<prompt> Human: Im starting to furnish a new home and expect to be purchasing quite a bit of furniture on Craigslist. Some items, like couches, can cost upwards of 1000.Complicating matters, I dont have a truck or van so Ill be trying to schedule pickups altogether on a certain day when I can rent a UHaul. Sometimes this may mean I pay a deposit on an item a week or so before Im able to pick it up.I feel like it would be very easy for a seller to take my deposit and sell the item to someone else and I would have little recourse.How should I go about documenting purchases or deposit payments? Should I just accept this risk as part of dealing on Craigslist?  <response>: Cash should change hands on the same day as the item. Giving cash to a stranger on craigslist before you take receipt of the purchase is recipe for fraud. 