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I am going to buy bitcoins for the first time from a seller on localbitcoins. He says that funds can be transferred through Internet Banking. He seems to have good feedback, 9+reviews but I am kind of nervous. What exact steps should be followed for a smooth transaction. My plan is:

  1. Send him my wallet address, and then wait for him to transfer the bitcoins.
  2. Upon successful transaction, I send him the required amount through an online bank transaction.
  3. ??
  4. Profit

I hope I am doing this right. Please advise.

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so, you receive bitcoins first?! – vi.su. Feb 16 at 9:43
local means local, i.e. hard money changes hands live... if you are going to use banking anyway, you can just use Mt. Gox... – Lohoris Feb 16 at 14:58
If he has a reputation and you don't, of course he won't send first. Either you send first, you meet or you use escrow. – Meni Rosenfeld Feb 16 at 18:23
1  
@Lohoris: Using Mtgox has several issues, the $50 fee for international wire being one of them. A local bank transfer is completely different. – Meni Rosenfeld Feb 16 at 18:24

2 Answers

up vote 3 down vote accepted

Meet him at a public place and do the exchange using a phone bitcoin-app and cash. Make sure that his reputation is worth more than a possible robbery/scam.

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up vote -1 down vote

LocalBitcoins use escrow, so you will be safe.

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1  
You could improve the answer by adding some more detail. Is escrow always enabled? How does it work? – D.H.♦ Feb 16 at 19:03

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