Saw this listing for a free sectional in Austin, said it was in great shape just needed pickup. Drove 30 minutes to this guy's house and he hands me a bag of trash bags instead of a couch. Turns out the ad was a joke, the "couch" was just an old mattress propped up against the wall with a sheet over it. Learned to always ask for a photo of the actual item before heading out, has anyone else fallen for a fake freebie like this?
I was scrolling through Marketplace last Tuesday near Austin and stumbled on this ad for an oven that the seller claimed was possessed. They said it turns on by itself at 3 AM and once cooked a frozen pizza without anyone plugging it in. The picture just showed a normal 1990s Kenmore with some rust spots. I messaged them asking if it made any weird noises, and they said it hums the chorus to "Hotel California" sometimes. I half wanted to buy it just to see if it was real, but my wife said no way. Has anyone else run into haunted appliance listings on there?
I found an ad on Facebook Marketplace last week for a free couch. The pictures looked fine, just some old floral thing. I messaged the guy and he gave me an address way out in the sticks near Raleigh. When I showed up, there was this rusted-out van in the driveway with what looked like a mattress tied to the roof. The guy wanted me to help him carry the couch out of his basement, which had no lights and smelled like wet dog and cigarettes. I noped out so fast, lol. Has anyone else shown up to a buy and instantly regretted it because the situation felt off?
I was at the transfer station in Burlington last Saturday tossing a stack of clean buckets from a job site. Some retired farmer saw me and yelled 'hey, those are worth $5 each on Marketplace!' I laughed it off but checked when I got home. People actually buy those things for gardening, paint mixing, whatever. Now I clean them out and list them for $3-$4 a pop. They move in 2 days tops. Anyone else sit on a goldmine of stuff you thought was trash?
Talked to a moving crew guy last week in Denver who said they've hauled off 12 of those "free pianos" in the last 6 months alone. People just want you to do the heavy lifting, so they slap "free" on it and then ghost you when you show up. Anyone else get stuck with a dusty upright they couldn't even give away?
I found a listing for a free NordicTrack treadmill on Facebook Marketplace near Tacoma last Tuesday. The guy said it worked fine, he just wanted it out of his garage. When I got it home and started cleaning it, I pulled back the belt and found about 30 bucks in loose change and a half-eaten granola bar stuck to the motor housing. Has anyone else found weird stuff hidden inside used gear they bought?
I posted this old porcelain doll I found in my grandma's attic for $20. First guy who messaged said his girlfriend collects them and asked for my address to pick it up that night. He showed up at 11 PM, didn't say a word, just grabbed the doll and handed me a crumpled $50 bill. Next morning I woke up to three more messages all asking if the doll was still available. Weirdest part is my TV turned on by itself around 3 AM that night. Has anyone else had a random transaction like that where the buyer acted totally strange?
I was browsing Facebook Marketplace this afternoon and some guy in Akron is selling his collection of painted pet rocks for $75. Not even fancy ones, just rocks with googly eyes and sharpie smiles. It got me thinking about how wild Craigslist and Marketplace have gotten over the years. I remember back in 2015 when the weirdest thing I saw was someone selling a haunted bread machine. Now it's like people are cleaning out their junk drawers and calling it a vintage collection. The pet rock ad had 14 photos of different rocks with names like Gerald and Susan on sticky notes. I almost messaged the guy just to ask how he ended up with 50 rocks that all look like they were made in 10 minutes. Has anyone else noticed the ads getting more bizarre lately or is it just my area?
I was about to buy a cheap pancake compressor at Home Depot for $90, but my coworker Jeff told me to check Craigslist first. Found an old Craftsman 6 gallon oiled compressor for $75 from a guy in Denton who said it just needed new rings. I rebuilt the pump for $12 and now it runs quieter and holds air better than any new budget unit I've tried. Anyone else had luck fixing up old shop tools instead of buying new?
I needed a dresser for my spare room and saw this beat up old thing on Marketplace for $50. Looked solid in the photos, figured I'd save some cash and get character. Picked it up last Saturday, got it home, and the whole back panel is particle board crumbled to dust. Had to spend another $40 on plywood just to fix it up so it wouldn't fall apart. Has anyone else gotten burned by buying "vintage" furniture that's secretly junk?
I stumbled on a Facebook Marketplace ad from some guy in Phoenix selling a toaster that supposedly only works when it's dark out. He claimed it burned every slice he put in at night but worked fine during the day. Has anyone else run into kitchen gear with weird quirks like this?
I was scrolling through my local Craigslist last Tuesday and counted 50 ads in 7 days that were just plain bizarre. One guy was selling a half-eaten bag of chips for 5 bucks, another lady wanted 100 dollars for a jar of her own hair clippings. There was a listing for a "haunted fridge" that supposedly opened itself at 3 AM, and someone else was trading a rusty bike for a pet snake. Is the world getting weirder or do people just have too much free time on their hands? Has anyone else hit a weird milestone like this and just had to step back for a minute?