Once upon a time, Craigslist was the only digital marketplace where people listed items that they were looking to resell. (It’s hard to believe that Facebook Marketplace didn’t exist until 2016!) While eBay emerged around the same time and shifted the e-commerce landscape on a global level, Craigslist served as a digital bulletin board with local listings for every U.S. region. As the decades went on, Craigslist gained a sketchier reputation as scammers infiltrated the platform and used anonymity in their favor by posting fake advertisements and fraudulent deals. But if you know exactly where not to look, it still can be an incredible resource for real home goods.
Madison Brill has become an unofficial spokesperson for the platform since she was in high school. Fostering a longtime love of the hunt has led the 28-year-old collector to everything from apartments and roommates to furniture and plants. “It’s not sustainable for everyone to buy a couch for $1,200,” she argues. “Most people living in New York can’t afford that.” Some of Madison’s most successful scoops include a set of four Cesca-style chairs for $400 and an Italian sofa set that was listed for $200. She’s a firm believer in the power of shopping secondhand.
“I used to have a very stressful job and what I would do to calm myself down and decompress was scroll on Craigslist and just look for things,” she says. “I always had a friend looking for a couch or a chair and finding a great deal made me really excited.”
In the summer of 2020, Madison started sharing all the hidden gems that she spotted in the greater New York City area publicly on the Instagram account @ilovecraigslist. The page is truly a public service that has really picked up momentum with a loyal following and positioned Madison as a Craigslist consultant of sorts. On average, she’ll spend about one to two hours logging inventory but doesn’t go on the site every day. (While perusing, she’s even spotted the listings of influencers like Alyssa Coscarelli.)
“I was trying to figure out the model for a while because then people were like ‘Do I owe you? Should I pay you?’ and I was like ‘No, I just do this for fun,’” she explains. “Getting people who are like ‘Hey, can you share my posts that I’ve just listed?’ or ‘Can you advise on what this price should be?’—that’s the stuff I really love doing. I’ve unofficially coined myself as the CEO of Craigslist.” (Madison currently works full-time as a growth marketing manager for a social NFT company.)
More than anything, Madison wants to give people who don’t have the time or understanding of what to look for “the opportunity to get a great deal on things.” Though Craigslist isn’t a curated marketplace, Madison thinks that it has so much potential because it reaches such a wide demographic. She adds, “There’s a lot of junk, but there is always a hidden gem here and there.” Here are nine of Madison’s most valuable tips for furniture shopping on Craigslist.
Everything is negotiable
According to Madison, “everyone wants to move stuff, so they’re willing to negotiate.” When it’s a big bulk item, you have even more leverage than you think. Her current couch is worth at least $7,000, but the original owner was so desperate to get it out of their space that they didn’t care about making money off of it. “He was like, ‘I need to get rid of it, I’m moving tomorrow and I don’t want to throw it out,’” she recalls.
Cash offers go a long way
In the process of negotiating, Madison advises offering to pay more in cash, if you know that you want the item. If it’s listed on Craigslist, the seller probably isn’t pressed about the resale value—they want to sell fast, so they will go with whoever provides the quickest turnaround time. (Venmo is another solid option for a quick transaction.) “If I’m really set on something, I’ll say, ‘I can pick it up today and pay in cash, if you can do this much,’” she says. “That’s usually a pretty good selling point.”
Evaluate the item before purchasing it
Don’t give up your coins until you’ve had the opportunity to look at the goods up close. If you really think that you want to buy an item, ask about seeing it in person. Madison says that it’s hard to prove if some pieces are actually authentic unless the listing is posted by a vintage or antique dealer, so “don’t assume that they are and pay the price of what the market value is.”
Always go with somebody for a pickup, don’t go alone
Madison warns that, whenever possible, agree to meet people in a public place, if it’s an item that can be brought outside. She also doesn’t recommend sharing your phone number unless you’re certain that you’ll buy the item—if you ever receive a response for a listing requesting that you text or email the seller directly, it’s probably spam. (Craigslist is still mostly an unmonitored platform.) “Use your best judgment,” she says. “I’ve always looked at the picture of the person that’s selling. Bringing someone with you is always a great idea, especially if you have to go into the house.”
Include buzzwords when listing items
As Madison explains, “whatever you put in the search is what you’re going to get.” She once walked away with a Birds of Paradise plant for $60 because the seller accidentally listed it as a banana tree. Madison scored her set of Marcel Breuer–style Cesca chairs because she searched for “rattan chairs.”
When listing your own items, she strongly suggests adding similar brands—for example, CB2, West Elm, and IKEA—at the bottom of a listing, so it will reach more people. Buzzwords for terms like “midcentury modern” or “space age” will also yield more eyeballs.
Think outside the search box
You never know what might pop up when searching for something, so don’t rule out the basics. Entering simple terms like “couch” or “coffee table” can lead to an abundance of deals. As Madison explains, “It sometimes pays off because you’ll find something that you know might be a designer brand that you’re looking for, but the person has no idea, and it’s a quarter of the price.”
Do your research
When you’re in the market for a good deal, there’s nothing worse than getting ripped off. Madison says that it’s worth cross-checking listings off Craigslist because “sometimes the price is close to getting brand new.”
Don’t look too much
If you search for items on Craigslist too frequently, you’ll be filtering through a bunch of listings that you’ve already seen. Madison compares it to the experience of going to your favorite vintage store—if you went in every day, you probably wouldn’t see anything new. She adds, “I think it’s more just like giving it time when you do look.” Once a week is probably more than enough.
Save the (moving) date
It’s also worth keeping in mind that the 15th and the end of the month are usually moving dates for people changing homes and are great times to get stuff. During the pandemic, Madison was able to furnish everything in her new apartment because “everyone was selling their furniture and moving out of the city.”
