Is a seller on Craigslist or a classifieds site who insists on local cash-only safe?

Cash-only in-person classifieds sales are the traditional model and can be legitimate. However, criminals exploit the format in two ways. First, a 'robbery at meet-up' where the seller — or a buyer posing as one — leads you to an unsafe location to steal cash or goods. Second, payment with counterfeit notes. To stay safe, meet in a well-lit public place — ideally a police station's designated safe exchange zone — bring a companion, and check cash carefully. For high-value items such as electronics, verify serial numbers haven't been reported stolen before handing over cash. Never meet at your home or a secluded location regardless of how friendly the seller seems.

Most in-person classifieds meetings pass without incident, and the precautions above are cheap insurance rather than signs of a broken format. The pattern that should genuinely change your plans is a counterparty who works to move the meeting somewhere quieter after it was agreed — a new address at the last minute, a request to come to a house 'because the item is heavy', or an evening time proposed for no clear reason. Location control is the setup for the robbery variant, and a legitimate buyer or seller has no motive to resist a busy public spot. For expensive items, completing the exchange inside a bank lobby also lets cash be checked and deposited on the spot.