Are you obligated to sell?

We bought a trailer (hauling trailer, not travel trailer RV) by stopping by a place where it was setting for years without being moved. We've also had several offers for our vans which were not for sale at the time. We always get teenage boys wanting to buy the 79 'stang which isn't for sale to any teenager at any price because of the hopped up engine.

Unless a price is agreed upon, info exchanged and hands shaken your son is under no obligation to sell.

In MY neck of the woods.. people never stop and ask. If it's not unusual to you then by all means.. sell. Just giving my opinion and I'm sure things that are unusual in some places are not unusual in others. Guess it depends on where you're at. We have had people just steal stuff out of yards though (like solar lights.. SOLAR LIGHTS, people! Really?) Just sayin' that kind of thing would make people raise an eyebrow around here. (Otherwise.. there are LOTS of things I'd like to stop and do a roadside purchase on from folks around here! LOL)

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A closed mouth gathers no foot.

That type of encounter will probably be more common in the future. Odds are, the guy knew of someone who wanted a vehicle like that, knew the price he could charge, and asked so that he could flip it. I've had a few people want to lowball a travel trailer I have the same way.

That UCC reference was correct, but like they say, a verbal agreement isn't worth the paper it is printed on. There would need to be a (reasonably unbiased) witness for there to be any action.

No obligation.
Further, if your son is under 18, he
can't be legally held to any contract,
even a written one.
And if the vehicle is in your name, he
can't legally sell it anyway.

He's under no obligation.

Now, if he'd a put a high dog price on it, thinking no one in their right mind would pay that, and the gent pulled out a wad of Benjamins, yes, he would be obligated.

I had a 2nd cousin that kept getting pestered by a developer to sell his land or an easement through his property, and he kept telling said developer he didn't want to sell. Developer showed up mid day after the cousin had had his 1st bottle of "Elixir", and he was feeling 'good'... told him he'd take what he thought was 3x what it was worth. Developer showed up next morning with a cashiers check, told him he had a month to get his 'treasure' off the place.

Everything has a price. If you don't want to sell, you should quote a price of 'priceless'. Putting a price on it obligates you to sell. You shake, and it's a done deal.

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Luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity. Seneca
Learning is not compulsory... neither is survival. W. Edwards Deming

Yes, it used to be done a lot, less so now. My father-in-law does it all the time on equipment and horses. He needed a truck once, and I was with him when he stopped to ask if 1/2 ton truck that seemed unused was for sale. He didn't get the truck he needed, but he left with a horse buggy he didn't need.

Thank you everyone for all the responses. This has never happened to us before and I have been stressing over it.

My son is 17 and the truck is in his name. He had thought about selling it last spring, but then decided to fix it up instead. This guy asking him to price it threw him for a loop and he just blurted out the price he had thought on last spring. After the guy left and he had time to think, he realized he didn't really want to sell it, especially since he's got parts/paint sitting at the shop waiting for warm weather to fix it up. Not to mention this would leave him w/o wheels to get anywhere. I told him because of gas prices, he needs to hold on to this. Bigger trucks might look nice but you sure pay for it at the pump.

I don't mind a stranger coming up and asking about something for sale, but I have asked around and no one seems to know this guy. I would really prefer to get hold of him before Saturday and let him know he doesn't want to sell, but can't find him. I guess we'll just have to wait and see if he shows Saturday.

I used this as an opportunity to talk to my son about how to respond, such as "I don't know, I hadn't really thought about selling" or something like that.

Nothing creepy about being absolutely hounded in these parts if you leave a Toyota truck parked and looking like it might be available for sale, sign or not. Several times I have seen guys paint NOT FOR SALE across the front glass of an old Land Cruiser or 4WD pick-up just to avoid the hassle of repeatedly answering the door for another kid who thinks he just discovered one heck of a potential bargain.

What you experienced is pretty common especially in the south. I always have a car or 2 of interest and have people stop from word of moth that so and so's brother told my sister about a truck you said you might want to sell. People don't act fast and word of mouth travels slow. There is no obligation but if you price something and the person accepts that price that's usually a gentleman's agreement and the deal is made. Someone mentioned a phone deal where trhey drove long distance. Cash in my hand constitutes a deal, promises on aphone mean nothing. I don't lower my asking price until I see some form of currency in person. Phone deals are a waste of time.

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"Education is the ability to listen to almost anything without losing your temper or your self confidence"
Robert Frost

In agreement with everyone else. There was no handshake, no paperwork.
I would bet u a cup of coffee that we doesn't stop back. If he was serious then he would have left an N&N (name & number).
As to him saying that he knows a relative ... who knows people say things because in their head it sounds good. Around here that can backfire. Sometimes the person who's name they are dropping is a bum.

As to thread drift on asking if something is for sale - if we see something that really catches our eye we leave an index card with contact info. We also ask that if they know of anyone who has one (usually an antique car) and is considering selling to please forward our N&N.
I've gotten retro lawn furniture using this method.

~~ pelenaka ~~

Even if a verbal contract can be legally binding, I wouldn't think that anyone could hold a minor child to one.

Love retro lawn furniture, any pictures?

I have seen stuff I'd be interested in buying, but I never can get up the nerve to stop and ask. I suppose I should try sometime.

Mid sixties metal with the tapered legs, and wire mesh in a triangle design. Big box stores sell a version but it has a bit of an ivy vine embellishments. Glider is new, two patio table sets each with 6 chairs, and two conersational chairs arn't. Daughter made me a coffee table for the glider out of stuff we had.
Once everything is painted black it's all good.
Can't post pics as it's all under two feet of snow. What I could give for a morning cup of coffee out on my patio.


As to getting up the nerve to ask - that's the beauty of leaving an index card. No face to face unless there interested. Added benefit is that ur N&N might be forwarded to someone who is interested.

~~ pelenaka ~~

~~~UPDATE~~~

The fellow came back a little while ago. Told him we were not interested in selling as this would leave son with no wheels. He wanted to know if son would be interested in selling at any point and we said it would not be at any point soon. I offered for him to leave his name/number so we could contact him if he ever decided to sell but he declined. I did find out that he just moved in up the road and around the corner from us so that explains why no one knew him.

Question ~ Are these little Toyota 4x4's such a hot commodity that everyone is looking for one?

What a cute little table! I have an older patio set, table/2 chairs, that I picked up at a little roadside antique place. My husband painted it dark red for me. We also got a little garden gate at the same place, painted it dark green.

before painting, can't find the painted picture




I will have to remember the index card trick. I have a stack of index cards in our school supplies, I will have to put some in the car.

We had sold one years ago. We had it parked in front of our house and quite a few people stopped by to look at it. We had a couple people try to low-ball us on the price, but finally sold it for what we were asking. Lately, any small trucks/cars are in demand due to the rising gas prices.

That's what I'm talking about. Mine except for the conversation chairs which as simular to the one u have pictures all fold up. Red sounds very chic

~~ pelenaka ~~

I am surprised at how comfortable these chairs are. I have sat in some newer chairs that were nowhere near as comfortable as mine. I love to sit out there in the mornings with coffee, looking over the garden.

In a word, yes.

I was moving from Mich. to Ga. in 1984 and using a 1967 Chevy stepside pickup with a column shift, and a uhaul truck. We had stopped at a gas station in Kentucky for gas and a rest. The truck was loaded Clampet style, and some older gent tried to buy it out from under us at the gas pump. It was a good old truck and we used it for at least another 8 years before selling it.

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Nina's Grammy