buying a used car from CraigsList versus some other option (a dealer, or www.CarMax.com)

[Anonymous]

What are the pros/cons of buying a used car on CraigsList versus buying from a dealer, or from a website like www.CarMax.com?

[Anonymous]

You can take it back to CarMax with little to no hassle for one thing. That is a huge pro to me.

[Anonymous]

I bought a car from CarMax last week (2018 with only 13K miles on it). It stalled while driving on day 6 and then wouldn't start (bad sign - didn't want to take a chance and keep it) so I returned it to CarMax. They have a 7 day return policy. It was no-hassle return, HOWEVER, they take 7 business days to return our money. I paid cash for it and they're holding on to my $30 grand for over a week and I have no car, and no cash with which to buy another one.

Buyer beware.

[Anonymous]

Carmax is the most expensive place to buy a used car. By far.

[Anonymous]

OP here.

I rolled the dice and bought a used car from a private seller on CraigsList.

So far, so good, although I have only had the car a couple of days.

I liked the seller -- seemed like a nice, responsible person, and they had complete service records for the car.

The price I paid was probably 20% lower than what I would have paid if I had bought an equivalent car from a dealer.

[Anonymous]

I bought a certified used car from Mazda. They add 3 years of warranty on to whatever is left on the original warranty (1 year in my case). Definitely made the car worth more then buying from an individual.

[Anonymous]

Depends on the price range. It very different to buy a $1-2k beater vs 2-3 y.o. one.