question on using localbitcoins.com paying in cash

[gvuandrew]

I've never made a bitcoin transaction so this will be my first, need some advice!

i need to pay in cash, $500 worth of USD to buy bitcoins

is this the way i should do this and standard?

we meet in public place
i show him the cash
he transfers to my wallet
i verify it's in my wallet
i hand over the money

please let me know what you suggest is the best way to protect myself

[1714170526]

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[morantis]

I've never made a bitcoin transaction so this will be my first, need some advice!

i need to pay in cash, $500 worth of USD to buy bitcoins

is this the way i should do this and standard?

we meet in public place
i show him the cash
he transfers to my wallet
i verify it's in my wallet
i hand over the money

please let me know what you suggest is the best way to protect myself

Wow, that is a fun adventure.  Obviously bring a smart-phone with a wallet app installed and wait for the actual transaction to appear in that wallet.  I use coin.space for a portable wallet.  The wallet itself should cover an appropriate number of confirmations so you don't have to deal with it.  Copy and paste the TX ID somewhere in a document in the phone and email it to another person, just to confirm the date and time.  Biggest thing is that even a few confirmations can take a long time.  Find an outside restaurant because you could be there a few minutes or even an hour or more.  Have fun and don't hand that money over until the transaction is in your wallet history.

[justspare]

I've never made a bitcoin transaction so this will be my first, need some advice!

i need to pay in cash, $500 worth of USD to buy bitcoins

is this the way i should do this and standard?

we meet in public place
i show him the cash
he transfers to my wallet
i verify it's in my wallet
i hand over the money

please let me know what you suggest is the best way to protect myself

if you do that you need to wait until your bitcoin get confirmed because you don't know when your bitcoin transaction will failed and back to the sender due to few factor,1 confirmation is enough but 2 confirmation is better

I wouldn't really suggest you to do this kind of transaction in person. You will have to wait a very long time for the transaction to get confirmed.

[gvuandrew]

thanks for replying

but i need to pay in cash, so how else could i do it if paying in cash?

[justspare]

thanks for replying

but i need to pay in cash, so how else could i do it if paying in cash?

There really is no other ways to buy Bitcoins in cash. You should just put the money in your bank account and buy Bitcoins with paypal.

[Pursuer]

I've never made a bitcoin transaction so this will be my first, need some advice!

i need to pay in cash, $500 worth of USD to buy bitcoins

is this the way i should do this and standard?

we meet in public place
i show him the cash
he transfers to my wallet
i verify it's in my wallet
i hand over the money

please let me know what you suggest is the best way to protect myself

yeah, that is the general idea when buying bitcoin with cash.
you meet up and change cash face to face with the seller. but you have to keep in mind a couple of important things.
1. meet in a public place like a coffee shop or a mall not in a car or a dark alley! and do the exchange in the public place.
2. bring your own smart phone, ipad,... to check the transaction and see the confirmation on your own.

make sure to read this before doing anything:
http://www.coindesk.com/bitcoin-stolen-new-york-gunpoint-robbery/

[gvuandrew]

one guy replied to me already, he said i must pay him first though, then he'll transfer
and this in public place

he could just run though!

[xuan87]

Yeah meet at public place is a good idea like mall or coffee shop, if the meeting place has a security guard is better, but if you still doubt, bring some friends to accompany you while doing the transaction, or maybe you can buy it online using paypal or something so its safer..

[Soros Shorts]

I've never made a bitcoin transaction so this will be my first, need some advice!

i need to pay in cash, $500 worth of USD to buy bitcoins

is this the way i should do this and standard?

we meet in public place
i show him the cash
he transfers to my wallet
i verify it's in my wallet
i hand over the money

please let me know what you suggest is the best way to protect myself

if you do that you need to wait until your bitcoin get confirmed because you don't know when your bitcoin transaction will failed and back to the sender due to few factor,1 confirmation is enough but 2 confirmation is better

If it is a funded transaction, the sender will be localbitcoins. I prefer a funded transaction as opposed to one where the seller sends you coins directly from his wallet. That way if there are any issues regarding non-confirmation you can take it up directly with localbitcoins support instead of having to hunt down the seller.

For example, once the seller releases the transaction from localbitcoins escrow and the buyer sees the tx broadcast to his wallet, the buyer can give the cash and both parties can walk away immediately.

[steveds]

one guy replied to me already, he said i must pay him first though, then he'll transfer
and this in public place

What do you mean by you should pay it first ? if you are doing cash trade then ask any third party to keep the cash and just wait until he releases the coins.If the money is important to you then go with a Cop.

he could just run though!

It depends on the profile on localbitcoin you are trading with,paste the link to his id or any of his page.

[gvuandrew]

If it is a funded transaction, the sender will be localbitcoins. I prefer a funded transaction as opposed to one where the seller sends you coins directly from his wallet. That way if there are any issues regarding non-confirmation you can take it up directly with localbitcoins support instead of having to hunt down the seller.

