How do you pay????

Here's a question: If you purchase a vehicle in the Car Corral, how do you go about paying for it? I did see a Notary on hand and several people walking around with their temp. plates in hand. But what about the exchange of monies?

Cash is the easiest, and I can assure you from personal experience that there is a lot of cash walking around Hershey. I once saw a deal done from a briefcase full of hundred dollar bills.

The last car I sold there was done with a wire transfer. As long as the banks are open, it's a short phone call to transfer money into someone's account.

As far as I know, these are the only two ways for individuals to settle "on the field". A seller might take a check from a very well known dealer, but very few people would take a check, even a cashier's check, from a stranger.

Just can't even imagine walking around Hershey with $12,000 or so in my pocket. But...they must do it. Just wondered how all that money transfers.

Cash, Travelers Checks (be careful but mostly OK as long as their US), Wire Transfers are all common means of transacting sales at shows. If the buyer is well known/respected by the seller or has a mutual friend that is known to the seller, and will vouch for him, often a personal or business check can be used. It's not all than uncommon. I've been on both ends of that scenario myself. I've witnessed cash sales in the 6-figure range; believe me there is a LOT of cash floating around the swap meet (not mine though!). Some years back I had a European buyer offer to buy a car (I wan't interested in selling it at the time) and he showed me a briefcase full of $100 bills in an effort to convince me he was serious. Bottom line, if the buyer is serious it can be done.

Many years ago, likely before I was of driving age I had a pair of guys that were working on a deal swing by my fathers spaces looking for him. The buyer wanted to pay with a check and it had come up that they both knew my dad, so they walked over to see if he would vouch for the buyer. Being that it was at Hershey, my father was walking the meet and I was on the spaces selling (funny, I am 31 and it still works that way). The seller took a; "yeah, we know him" from a teenager as all he needed to accept a check for thousands of dollars and release his car and title. I felt like I had clout.

Geez, I brought a thousand bucks with me and my wife had a fit because I was "carrying all that money" but if I were buying a car, I would bring the cash. I did speak with one dealer about buying a car last year and he said that he would take a check but I couldn't have the car for two weeks to allow for it to clear.