If anyone has other questions I will be happy to answer them.
I don't know if this will be accepted with a warm welcome or is even needed. But I figured I would post it anyways because I am lurking on here often for my own curiosity and would like to pay back in a way as a thank you.
I'm a pro trader on LBC with over 2,000 trades under my belt. I started with money pak and the others and now exclusively do local trades.
This is how a local trade works:
You message me a wallet address if outside of escrow.
You hand me cash.
I count it and pocket it.
I send bitcoin.
Bye and see you later.
This list will be all over the place since I'm doing it on the fly.
Cash first then bitcoin. Give me the cash first. I will count then pocket it. I am the one with huge amounts of great feedback which indicate I can be trusted. I have no idea who you are. I will never give the coin first.
As a pro trader I encourage questions through LBC. Ask away! I want you to feel comfortable with the transaction prior to meeting up. If you're on edge in person, that puts me on edge.
Be on time. This is how I make a living and time is money. Most trades are for $600 or less and almost all of that isn't profit. I will think twice about meeting up again if you're late the first time. If you are going to be late have the courtesy to notify me through LBC or text. I am understanding.
Do not ask for a discount on your first purchase. I do not care if you say you will buy from me regularly. I quickly learned a lot of people won't. For smaller purchases the margins are razor thin as it is and it isn't worth my time to meet up if I were to give a discount. Now if you are buying a few thousand every other week that is a different story. But ask after we have traded a few times.
Do not tell me someone else is selling for less. I am fully aware. If you want his prices, go to him. But for 2% more you are paying for my service. You contacted me in the first place because my light is green and my feedback says 1,000+. There is a reason for that. My customer support is amazing.
Do not tell me where we are meeting. If your first message is "Hi. I'm looking to buy $500 in BTC. Please meet me at X on such-and-such street @ 6:00." I will 100% not meet there. I will work around your timing and the area but I will pick a place that I feel comfortable with.
Come alone, don't be high, and don't have anything on you. If you bring a bunch of friends because you aren't comfortable then I will leave. I am not risking my safety. I come alone so you do the same. Don't smell of weed or come high. We are doing a business transaction for cash in a public place. Act professional. Do not come with anything on you.
Make small talk. We are meeting up and have at the very least two things in common. Where we live and bitcoin. It doesn't have to be awkward. Comment on the weather, talk about bitcoin or bring up something that happened on the news locally.
I know you want to be anonymous. Over LBC or text please give me a name even if it is fake. Don't just describe what you are wearing. I don't want to have to awkwardly go up to someone and ask "uhhh... are we...?"
I do save your phone number. Use Google Voice if you don't want me to have your real number. I save it so I know who is texting me in the future. It is for quality customer service.
If it is a large cash transaction please color up. Are we meeting for $2,000? Please take the time to go to random banks and get your $20s turned into larger bills. This makes it less obvious when I have to count.
Do not act suspicious! Please do not hand me the cash under the table of wherever we are at. Just hand it to me. I'll count it in plain view unless it is a large amount which I might go to the bathroom. If I don't act suspicious then I don't look suspicious. I just come off like a bragging dick who is counting his cash in public. If we do a few transactions then I'll have you hop in my car and it goes a lot faster.
Never ask me to front you bitcoin. I am not a bank and I won't loan you coin. I don't care how often we have done business. The only exception is if we have done a ton of business and you're $6 short or something minimal.
Never ever ask questions about the markets and don't hint about what you're doing with your coin!! People act surprised when I walk away from a transaction prior to doing it because they ask me how to buy drugs.
LBC can be great, yet it can also be a nightmare. I don't know how many times I have had to wait at a designated spot to meet a trader only to find out that the trader "decided" he could not make it because of various reasons.
I prefer traders who offer banks accounts. This way if they try to screw you on a trade you can just go straight to the bank manager and explain you were scammed (not that I have ever had to do this because the trader already knows this and will not risk losing his bank account for a scam which will never work).
Another service you could think about is www.bitcoin-brokers.org
They offer you a choice of different banks (usually just the big ones like Bank of America and Wells Fargo) and you just deposit into their account. Bitcoin received the same day.
Coinbase is great, but they will shut down your account if they catch you sending btc to any addresses they list as being suspicious.