4 things you should consider when switching banks

Note: This is a guest post by Allan Jones. Some of the information below may or may not apply to your home country, state, or providence. Please see the banks policy, procedures, and penalties information prior to making any changes.

You may be required to change banks when you move to a new location if you require the services of a local bank. Alternatively, you may be unhappy with your existing bank and hence would like to switch banks. Whatever the reason, it would be worthwhile to evaluate the following four key aspects before you make a decision to move out of your existing bank.

First,  you may considering shifting to a new bank because your existing bank has started charging some extra fees; for example, the $5 monthly debit card fee. You may also be more tempted to change banks because the Occupy Wall Street movement gained so much momentum last year. WIth the organizers designating November 5, 2011 as ‘bank transfer day,’ it may make you all the more eager to want to switch from a larger bank to smaller banks or credit union. Though you might be tempted to shift to a new bank, you may want to talk to your existing bank and let them know that you are contemplating making the switch due to the hike in fees. 

It would be pertinent to note that many banks have started charging extra fees towards debit cards to offset the loss arising out of change in regulation that cut financial institutions’ fees by half. Hence, there is no guarantee that your new bank won’t charge extra fees in the near future. 

Secondly, if you shift your bank account within 90 days to 6 months of opening your account, some banks and credit unions may charge extra fees. Hence, if you shift your bank account either from your existing or new bank within a period of 90 days to 6 months, you may be subjected to an extra fee.

Thirdly, before you decide to switch banks,  consider the rules and regulations you already have with your existing bank towards online bill payment and direct deposit. If these are very few, you may contemplate a shift. On the contrary, if you have a large number of such instructions, you may better think about the consequence of failed online bill payment or direct deposit before deciding to shift to a new bank.

Fourthly, if you decide to switch banks, you may evaluate the various options before moving to a new bank. You have several options to choose from: such as large banks, small local banks, credit unions, and online banks. It might be beneficial for you to choose online-only banks, such as the  Australian National Bank , ING Direct, or RaboBank. You may be able to save good money and benefit from the higher interest rates offered on their checking accounts verses their lowest-cost checking accounts.

However, online-only banks may not be the right option for you if you are needing to deposit a large number of checks which may have to be mailed to them.

Whatever option you choose, It may be wise to keep the above points in mind before contemplating your shift to a new bank. Such shifts could be a major process and any mistake could cost you money.

Allan comes to us from Australia and we are grateful to get to feature his work. Allan has been blogging about frugality for the last 3 years and has published numerous articles on various personal finance topics. Alan has also contributed several articles for the Australian National Bank,  as well as on various personal finance forums. 

Michael Gungor: Beautiful Things

This is a guy that I use to play percussion for from time to time at a church in Oklahoma when he was just getting his music career off the ground. I feel that it is a very encouraging song to listen to. No matter what situation you are in, or what you have done or not done, it's never too late to let God transform your life. No situation is too big or small for our one and only God. 

I am a living example of that. I have been all the way too the pits of despair and then some on more than one occasion in my lifetime. I have seen death face to face and know the pain that many out have faced and are facing now.

I know that feeling of having a ton of bricks brought upon you to where you feel you can't move or breath and you feel you have no choice but to let go and give up. I was the worst of the worst, but God got a hold of my life and made me new and whole again. 

I have no regrets and will never look back again. So, as the song says, "God makes beautiful things out of dust, God makes beautiful things out of us." take that to heart. He can take anything and make it whole again. I am not sure if this was meant for someone out there; it was heavy on my heart to share this with you. I am always willing to talk to anyone and will do my best to guide you in the right direction to get the help you need. I hope you enjoy this song. 

Matt Redman is another artist that has encouraged me so much over the years. Listen to this song below called "10,000 Reasons" and just let is soak in. 

Vintage Monopoly: A Bigger and Better Story

"Do not pass go, do not collect $200." How many times have you ran into that problem when playing Monopoly? I know I have on more than one occasion. As an adolescent I was eager to make money and save it, (more so hoard it) until I had enough to get what I wanted. When it came to Monopoly I used the same tactic. I'd just wait for the kill, and when the time was right I'd buy up as much as I could in order to control the the game.