For example, once the seller releases the transaction from localbitcoins escrow and the buyer sees the tx broadcast to his wallet, the buyer can give the cash and both parties can walk away immediately.
[/quote]

hi, i'm paying in cash though, is it possible for seller to FIRST put his bitcoins into escrow at our meeting, i hand him money, then he releases into my localbitcoins account which is instant?

[steveds]

hi, i'm paying in cash though, is it possible for seller to FIRST put his bitcoins into escrow at our meeting, i hand him money, then he releases into my localbitcoins account which is instant?

Once you start the trade the coins will be held in escrow by default and will be released if the trade is completed or any dispute occurs.But you should carry your laptop with you in order to avoid any risks or to prove it's you.Yes,your account will be credited instantly.

But again check the previous feedback's of the seller before trading.

[talkbitcoin]

If it is a funded transaction, the sender will be localbitcoins. I prefer a funded transaction as opposed to one where the seller sends you coins directly from his wallet. That way if there are any issues regarding non-confirmation you can take it up directly with localbitcoins support instead of having to hunt down the seller.

For example, once the seller releases the transaction from localbitcoins escrow and the buyer sees the tx broadcast to his wallet, the buyer can give the cash and both parties can walk away immediately.

hi, i'm paying in cash though, is it possible for seller to FIRST put his bitcoins into escrow at our meeting, i hand him money, then he releases into my localbitcoins account which is instant?
[/quote]

it will open up a chance for him to scam you (if he is a scammer) !

since you are dealing with cash, you won't have any proof. so he can tell the escrow you didn't even show up for the payment and takes back the deposit.

i think it is best everything is done between you two at the place.

[aarons6]

If it is a funded transaction, the sender will be localbitcoins. I prefer a funded transaction as opposed to one where the seller sends you coins directly from his wallet. That way if there are any issues regarding non-confirmation you can take it up directly with localbitcoins support instead of having to hunt down the seller.

For example, once the seller releases the transaction from localbitcoins escrow and the buyer sees the tx broadcast to his wallet, the buyer can give the cash and both parties can walk away immediately.

hi, i'm paying in cash though, is it possible for seller to FIRST put his bitcoins into escrow at our meeting, i hand him money, then he releases into my localbitcoins account which is instant?


it will open up a chance for him to scam you (if he is a scammer) !

since you are dealing with cash, you won't have any proof. so he can tell the escrow you didn't even show up for the payment and takes back the deposit.

i think it is best everything is done between you two at the place.

i agree with this..

just show him the cash, have him send the coins.. make him use a huge fee like .0005 (this is important, if he sends it with no fee it could fail) and wait till it gets confirmed.. then hand the cash and leave.


if he adds a decent fee it will go quick..

[DimensionZ]

My advice is to meet at some coffee shop in the early afternoon when there are a lot of people around or bring some close friend with you or tell him to survey the exchange from a distance so if the seller tries to run with the cash you could get immediate help.

[Soros Shorts]

hi, i'm paying in cash though, is it possible for seller to FIRST put his bitcoins into escrow at our meeting, i hand him money, then he releases into my localbitcoins account which is insta

Yes, you give him your BTC address and he puts his funds into LBC escrow with that address. That guarantees that he can't use those coins for another transaction at least for the time being. Later, when he meets you and sees your cash, all you has to do is press the green Release Coins button while taking your cash. Text messages / emails will be sent out to confirm the completion of transaction.

Note that it is not necessary for him to release the coins to your localbitcoins BTC address. The address you give hime could be from any wallet.

Edit: There are some bullshit comments from people on this thread who have no idea how localbitcoins escrow works. Don't listen to them. It is not the same as some guy on the forum escrow. It is automated unless something goes wrong.

[gvuandrew]

@Soros Shorts

so the escrow thing with giving him cash seems safe no?
i mean, yes he could technically run away, but this profile https://localbitcoins.com/accounts/profile/israeliboy/ seems very safe to me atleast, i have zero experience, but with a profile like this, would you feel 100% comfortable giving him cash and waiting for him to press the release button?

[helloeverybody]

@Soros Shorts

so the escrow thing with giving him cash seems safe no?
i mean, yes he could technically run away, but this profile https://localbitcoins.com/accounts/profile/israeliboy/ seems very safe to me atleast, i have zero experience, but with a profile like this, would you feel 100% comfortable giving him cash and waiting for him to press the release button?

If its noit a hacked or stolen account then id be more than happy enough to trust feedback like that. you should be able to weigh up pretty easily when you meet in person. Just make sure its a busy public place like a starbucks or something.

[gvuandrew]

how would i know if it's a hacked or stolen account though?

[helloeverybody]

author=gvuandrew link=topic=1389015.msg14114745#msg14114745 date=1457271995]
how would i know if it's a hacked or stolen account though?

You wont really, but id ay thats your only risk. If the account isnt bought or hacked then the guy looks legit enough. The only other thing i can think is to check id etc but im not sure if you can see that on lbt.