask why WU, why not a bank? If its a WU check, don't take it. I am sure he is going to walk into a WU store with 20+ grand in cash for a check. If he tells you he will send you a check for over the amount, if you give him a check back, don't do it.

wire is the only way. any banks can accept wires for a small fee. our broker-dealer charges 15 bones. if its cash its probably coming from a brokerage account.

i have sold many items to people in canada.. from cell phones, atv's and vehicles... there are a few extra steps in the process, but nothing to worry about. however, in every instance i have had the other party wire the money dorectly to my bank. if the buyer of you boat has a problem w/ this --then i would have a problem dealing w/ him... use common sense, no need to worry.... and as mentioned, customs will need the title,, as most boats do not have titles --they will require a title for the trailer and bill of sale for the boat.

You know Canada is right next to Nigeria, and we don't want another Nigerian check scam.

Paul, that is exactly what is going on here... I smell SCAM. read this:

We received your responses in regards to the boat for sale, my friend is making efforts concerning the actualization of this transaction and we've concluded issues regarding your payment. It is my pleasure to inform you after discussing with my friend on the terms of payment and shipping arrangement, we agreed and he has instructed to carry on with the transaction, he said that I should inform you that payment will get to you in a cashier's check of $26,900.00 which is a payment of a cancelled order earlier made by my client. The order was cancelled because, when the shipper/agent went for the pick-up of the boat, it was discovered that the boat had always been used in salt water, without the owner rinsing it after use and this wasn't mentioned during the course of the transaction.

You are required to deduct cost of your boat which is $19,300 when payment gets to you and refund balance $7,600 to my client's shipper/agent via western union transfer for him to be able to offset shipping charges, and tax. After payment has reached you and balance sent to the shipper/agent, the shipper/agent will then come for inspection and pick up of the boat. While title paper/other necessary documents will be signed and picked by the agent. Confirm this whole arrangement and provide your FULL NAME, ADDRESS and PHONE NUMBER for the check payment to be delivered to you via courier service. My friend will like to view recent pics of the boat in and out asap.

********************

doent that smell like a scam?
I replied... "mail me a cashiers check, I'll wiat untill it clears, and you play shipping" NO RESPONSE!

That is definitely the same scam that has been running around for awhile. Ask for his phone number so you can call him. That will end the whole thing quickly. STAY AWAY>....
Good luck selling your boat to a real buyer!!!

Yep, scam. Nigerian Counterfeit Scam. Oldest scam out there.

I have had that same letter many times while selling on autotrader or car soup. Mine were usually from England.

That is 100% scam. I went through the same thing a few years back. And dont think they want call you and talk to you on the phone cause they will. I told the guy to mail me a cashiers check, and he did. $6,000 more than the boat i was selling. Took the check to the bank and showed it to them and they even had a hard time telling that it was a fake. But it was.
Its hard to sell anything anymore through the internet. So many scammers. Be careful and good luck with your sale.

I sold a boat to a guy in Canada... Just have him wire the money. He's the one that needs to take the risk not you.

(Message edited by Romi on March 24, 2006)

Wait, doesn't a wire transfer include giving the buyer your bank name, account number and routing number????? In addition to YOUR full name and address????? Someone could easily take that info and order personal checks and use them against your account or worse.

Personally, I would use E-bay and PayPal. Set up a private auction for the seller (e-bay fees for autos only cost $40 on e-bay) and then have them pay through PayPal. That way you have TWO forms of protection through e-bay and PayPal.

Thats a scam. I can't believe you thought it was for real. You must really want to sell your boat to be blinded by that.

To protect yourself during a wire transfer, it is best to call the transfering bank, and give them the information, or just tell the buyer your banks name so his bank can contact them for the wire. You should NEVER give someone your acct number.

(Message edited by psudy on March 24, 2006)

renee -- what is the difference ig writing someone a personal check --the same info is ther as well -- a direct wire is the only safe way... and by the way --ebay fees are much higher -- it will cost more than 40 to just list the vehicle --then a % of hte reserve price --then a final value fee too....i was skeptical when i was new as well --but no worries

Good Point... perhaps that's why I don't write personal checks anymore.

e-bay Motor fees are structured differently than regular auctions. A boat listing fee is $40 plus another $40 for a transaction fee. Also, depending on the type of account you have, PayPal will either be free or will cost you 3%.

I think I would prefer paying the e-bay and PayPal fees and have the added protection.

Use escrow. That way it is safe for the buyer and seller. This is what I would do if I bought a big ticket item.

renee, ebay just changed their fees about 3 mts or so ago -- i have since sold 4 vehicles ranging form 3k to 22k, and on the least of the sale i paid over 100 bones by the time it was all said and done... not syaing they are crooked, but.... ebay is safe no doubt, i have had a couple of instances where they have protected my.. however ebay is set up to protect the buyer, not hte seller....

I'm about to list my boss's car on e-bay...Good to know they have changed their fee structure, since they haven't updated it on the website.