When I ran out of money I did what any other kid would do: convince your buddy that more is better; for example, I have 4 houses and my best friend has one apartment complex (or hotel). Little did he know what I was conjuring up. I was going to convince him that 4 houses were better than his one apartment complex. My evil plan was to obtain his property without him knowing that he could have generated more income from the 1 property, rather than the 4 houses. In his mind he saw that he just had one measly little building. He saw the 4 houses and thought he was getting a great deal because more is better right? WRONG, not always...

My mind had grasped the concept that if you buy one decent property in an average part of town, with say 80 units at $550 a month, that I was going to be bringing in $44,000 a month! I was only 9 or 10 years old at the time! My friend jumped on the idea that he was going to be getting 4 properties rather than one, and just figured he would be making more money.

I had no idea that I had just "BARTERED" my way into a great deal. I had never heard the term, much less knew what it meant. This is sort of how "trading up" works. You start with something small, and sometimes many small things, then convince the other person that they need what you have and you need what they have. It is not always about sneakily trying to get the best deal without the other person knowing. It is about a reason. Each person has a reason why they need what you have. Maybe they no longer use what they have and there is no attachment to it. They use what they are not using to get what they want. That's bartering and trading up in a nutshell. You start with something small to get the thing you really want. Sometimes it takes a while, but because you are determined...YOU DON'T GIVE UP!

A little over a year and a half ago I received an email from this guy. His name: Curtis Smeltzer. He had found my project from surfing the web. He began to tell me about the trading up project he had started. His item of choice: A vintage Monopoly car from an old Monopoly game that was his Grandma's when he was a young kid. The game was missing pieces and couldn't be played anymore.

This was a very unique item to start with. Just like the Red Paperclip Guy started with..you guessed it, a  red paperclip. And Just like the Yellow Mustard Seed Guy started with...A Yellow Mustard Seed! I am the mustard seed guy if you did not catch that.

All joking aside, each one of these guys started with something very unique. Each initial item had a story behind it. Each guy had passion and a will to not give up. Each one of us took a risk of trying something new and uncomfortable. It was something that had never been done before, not how we were doing it at least. We created our own wheel in a way.

To this day I have never found anyone that has ever started with a "Yellow Spicily Mustard Seed" and tried to "trade their way out of debt in three years." Do you get what I am saying? Make it unique. Make it your own!

Anyone can start their own project and do what we have done, but not everyone will push on through all the discouragement that you will face while attempting a project like this. It's hard and it takes a lot of effort to make stuff like this happen. It's not as easy as the show "Barter Kings on A&E" makes it out to be.

Not everyone has the media coverage like Kyle MacDonald did (the guy from One Red Paperclip). He revolutionized the whole trading up concept back in 2005. He is the guy that really gave Craigslist Barter its popularity. I have had some media coverage so far, which has helped. My project has mostly been from word of mouth. You really have to work hard for stuff like this, it's not always given to you.

Just to throw it out there because we have had people ask...All 3 of our projects started long before the show Barter Kings ever came about. I actually nearly named my project "Barter Kings," but went with Trade Me Out of Debt instead. Your'e not going to forget it, a name like this is unique.

This takes dedication and passion, and a will not to quit. This is exactly what Curtis has done. This dude has made some cool trades. He of course started with the Monopoly car, and then traded that for 2 Psychcology books. He then traded the books for a freaking awesome antique camping stove. He then traded the stove for this awesome custom knife:

The knife then landed him an old boat and trailer, which in return he traded for over 5,000 incredible trading cards (some even signed that were high dollar). Just recently (as of August 2012) he traded the cards for this sweet snow board.

Trading up can be so much fun because you never know what you are going to end up with. When you make it into a "I have to make a trade situation," you're most likely going to give up because things don't always go the way you had planned. People stand you up, back out of trades, and tell you "no I don't want to make a trade" on more than one occasion.

 Just have fun! I promise you this: people will laugh at you and even call you names when you try to offer whatever it is you have for their item. Don't sweat it...Count on getting told no at least 20 times before you get a yes. If you look at it like that, then you are going to do fine!

Thank you so much for stopping by TMOOD (Trade Me Out of Debt) and for checking out Curtis Smeltzer's site. This guy is a trading machine! Email him at curtis@curtissmeltzer.com to ask him questions or make an offer. He is an awesome guy to get to know. If you are close to Milford, Indiana hit him up. I am sure he would not mind traveling if you or your company forked out the cost. 

There's a lot of great stuff coming soon that I am so excited to tell you all about! I am also really excited to have Allan Jones from Australia guest posting with us again this week. He has a great article on "things to consider when switching banks" that I really think you all are going to enjoy!

