Your problem might have been dealing with inexperienced programmers who wish to become freelancers. This unfortuanatly happens more than it should. However, you should also know that coding a full shopping cart system from scratch is not simple task and any self respecting freelancer would charge much more than 200 dollars.
If you are truly wishing to have a cart built for your specific needs and are willing to spend the cash for a real freelancer I'm sure there are many here that could be of service. I am available for hire currently: You can contact me by e-mail (
geeklegacy@charter.net ) or on aim ( geeklegacy ) to get my personal details.
A good freelancer should always stay in constant communication with the client such as yourself, including a phone number & address where they can be reached.
Hope this helps you with your future freelance dealings. Good Luck.