How does one detect counterfeit money w/o the pens etc?

[alittlelark]

We have a guy coming here wanting to buy our car. He told us he is bringing cash, and would like to drive it home. We're asking $17,500. I got a little paranoid.

All I seem to be finding are sites wanting to sell me detection equip.. The US mint site had nothing.... any advice?

[Goldom]

1. A few things..

I think it's $20s that have those strips of paper stuck inside them... and I belive the new 50/100 have some sort of watermark or holographic print on them or something... of course, since he could still have old style ones, that doesn't help a whole lot.

[seriousstan]

2. Have him deposit it in your bank.

[alittlelark]

9. He's here now... 30's anglo, wearing some kind if racing jacket.

As for depositing... it's Fri., he told hubby on the phone he was hoping to get it today. There were 12 responses to our Craig's list ad, and 6 of them are coming tommorrow. I need to drag hubby away for a chat.

[MADem]

3. Tell him you want a bank check

...and he can take the fee for the check out of the cost of the car.

That is WAY too much money. Drug money? Stolen money?

Hell, if you transfer ten grand, the government logs it. Something seems fishy there.

[LoZoccolo]

4. I wouldn't do it.

Tell him to get a cashier's check tommorow.

[donco6]

5. I'd refuse cash

Cashier's check is the norm. Insist on it.

[Name removed]

19. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[lenidog]

6. Finding one of the pens should not be any problem

Any store, drugstore with a stationary dept and maybe even a convenience store should have them and they only cost a couple bucks

[alittlelark]

10. You mean like a walgreens?

[lenidog]

13. I would have no doubt that a Walgreens would have one. I have never

priced one but I doubt they would be more than five bucks and probably less,

[Catch22Dem]

7. Cashiers check

You don't want that cash even for a minute. Even if it's legit, that's one too many people who knows you have it and knows where you live.

[NMDemDist2]

8. easy

if you hold the bill up to the light, there will be a watermark matching the presidents face

there should also be a strip that has the denomination printed top to bottom sideways (twenty or fifty or whatever)

the really! new bills the collar actually has a texture on the 50's and 100's that you can feel


but if you see the same president staring back when you hold it up to the light (it will be to the right of the face) you're good. I have heard that they have bleached 5's and printed 100's on them, so if the ink is Andrew pray the watermark ain't Abraham


http://www.secretservice.gov/know_your_money.shtml

[alittlelark]

15. Thank You, Thank You, Thank You!

I'm uncomfortable w/ the whole 'cash thing', but if it happens I'd like to know it's real.

[bobthedrummer]

33. Yep-I sold motor vehicles for 8 years, insist on another method of

payment, alittlelark-you've got a dozen potential buyers if he would refuse that reasonable request.

[rucky]

11. watermark

hold it up to the light, there should be a pretty big watermark of Benji himself.

I was a checker for a few years & that's the way we did it.

[Blue-Jay]

12. Benji?

I love Benji!

[tammywammy]

14. Well,

Can you pick up a pen at a office supply store?
Second, there will be the strip in the $20s and up. Also the "new" bills are have the hologram picture of the president on the right. And also the feel of the money.

***But really, I would insist on either Money Orders, Bank or Cashier's check.

And I would also be worried of someone knowing I had that much money in my house.


Good Luck :)

[alittlelark]

17. Extra paranoia... great. Unfortunately realistic.

[tammywammy]

22. Well, he can get the money orders at gas stations

like 7-11. They're less than a $1 each, but they're limited to how much goes on each one. For instance, I used to pay rent in MO (because the apartment complex would take forever to cash the check, and well, I'd end up spending that money, oops) and it was $700, and I'd put $500 on one and $200 on another.

But I would let him deduct the amount of the money orders or the cashiers check from the vehicle. I work at a car dealership, and though I've handled a lot of money in retail jobs, I still always use the pen. The pen's never wrong. I wouldn't think they'd be more than $5.

And paranoia is okay when it's almost $18K in cash.

[Lars39]

16. Too risky.

Your bank would also report you for that big of a deposit. And if any of the money is fake....yikes!

[TransitJohn]

18. If the bills are all

$7's $3's and $4's, they're probably counterfeit.

[Nevernose]

20. You won't even be able to DEPOSIT 17 grand

At least not w/o the IRS and DEA being informed. Any frequent transactions of large amounts, and anything over 10k in cash is supposed to be reported and is often investigated.

[alittlelark]

24. In CA all we have to do is sign some papers, and the car is transferred

Investigating a 'cash' car sale makes sense, but we will have done nothing wrong, and provided that the $$$ is real, not a problem.... right? The guy came here on a very high $$$ motorcycle.

We are selling a BMW M3 - 7 yrs old. It's a racing car - this dude looks like a racer.

[Nevernose]

28. Why go through the hassle when you have 6 people coming tomorrow?

[alittlelark]

30. Hubby doesn't want to deal with the logistics, and this seemed easy.

[auntAgonist]

21. protect yourself and your family.

cashiers cheque or no sale.

[ChoralScholar]

23. even if he had 100 dollar bills

you wouldn't want to check 175 bills with a pen... I'd insist on a cashier's check.

[alittlelark]

25. When he and hubby come back from the test drive we will chat.

[tammywammy]

26. If he really wants the car

and his money's good, then he won't mind if he has to get a cashier's check.

And if he's a jerk, well then he's a jerk and his money probably wasn't good anyways.

[alittlelark]

27. Thank you to all who posted here.

Hubby pretended he could not find the title.

I showed him the thread upstairs while I was chatting with 'Rick' downstairs.

He asked me how many dogs we had... in a very friendly way.

I am sooo creeped out. The babysitter is here, hubby and I are supposed to go out, but I have no desire to go anywhere right now.



PS - I'm sure I'm just being paranoid... but he kept going on about how it looked as though he could trust us (smog check, accidents...) - that we 'looked trustworthy'.
Creepy.

[MissB]

29. Trust your instincts

And when we sold cars to private parties, the final transactions always took place at my bank.

No cash in house.

[MADem]

32. Best answer there is this:

"Don't be nervous, they're upstairs on the bed. I tell them to stay put, simply to be on the safe side. They are Dobermans, we have four, you see--two are always at my Dad's warehouse to prevent break-ins, and two here....they won't attack you or anything, unless you get aggressive on us, or they get the command..."

Amazing how a BEWARE OF DOG sign, even a small one, will make people think twice.

If your radar is pinging like crazy, it is happening FOR A REASON. Always, ALWAYS trust your instincts. ALWAYS!

[Floogeldy]

31. This is the secret service. Come out with your hands up.

And your top off.

WAIT A MINUTE. I DID NOT TYPE THAT.