4 Different Money Saving Styles

Note: This is a guest post by Allan Jones, 
a respected financial writer whom resides in Australia


Just as there are innumerable variants to how people deal with money, there are also many different styles to money-saving and all of them endow a person with the power to manage their finances more efficiently. The four most prominent ones among them are discussed below:

The Greedy

This money-saving style demands that a person exercise extreme self-restraint in all matters related to money-spending. Greedy savers are supposed to be extremely tight-fisted with their cash and obsess about saving to such an extent that they consciously train themselves to never indulge! Although this particular money-saving style is inarguably a useful approach when it comes to saving money, greedy savers are vulnerable and highly prone to developing a tendency to cross the line.

The Monk

As can be derived from the name, Monks try their best to live a simple life of modesty by aiming to strike the right balance between extravagance and tightfistedness. They do this by spending only enough money to cover all of their basic needs while suppressing their desires and indulgences, just like monks. Monks employ qualities of prudence, wisdom and foresight when deciding when to spend and when not to.

The Avoider

An Avoider is more commonly known as an ‘evader’ for their incorrigible habit to evade taxes and other financial liabilities. In fact, there are Avoiders who would evade even the most important financial commitments and liabilities for years before finally deciding to settle them. Of course, this habit does great when the objective of a person is to maximize savings. However, evading taxes and other financial obligations is a felony which can land an avoider in a tight spot. Therefore, this style of money-saving is certainly not recommended for good law-abiding citizens.

The Spender

To a great extent, Spenders are the anti-thesis of greedy savers because of their inherent tendency to be recklessly extravagant. A spender is usually poor at making educated and calculated money-spending decisions so that, more often than not, they end up spending; usually with wild abandon. As a result of this inherent trait, spenders generally have the least savings and are not inclined to get into this new habit.


Allan comes to us from Australia and we are grateful to get to feature his work. Allan has been blogging about frugality for the last 3 years and has published numerous articles on various personal finance topics. Allan has also contributed several other articles for the Australian National Bank  as well as on various personal finance forums. 

It's About Time...

It's nearly been a year since I have made a trade. Partly because no one has had anything to trade for the booth package, as well as the 8 months it took me to recover from my medical hardship.   It's a long story for those of you who have no idea what I am talking about. Just read any of the posts since December of last year and that should fill you in.

Anyway, If all goes as planned "Trade #8" should happen later next week. Hopefully I can post about it next weekend. My new job has been keeping me pretty busy lately.

Next on the agenda: Finish painting the Trade Mobile, post about it, and probably make another sweet video. Check out the video below if you missed the last one.

We are also planning on having Allan Jones back as our guest blogger by the end of the month. If you missed his last article on Bankruptcy and Debt Consolidation, you're missing out. Allan is an up and coming financial writer from Australia. It is so awesome to see that the TMOOD project has made it all the way out there and even further to other countries. We are pleased to have him back. 

I am really tired, so I am going to go to bed. Writing has to be one of the best things to do when you can't sleep. It clears your mind and eventually makes you really tired. 

Thank you to all the nameless people around the world that have followed this journey so far!

Enjoy the rest of your week! 

Bankruptcy or Debt Consolidation: What is the Best Solution?

Featured guest post by Australian writer, Allan Jones: 
Allan has been working in the debt consolidation industry for several years, specializing in debt consolidation loans and debt agreement. When he is not working, Allan enjoys blogging about personal finance at "The Australian Lending Centre" as well as contributing to other forums.


Debt is not harmful but if there is too much of it, it can become a detriment to peaceful and productive living. Incurring too much debt is troublesome but interestingly, more and more people fall to the problem. There is nothing wrong with borrowing money but only if you can actually repay it without affecting your personal finances too much.

If debt has piled up to uncontrollable levels, there can be two options to take. You can file for bankruptcy or go for debt consolidation. Which of the two is better in helping you emerge out from a debt-troubled life?

Filing bankruptcy

Desperate individuals who are in serious debt troubles should look at bankruptcy as a last option. It is tempting to file for bankruptcy to make sure collections will cease and creditors may stop from pursuing you. However, it has the most serious implications and consequences. Bankruptcy is not an instant solution to credit and debt problems.

