As far as Good Samaritans go, one word of warning that I’m sure all the newscasters have been saying: If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Frankly, there’s no way a STH is going to sell a balcony ticket offsite for $250 (which is still about 40% over FV) when they can get $450 without blinking online - and that’s including fees.
That’s not necessarily a bad thing - remember, STHs make a commitment to buy 44 games - and that commitment stands even if the team stinks, or if the STH’s financial situation changes. They also make a commitment later in the year to buy 16 playoff games, some of which can have dates and opponents announced just under 48 hours in advance, and some of which may get cancelled with that same 48 hours notice.
STHs basically get a modestly bad deal if we don’t make the playoffs...and in return get a great deal if we make the Cup Finals. It’s a bit like the stock market.
So, if someone is offering you a $200 balcony seat, and the cheapest you can find on major resale sites is $500...you have to ask why they aren’t listing the tickets on the site itself. It’s a bit of a warning sign. StubHub will charge resellers who sell fake tickets, so there’s incentive there to be honest. TicketMaster/TicketsNow reissues bar codes, so there’s no way to fake those. But if you’re getting a ticket from Craigslist or here, look for reputation, or maybe go with a known quantity.
That’s not to say folks here haven’t made equitable deals, particularly for throwaway regular season games. But it does come with risk, and there’s no real recourse - HFBoards can’t do anything, as noted in the opening post here.