Hypothetically speaking, if I wanted to buy 10 bitcoins for $240 US each ($2400 US), what would be the best way of paying for them? Wire Transfer? Perfect Money? And this is the type of thing I would want to use escrow for, right?
How long does escrow take - is it instant on both parties completing the trade? I assume the coins would get sent to the escrowers wallet, and the money sent to the escrowers account, and when both parts were complete, the escrower would send them on to the new owners.
Can I use escrow with people not on this forum? If I go to an exchange, can I insist the seller of the bitcoins use escrow?
This will be a long term thing, so I need to understand it thoroughly if I'm to do it.
How long the deal takes really depends on the payment method. Escrow is a must when doing deals here so even if that adds some time to the deal it is worth it. Escrow does not quite work that way for your type of deal so let me explain:
The seller sends the BTC to the escrow - wait for escrow to confirm he/she has them
After escrow confirms coin you send payment to the seller
Seller confirms payment and the escrow releases to the coin to you.
*most people here will only use known forum escrows*
Most sellers charge different prices depending on your payment method.
Edit: ->
https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=1040193.0