First, it will not guarantee that you will be able to fully get rid of any obligation to pay bills and debts. If this is the case, countless individuals will surely live irresponsibly and only count on bankruptcy for protection. Second, bankruptcy filing maybe rejected. The authorities will have to assess your situation and determine if you are just using it as a scheme to run away from responsibilities.

The major setback is that bankruptcy will totally erode your credit score. If you intend to keep a good credit standing, getting bankrupt should be ruled out. Any bankruptcy filing will remain in an individual’s record for about 10 years or more. Bad debt, in comparison, only stays on your credit history for just seven years.

Debt consolidation

Debt consolidation can be considered if your current regular income exceeds your necessary and regular expenses. That is because debt consolidation is paying all your debts through a single major loan. You will still pay your financial obligations using your income.

There are several options for consolidating debts. First, you may obtain a single debt consolidation loan with lower interest rates. It is like transferring your outstanding debts into a single loan. This can bring about a huge positive impact to your credit score. Thus, it can be inferred that this strategy is a way to boost credit history.

Second, you may pay off some or all of your debts by using the balance transfer feature of your credit card. Be sure to take advantage of 0% or lower interest rate balance transfer. The strategy can also help clean up your credit history.

After debt consolidation is done, the war against debt is still not over. You have to try your best to repay the debts incurred for consolidating. The advantage is that you may save a lot on costs and interest payments. The setback is that you still have to watch your finances to make sure you do not make late payments or miss any payment at all.

Welcome Newbies!

If you have seen "The Trade Mobile" and are wondering what this project is all about you can click here. Also, I am sure you have a lot of questions that need answering! I've tried to do my best and answer all that have come up so far over the course of this project. 

You can read all about me to get a better feel for who I am and how I got to where I am today.

This project is not about trying to find a quick fix to getting out of debt. It tells stories and paints a picture of the journey I have been on. To get get a good understanding, I'd start with the very first post I wrote. It will be worth it I promise! I might even make you laugh a bit.

To sum it all up, I have created one of the most unique trading up (sort of like a bigger/better game) adventures the United States has ever seen. If you have ever seen the A&E show Barter Kings, you will understand how all this works. 

In fact, I started my project long before the show came about, and what's even crazier is that I nearly named my project "Barter Kings." I even had the domain name typed in and ready to buy it, but went with "Trade Me Out of Debt" instead. It is kind of catchy and very unique. You probably won't forget it will you? That's the whole point. 

All the pictures on the left and right side of the page are linked to other posts that I have written over the course of this project. The picture that I have in the upper left hand corner of the site shows what I currently have for trade and that I am taking offers on whatever is up there at the time. If you click the pic, (this is what I last traded for) it will take you to that story. If you are a hockey fan, you will find it interesting that I traded with a former professional hockey player. 

It has been nearly a year that I have made a trade. Partly because I have not found the right person to trade with, and the other part is because I had a major accident that led to a serious surgery. I recently finished about an eight month recovery and am now back to full strength and ready to take the project to full swing. 

Hopefully this will help you better understand the heart of this project. Feel free to comment and voice your thoughts or just follow by email to get the most recent updates. I have had readers all across the U.S.A. and in nearly 30 countries around the world. It has been so amazing to see this thing grow into what it has.

I am happy that you stopped by and I hope that I have answered all your questions. If you are interested in making a trade or setting up a public speaking event, feel free to go to the "Contact Me" tab or just click here. My life has been pretty crazy to say the least. Hopefully I will see some of you around in the near future!

Thanks again!

Buyer and Sellers Beware: Emailing, Texting, and Calling Precautions

Many of us have at one point in time sold or bought something on Craigslist or ebaY. Have you ever received an email response that was in regards to one of your listed items online and weren't quite sure if it was someone trying to "scam or spam" you? Or if it was actually someone "real" and actually did want to buy or trade for whatever you had?

Before I get into how to break an email down to figure out if it is a scam or not, check out the one below and see what you can pick out. I know this does not seem like rocket science, but the thing to remember is that the scammers are going to focus on getting you to make an emotional decision, rather than an educated one. 

Is it real or not?

This email is from "Roger" and he has a Yahoo account. 
He is inquiring about some hiking poles I have:

"I would like to have them, but  i don't get paid again till next thursday. If not sold by then would you contact me and i will pick them up. Thank you" 


I have been buying, trading, and selling stuff for a few years now. I've probably had hundreds, if not thousands of emails sent to me in regards to whatever I had. Some of the emails I automatically knew were hoaxes, yet many others went unnoticed for some time before I realized that I had been scammed. Thankfully I never lost any money or the item that I was selling, just time spent emailing the hoax.

