Trade Me
A screenshot of the Trade Me listing. It was taken down, but not before 12 bids.
John McAlister is a husband for sale, listed on Trade Me, after he embarked on an impromptu fishing trip.
He’s 6’1, 37 years old and a beef farmer.
He has had a number of previous owners, but should remain loyal if kept fed and hydrated, says wife Linda McAlister.
“As he is a shootin’, and fishin’ sort of fellow it’s not unusual behaviour, but with kids on school holidays and bed times slipping later and later, they are all driving me wild” she told Stuff.
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Linda and John McAlister with their boys Colt and Ryder.
It certainly didn’t help that he was flat out at work, leaving her alone to entertain their 4 and 6-year-old boys, Colt and Ryder, most days.
The McAlisters moved to Marton a year ago, the largest town in rural Rangitīkei. They previously lived in Waikato, but got married in 2019 in Ireland, Linda’s homeland.
”We had nothing in common except my heritage,” she said. John was Irish on his father’s side.
For the most part they were a happily married couple, and their Irish sense of humour meant John also found the auction hilarious.
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Linda McAlister is trying to sell her husband John, a beef farmer in Marton, after 3 years of marriage.
“He was sure he would fetch a pretty penny… he is avidly watching the ad to prove said theory,” Linda said.
John heard about the listing from his mates.
“I’m just laughing at the whole thing,” he said.
His advice to other husbands thinking of ditching the kids and missus during the school holidays was to “watch themselves”.
By lunchtime Tuesday, 12 bids had bumped the auction to $100, but a few hours later the post was removed by Trade Me.
Its policy and compliance manager James Ryan said it was the first time in recent memory they had seen someone list their spouse for sale.
”While we love seeing Kiwis having fun, ultimately our priority is ensuring all of our members have a great experience onsite.”
The post was removed for breaching Trade Me’s terms and conditions.
Ryan said Trade Me loved it when their members got creative. Previous listings included a woman who sold a ticket to an Ed Sheeran concert on the condition they took her as a date, and one who sold a wedding dress “worn once by mistake”.
Before the auction was taken down, would-be buyers were very curious about their could-be husband. Some offered to trade the one they had for him.
“Any vices?” asked one.
Linda replied: “Extremely fond of lengthy pasture and or weather conversations; generally of a Friday evening, involving a sturdy focus on hydration. Also suffers from socks-on-the-floor-itus, which I have found to be contagious to younger models and unfortunately reoccurring.”
