Founder-vetted. Not “authenticated.” Not “guaranteed.”

At this stage, Keepstead is small enough that a real person — the founder — looks at every listing before it goes live. That's not a marketing claim, it's the literal current process: we're not running an algorithmic quality score, and we're not calling anything "authenticated" the way a luxury-resale marketplace might, because that word implies a level of formal verification we're not claiming. What we are doing is looking closely, asking sellers questions, and rejecting listings that don't meet the bar — every time.

If a piece has a chip, a water ring, a repaired leg — we ask to see it, and we ask sellers to say so. We'd rather a buyer know exactly what they're getting than be surprised at pickup. This is the opposite of how most online marketplaces work, and it's on purpose.

Every purchase runs through Keepstead's payment system — sellers don't chase buyers for cash or wait on a Venmo request that never comes. Getting paid reliably, every time, is the baseline promise we're building this whole platform around.

• Pickup is arranged directly between buyer and seller, in the piece's local area — no shipping, no strangers' addresses handed out in advance.
• Sellers choose where and when pickup happens; we recommend a porch, driveway, garage, or public meeting point for smaller items rather than a full house walkthrough with someone you've just met.
• We never publish a seller's exact address or any photo detail that would identify it (no visible house numbers, mail, or family photos in listings) — that's part of our photo standard, checked by curators.
• If something feels off before a pickup — trust that instinct and reach out to us at hello@keepsteadhome.com.