So what do you look for in a received email in order to not repeat the same mistakes I have? Instead of just telling you, I will show you a few emails that I have received in the past. I will start out with an easy one first:

This one came from a person named "Teni" and their email address was a Gmail account: Bebenlo55. All they said was, "Is the items still for sale?" 

Let me break this down: First off, the name "Teni." It's uncommon, but it could still be a "real persons" name (These scammers like to use weird names). Second, the email address: It appears to be a normal Gmail address, it could be a last name, but again very uncommon. Third,  it's really vague. This could apply to anything. And lastly, the spelling and grammar. Of course I was an idiot and responded to this email because I really wanted to sell whatever it was that I had at the time. 

This is what I got in response:

"I really appreciate your response to my email. I want you to consider
it sold, Pls do withdraw the advert from CL to avoid
disturbance,anyway I don't have time to come over to take a look
because of my Business but you don't need to bother yourself with the
shipment, I'll take care of that by engaging the services of a
shipper, hence I'll be sending a Certified check and it will be
delivered to you via United Parcel Service (UPS), so I'll need you to
provide me with the following information to facilitate the mailing of
the check.
Full name on the check.
Full Physical address to post the check
City, State and Zip Code
Home & Cell Phone to contact you.

Note that the payment will be shipped to your address via UPS NEXT DAY

AIR SERVICE and I will like you to know that you will not be
responsible for shipping i will have my shipper  to come over as soon
as  you have cashed the check*

N.B UPS does not deliver to a P.O box addresses.Thanks."

Now I really felt like an idiot. Other than the obvious grammar and spelling errors, the email that it was sent from was different than the one that was sent to me previously. As a result, whoever was behind this hoax now had my email and name. DO NOT RESPOND! I can't stress that enough! The more you respond, the more personal they will get, which makes it harder to determine if they are real. It's like a funneling effect. I would relate it to when a telemarketer calls you and all you hear is silence for a few seconds. 

What actually happens is that they have called maybe 5 or so people at one time and whoever picks up first will be the one they talk to. Everyone else just gets an "ended" call after a few seconds. In other words, this email will be sent to hundreds of people. Whoever continues to respond will now become the primary target. Their computer programs will pick out key information from your online posts. This can make it appear to be a real person "truly interest" in whatever you have. 

You might be surprised at how easy it is to get sucked into something like this. All it takes is a very basic email that is indirect and has some sort of reel to pull you in. These guys are aiming at getting you excited and want you to make a rash decision.

If you respond with the information they are asking for, there is a good chance you will get a check that can be cashed. You will get your money, but within a few days the bank will realize the check is a fraud and they will then take the money out of your account and you will be left with nothing. You get a double whammy if you have already spent the money. You will have lost whatever you "sold" and will most likely never see it again. And good luck catching these guys! The Internet has made it so easy for them to operate under thousands of different names and emails. 

A lot of times these emails will end in "Best Regards" or "Kind Regards." Who talks like that? Not many people. So...if you want to avoid making the initial mistake of responding to the first email like I did, write in your post or ad to "be specific when responding or I will not reply." You can also write, "I will only respond to calls or text." I will get to the "calls and text" part here in a little bit. 

Now for a little harder email:

"Would like to purchase for my 10 yr old granddaughter.  Can purchase on Friday, Aug 3rd?

Please reply to **********(At) windstream (dot) net or text 935 ****

Would like to schedule how to pick up."

This person was inquiring about a bike I had posted on Craigslist. Part of me could at first believe that this email was real because it was "sent from an iPhone," which could explain the short hand.This type of email setup is written to where it can be sent to anyone in the bike or kids section of Craigslist.

If you feel that an email might be a scam, don't even take the time to respond to it. You may feel like you are making a statement by letting them have it, but in all reality your'e just one of a thousand others that this email has been sent to. Most likely you would just get an auto-reply from their computer program.

I became 100% positive this was a scam when I received a second email from another email address that was in regards to another item I had for sale. It was pretty much the same email, but this time it was for their "13yr granddaughter." 

Another bit of advice is to make it clear in your post as to how or where you will exchange money and product. If it is something big, don't waste your time lugging it around all for nothing. Let them come to you, but meet them outside. Check out my "Dangers of Craigslist" post for more safety tips. 

