I've got a guy from north of the border (Winnepeg) trying to close a deal on my sled package, he wants to pay me with a certified check. I've never sold anything worth this much money before and with all I've heard about scammers I'm trying to cover my a**.
I've explained that the sleds & trailer go no where until all funds are in the form of cash and he seems fine with that, however his plans are to be in town here on Saturday AM .....and if it's late banks are closed. I've told him if that happens were stuck til Monday. My biggest question here is about cashing a Canadian certified check in the US.... how does it work? any help is and advice is greatly appreciatted. Were talking about approximately a 15k check.
He's also asking me to fax copies of all registrations to him for puposes of starting the process for border crossing?? is there any reason I should worry about this? I apologize for my nieveness on this matter but it's a large sale and I'm even less aware of Canadian Border policy
thanks guys
Seb

I've got a guy from north of the border (Winnepeg) trying to close a deal on my sled package, he wants to pay me 50% with a certified check. I've never sold anything worth this much money before and with all I've heard about scammers I'm trying to cover my a**.
I've explained that the sleds & trailer go no where until all funds are in the form of cash and he seems fine with that, however his plans are to be in town here on Saturday AM .....and if it's late banks are closed. I've told him if that happens were stuck til Monday. My biggest question here is about cashing a Canadian certified check in the US.... how does it work? any help is and advice is greatly appreciatte. Were talking about approximately a 15k check.
He's also asking me to fax copies of all registrations to him for puposes of starting the process for border crossing?? is there any reason I should worry about this? I apologize for my nieveness on this matter but it's a large sale and I'm even less aware of Canadian Border policy
thanks guys
Seb

today is only thursday, have him wire the $ straight to your account, with the understanding that when he gets there saturday, that if your stuff does not pass inspection, you wire the $ back. all very easy and quick. i just wired $ on friday, it took all of about two minutes....if he does not swing with that, move on.....

Seb ......Im in Winnipeg and have bot a truck and a trailer from US and Yes I would agree you should have the check cleared before he picks up .......I always send certified cheques so should not be a problem however for some reason it seems to take a long time for your US bank to clear .......sounds like he a first time US buyer he should send you a cert cheque drawn on a US bank if he does this alot ........and yes he will need the title so he can fax to us border crossing 72 hours before he cross border so US customs will let it out of country( they will check to see if any liens on sleds I assume sleds have a title like cars ??) .....not for trailer but for sleds .... when he pays you in full then give him the bill of sale for both he does not need that ahead of time ....if he a newbie to this he would be wise to have a photocopy of cheque he paid you and or a copy of ad fron e-bay or whatever ....Canada customs always looking to catch people who have phoney bill of sale amounts because we pay a tax on the purchase price .on a big ticket item thay will check it out ........ IMO at this late date as other said he should wire the $$ to your bank get him the info from your bank on where to wire etc no cheque will clear that fast unless you or he have connections at the bank ....... sounds like a newbie to this pbly worried he will get scammed too ........you can tell him you know someone in Wpg that can vouch for you if you like :)

Hi Seb,
I just sold my mini van to a family in Alberta. He wired the money into my account. No hassles or guesswork. I suggest that you request your buyer to do the same.

Thanks for the replys.... I'm going to have him either wire the $ or bring it in cash.... I guess his biggest thing is showing as much paperwork he can to bring this stuff across the border and a copy of a cashiers check was one more piece.

thanks again
Seb

If you have him wire the money (bank to bank) he will get a transfer receipt that will be as good as a copy of a cashiers check.
If you can scan the title into your computer. You can put a water mark on it that says COPY. Then fax that to him.

You could accept a Postal Money Order from him, there has been no problems cashing one of them on my ebay purchases but I guess he would need to be there before a bank or post office closes as well but it might be more secure.

FYI...crossing the border with a large amount of cash in possession presents it's own set of problems. :yes:
I'm not aware of the amount of your sale Seb but any amount greater than $10K will have to be declared by this gentleman at Customs.
Direct wire seems to be the best solution although I can see the buyer's point of view on this too.

i would stay away form anyform of checks. i would have him wire the money to my account. when i sell some gold or diemonds for some people i just have them wire it to my or il just run it through my credit card company. i do take visa and master card

A friend years ago sold a van and accepted a "certified" check only to have the person stop payment after he left with the van! This was a long time ago and I am sure that your bank will not let that happen. Transactions happen a lot faster now through the banks today due to the internet and computers.

You can not 'stop payment' on a 'certified cheque', the bank essentially guarantees the amount. In canada this is basically the best form of payment you can get (unless you really prefer cash). I agree that having the cash wired is best, if not you can call his bank personally and verify with the manager that the cheque was cut. Also as CDNSS said, he needs the paper work at the border 72 hours in advance to clear customs. Canadian post office money orders are 'o.k.' but you will have a tough time trying to find a bank to cash it (even though its guaranteed by our postal service -feds), you may have to cash it at a USPS outlet and I don't think they'd have that $$$ around...

ak

You can stop payment on a certified cheque by reporting the cheque stolen, some institutions will do it without a police report.

One more vote for wire transfer. I do this when purchasing shop equipment, machine tools etc. no problems yet.
Terry

what is a sled?

Thanks guys,
We agreed to wire a little more than half and bring the rest in cash....that will allow him to cross the border with less than the 10k amount.
Thanks for all your input :thumbsup:
Seb

Remember to tell the buyer your selling price is American funds not Canadian, I had a guy from Canada write me a Canadian check, everything was good intil I got my bank statement showing the deposit was a couple hundred less then the check that was deposit for, the guy paid the difference. There dollar valve is less then ours.

Their dollar value is less then ours.

Not by much...was in Niagara Falls last Saturday...about $.01 difference.

I bought my 68 a few months ago in Seattle. The seller (a lawyer) faxed me a copy of a bill of sale which was more of an "intent to purchase letter". My bank gave me a certified check drawn on a U.S. bank and there were no problems at all.
I think the amount of cash you can take into the U.S. is only 5 thousand. A freind of mine recently bought a 69 Camaro up and he and a buddy each took 5 thousand in cash. Even with that he said it was a real hassle.
As of 10 minutes ago a Canadian dollar was worth $1.009 U.S. and we have been as high as $1.10 recently. If he wants to pay in Canadian dollars I would take the gamble!!!!

what is a sled?



Taking a guess here...maybe snowmobiles or watercraft...probably snowmobiles... :)

what is a sled?

Taking a guess here...maybe snowmobiles or watercraft...probably snowmobiles... :)

:yes:

http://www.chevelles.com/showroom/data/500/medium/sleds8.JPG (javascript:;)

Very cool (actually cold!) picture...thanks!

Thanks for all the help guys:thumbsup:..... nice smooth transaction, he wired the cash . The guy was great to deal with.... top it off with the fact he drove with his uncle straight from 2 hrs north of Winnepeg to here in Ct in a 24 hr period :eek: it was also a fast transaction :thumbsup: