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There are a few used piano dealers in and around the Atlanta area that absolutely dominate the pianos for sale ads on Craigslist. In fact, I’d say 60% to 70% of all the pianos for sale on the Atlanta Craigslist at any given time are from used piano dealers.

One in particular, and I’ll not name names, advertises his pianos on every Craigslist local in Georgia, as well as bordering states; his tentacles reach far and wide. After a while (and especially since I’m an avid pseudo Craigslist piano shopper ) you begin to recognize the same pianos time and time again, as well as the surroundings in the photos.

I suppose there is not a problem with that, except that the piano dealer in question often advertises his pianos under the guise of a private seller with slogans like… moving soon and can’t take it with me; downsizing and need to sell; kids no longer play and need to sell; have dr bills and need to sell; no longer play and need to sell… and on and on. What’s wrong with simply telling the truth and say “I’m a piano dealer and this is my inventory of fine pianos for sale”?

I guess the piano business is a tough business with a small market of potential buyers; therefore, some sellers resort to all kinds of tactics to lure in buyers.

Rick

Sheeesh...that's terrible.

Rickster,

At the start of my search, I called on a company to obtain a C3 for me. I noticed his stock was grey market and I wasn't interested in them but stated I would be a ready player for a US model when they got one. Never heard back. After watching CL for sometime, it's easy to spot a dealer's MO, as you just mentioned.

What I don't understand is the need for deception. What purpose does that serve? I would think a dealer is playing with their reputation by posing as an "owner" on CL.

BTW, I'm not arguing against grey market, I have no opinion on the subject other than I didn't want to explain grey market, should I ever sell the piano.

Thanks to this forum and purchasing Larry's book, I was well versed in the used market and knew what to look and ask for when shopping on CL.

Maybe somebody will tell us a dealer's motive for listing as an owner, I'm at a loss........blob

Craigslist can be a good source especially for used or cheaper type pianos. This however provided you know what you're looking at. Like with everything, there's the good, the bad and the ugly.
On other hand, new quality pianos are becoming increasingly affordable and often sold by great discounts.
As dealers, we feel selling at highest possible discounts and affording customers great quality and service, both sides can only win. So far, this formula seems to work very well. Hoping it works for others.
Norbert

Craigslist is a good resource but requires patience and oversight.

I bought my Kawai upright, then later sold it and bought a Baldwin M baby grand, all on Craigslist.

You have to kiss a lost of frogs before you find a prince -- I went to see a lost of "basket cases", but am very happy with my last purchase.

Many listers are selling pianos they know little about -- e.g., grandma's piano, the kids' piano after they lost interest. It amazes me how the majority of photos shows grands with the lid prop in the wrong hole. Tells me the sellers did not play or know anything about the piano.

Still fun to look though.

Yes, it is fun to look...

Some people read the news paper first thing in the mornings... I open up the Piano World forums for a bit and then go to Craigslist. My first interest is the piano ads and then the pick-up truck ads, and then the riding lawn mower ads and then the goats for sale ads (living lawn mowers ). Guess I'm eccentric.

Rick

I think I am correct in saying that posing as a private seller, when one is actually a dealer, is illegal in UK.

We used goats for our lawn. They did a good job, too. Such a good job, that they were the guest of honor at the year end BBQ!

I bought my Yamaha P 2 from Craig's @ list. I had looked at a number of frogs first tho
List . LOVED one particular baby grand from 1932--gorgeous case --but my tech disabused me of that notion w/ an estimate of 5k to get it into shape. He looked at the P2 , gave me the thumbs up. Said it was like new; just needed a tuning. Not as physically beautiful as that baby grand, but yo can, t have everything . The ads on Craigslist can be deceptive, even tho not meant to be. Sellers, some of them, just don t have a clue took me a while, but I began to read between the lines.

But, I , too am stil reading those darn ads!

I was looking at CL this morning and noticed an inordinate number of ads for perfect looking instruments for ridiculously low prices. This included a 5'9" white yamaha piano for $550, an American Fender Telecaster Deluxe for $150, a brand new looking Fender Banjo for $80, a Martin D17 for $120, a Taylor 814 for $200, and a Gibson Les Paul for $250. All of them looked better than the average CL scammer, better english, more plausible story etc. The common thread through them was an impossibly low price, and the email was always listed in the same format. They were also listed as for sale by "dealer". Sample email is RebeccLaduke(AT)gmail. without the com at the end. All the emails were in this format, but with different names. Some also included little stories such as "I barely use it and I need the space. I will be including a soft case." Another thing not mentioned in the ads was a location. Most people put the city they are in even if they don't put in their address.
I guess some people are just evil scum sucking pigs that are determined to ruin a good thing for regular people.

I currently have one of my pianos listed on CL and have gotten several scam responses... they text me on my cell phone (which I included my phone# in the ad) and ask that I email them with details about the piano. I text them back and tell them... no emails... call me if you are serious, or move on.

It is something about the scammer getting your real email address for some reason... to sell it on the open scammers market, I suppose?

Someone once said that CL was a mine-field of hazzards/danger... I suppose it is. Therefore, you have to be really careful.

Rick

It takes some long time watching CL to identify fake ads. I saw a $3000 Kawai GX-5H on CL about three weeks ago, and called the seller. He claimed to be a Korean musician who shipped his piano from Japan to US. He was selling the piano because he just finished a university degree in my city and were gonna relocate to Florida. He said the piano had been moved to a piano store on consignment. I do not go to see it because of the over-price.

Then yesterday, I found a $3500 Kawai U-3 on CL. The description is so similar to the above one, and even one of the pictures is the same (picturing the Kawai logo)! Unless the seller has two uprights shipped from Japan, I consider it fake ad.

There's several of those guys.
The pianos are actually being shipped from either China or Korea.

Japanese grey markets are getting quite expensive these days...

Norbert

We have a local dealer who uses CL for their consignments, and lists it as if the owner is selling the piano. They use a blind telephone number and email address so you're not aware that it's a commercial seller.

I flag these posts as they're usually located in the "by owner" section as opposed to the "dealer" section, where some of the more reputable dealers in the area will occasionally list a piano. Others must do the same with flagging these posts, as they seem to go down pretty quick.

Dan

We have some sort of "dealer" in Seattle that claims to be a non-profit listing a Steinway or two on CL. When I called them and asked if I would have to pay state sales tax they said "no, we are a non-profit and are exempt". Flat out un-true and illegal. They will get caught soon enough.

Good idea...

However, in the case of the used piano dealer I mentioned, his ads are so numerous and wide spread, one could spend all day every day flagging his ads... not really feasible, for me at least.

So, it's basically "use Craigslist at your own risk"... literally and figuratively.

Rick