verbal agreement per phone binding selling RV on Craiglsist?

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frankgeranium

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I'm selling my travel trailer on Craigslist and someone looked at my trailer twice through a friend who showed it to them at the storage lot. They made a very low offer and I asked to think about it overnight. The next day I agreed to the price. Then I received a message from someone offering $1000 more and accepted that offer and canceled the previous sale. The first customer has threatened that it's a binding verbal agreement once I accepted his low offer, but he would be willing to increase his offer by $500. He's acting very agitated and intimidating that I accepted the higher offer. Can I refuse to do any further business with this person or was I committed to completing the transaction at the time I accepted his offer?
 
You just admitted that you "accepted that offer." I guess the big question is: "Are you a man of your word or not?" Its hard to enforce an unexecuted verbal contract, but he is right and you are wrong. Its up to you what you are going to do. Keep your word or sell your integrity for $1000? Its up to you.
 
Thank you. He said that $7500 was all he had when making the original offer, but now he has more. It would have been just as likely that he would back out before showing up. The second buyer says he's sold stock in order to get cash to buy it. I had no idea that a verbal acceptance was binding for ads on Craigslist.
 
Legally it isn't binding until consideration passes. I was just saying that if you said ok aren't you bound to it morally? Its not that I'm not sympathetic to the idea of wanting the other $1000. I would wait for exactly the amount of time that I promised I would wait and then take the other offer. I'm not being holier than thou, just encouraging you to keep your word. It's worth more than $1000. Good luck.
 
I purchased the trailer for over $12,000 this year. that's why $1000 is that much less that I'm losing. I really think the greed is more on the side of the person who wants to continue with a price that he knows is a "steal." Thank you for letting me know about the verbal agreement law. I now have to figure out how to solve this mess. Tell the second guy that it's too bad for him and I to take the first offer?
 
Give the first guy a proper amount of time to BRING YOU THE CASH. If he/she is 1 minute late, take the other offer.
 
I'm also concerned that this guy is a dealer who is going to turn around and sell it. If I was sure that he was a sincere buyer with a limited budget, I would be all over the moral choice. He's driving a new BMW.
 
I'm a auto dealer. I have a RV in stock right now. Believe me a $1000 advantage on a $7-10k RV is no deal for me.
 
Can you help me understand what "Legally it isn't binding until consideration passes" means? I'm not sure about the "consideration passes" part. Is that why the timing is so important as to whether or not he shows up in time?
 
I doubt your verbal contract is binding until he presents payment (consideration) and you present the RV (consideration). Consideration is the soul of contracts.
 
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