I am negotiating with a private seller to purchase a car that I sort of stumbled across on EBay. (I bid on it after a couple glasses of wine thinking it wouldn’t be accepted anyway, the car sold to someone else. The seller contacted me via email to tell me it’s still for sale because the buyer could not get financing and to make an offer, which I did and he agreed to) The price is too good to not seriously consider closing the deal. The seller has suggested we use an escrow service. I have never used one, so I’m a bit hesitant to commit. The seller suggested we use the escrow service that eBay motors recommends; escrow.com
The way I understand this process, is that the seller / buyer come to terms, including shipping. I create an account with the terms noted. The seller and buyer then set up the account and I then transfer funds to the escrow account. The seller then ships the car to me and I have a pre-determined amount of time to inspect the car. If I accept the car, I then authorize the payment to the seller. If I reject the car, I then have to ship it back to the seller and I pay the shipping fees. Shipping fees are $1500 - $2500 depending on the carrier used. The fees for the escrow service is .089% of the purchase price (about $500 in this case). So if I reject the car, I’m basically out around $4000 which includes my costs for travel.
I have already told the seller that I want to see the car, which means I need to fly to CA. (I’d do this regardless if I use the escrow or pay cash in person).
Knowing this crowd, I’m sure there is someone who has done this before and there’s probably someone with some wise advice to share.
The seller isn’t pushing for a quick transaction, but I need to do something within a few days. I am sketical that this is legit, but.....
Advice??
