The online bargains under the Gumtree

I first found out about Gumtree after hearing a radio report about it being an online haven for thieves to unload stolen goods. And then I saw an ad on the box that had a surprising lack of both thieves and stolen goods and so I considered my interest awakened and downloaded the app to explore further. A strange way to discover things sure but so far it's been working in my favor.

Thieves and scammers used to love Seadoo's for some reason..

And while I haven't purchased anything as yet from the huge Aussie online market that is Gumtree I can admit that the bank accounts of senor Almigo have become a little fatter and a little healthy from using the site to flog things off and make room in my mansion.

Personally, I'm enjoying Gumtree a lot more and more with each transaction and there's a few very convincing reasons why this site is growing while people quietly slink away from eBay...


SO WHY AM I PREFERRING GUMTREE OVER EBAY? (No they haven't paid me for this, I'm just really enjoying the site and found it deserving of a write up.)

1. There's a lot more local stuff here than on eBay. And what's the big deal about local? Well it's much easier to ship (anyone who has bought anything off me so far has lived in the same town and has swung by to pick up) and therefore there's no postage costs, no trips to the post office, nothing lost in transit and if there's a problem you can bring it back. (And Hong Kong doesn't keep turning up in the search results which is handy.)

2. No Paypal (which is probably reason number 1 for a lot of people). Sure Paypal is added security for a lot of people but it's also a massive cash cow for eBaycorp and slightly annoying as you watch the fees eat into your profits. On Gumtree the trade of choice is with cash. That's whole coins and notes without fees eating into them.

3. You see the price? That's what you're paying if you get in first. No sniping at the last second. No reserve. No waiting ten days til the damn thing ends. People still try to haggle but it's up to you whether you accept that or not.

4. No obligation to buy. Not the right colour, size, shape or dimension when you see it in person? Fine, don't buy it. Plenty more people who might.

5. Stuff listed for free. And you didn't have to pay a fee to advertise it that way either.

Of course it's not perfect (what online buying/selling site is?) and there's a few spam ads to be found if you look deep enough but I'm enjoying it immensely. You will too if you get rid of an old fridge in your shed and leave enough room to finally work on your car:

I got cash AND my garage back after selling this. Thanks Gumtree!

And to top it off I haven't seen a single stolen item of mine pop up there yet! Score!

Gumtree? Here's the link!