Let's break this email down:

First off, they don't state what they are wanting to purchase, but they did state that they wanted to purchase what we are assuming is "my" bike for their 10 year old "granddaughter." Next, their email is a "Windstream" email, which is local here in Tulsa, Oklahoma (I added the "dot, At, and ***" so you would not click on the address). The grammar again has issues. The other potentially convincing factor is the local phone number: I took the area code (918) and the last 4 out so it could not be connected if someone clicked it.

The "918" area code is a local number, but most likely this is not his or her number. It most likely came from another persons ad that was not aware of how to list their phone number without it being taken advantage of (or at least making it harder to be acquired). 

If your going to remember anything from this post REMEMBER THIS: NEVER and I mean NEVER write your phone number out like this (123) 345-6789 OR THIS 123-345-6789 Thanks to the wonderful world of "Smart Phones," people can now click on these numbers and call you right away.

Most likely the above number was taken from some innocent person that made this mistake. So how can you avoid at least a computer from obtaining your number? Easy, just write out various parts of your phone number, leave spaces, and leave out the dashes (One two three 45 six 7895). 

Unfortunately, you can't fool an actual person that is sitting there and can read out what you wrote. Thankfully, you can fool the computer programmers that use computer software to easily obtain your numbers.

If someone does obtain your number, most likely you will just get annoying phone calls from telemarketers or you will encounter no one on the other line and it will just hang up. At the very worst you may get an innocent call from some innocent person responding to what they think is an ad from you. 

This potentially could last a few days to a week, maybe one or two times a day at the worst. On the flip side, if you see a phone number written in the traditional way and you are thinking about clicking it, be prepared to be yelled at for calling whoever did not list the ad. Even though the numbers show one thing, that number can be forward to someone else. I would also recommend not clicking on the phone number link from either your phone or computer because it could take you to a harmful site or even download a virus. Just take the extra few seconds and write the number down and then dial it from your phone.

I have an insane story of this happening to me, but I will leave that for another time.

And lastly..TEXTING...That is how my crazy story started out! Avoid it if you can, because you could be texting a persons home phone number (even if it says "cell"), in which they don't know they have "text to voice" and they may get really mad, threaten you, call you names, and harass you. And all because someone else used that persons number for the fake ad.

If you are new to buying, selling, or trading online, I would stick with calling or emailing first. It is very easy to get pulled into a texting conversation and tell someone too much.

Also, remind yourself that you are texting a complete stranger and not your friend. 

If you are going to meet up with someone and your communication has only been text, don't give too much information about yourself, like what you are driving.  Try to wait until that person says they are literally in the parking lot, then tell them what you are driving. You don't want to be the next local headline of getting followed home and robbed, or worst killed. 

If someone is pushy, or they don't answer your questions directly and are just "beating around the bush", drop them. It's not worth it. They are either messing with you and are going to stand you up and waste your time, or they are someone out there that wants to hurt you. 

I am not trying to scare you away from buying, selling, or trading online. I am just wanting to make you aware of what could happen to you if you let your emotions get the best of you. If it is too good to be true, then it probably is. Read through the ads or emails carefully and take your time in responding. If they create a sense of "urgency" to buy or sell, it could be a scam. 

However, I posted an ad like this one time, but it was because I bet my wife that I could sell an item within 15 minutes of it going live. It sold after about 35 minutes of going live. For losing I told her I would use the money for us to go on a date, rather than it just getting eaten up by some bill. You have to have fun, otherwise like every other job, you will get burnt out. This is NOT a "get rich quick" type of thing. It's a way to pay the bills or have extra cash type of thing.

Be careful out there, but also have fun! Good luck!

Thanks for reading!

Matt

Oh, and by the way...The email from Roger was fake. I had listed the hiking poles for only $10. He did not state what he was wanting to buy from me (even though I stated to do so in my ad). He creates an atmosphere of inviting you to contact him if your item does not sell. He gives you the sense that he really wants "them." He also invites himself to come pick them up, most likely at your house. He wants to get a quick yes from you and does not give you the chance to say no. He tells you what he is going to do. Stuff like this can really go South if you respond and agree to their terms. 

This is what I typically respond with if I feel the need to start the process of seeing if they are real, scammers, or just plain punks:

"Call if interested, use the information per my Craigslist post so I know this is a real person."