Make a Little Extra Money: Sell Your Stuff
March 18, 2009 by Miranda Marquit
Filed under Finance
It seems as though many people are interested in getting out of debt and generating extra income these days. It’s no real surprise. With concern over the economy, people are looking for ways to improve their financial situations — or at least prevent them from getting too much worse. One of the ways you can make a little extra money is to sell your stuff.
Selling what you don’t need
Go through your home and look for items that you haven’t used in years. We’ve been trying to get rid of stuff we don’t need for quite some time. It’s amazing the useless stuff that accumulates. It is equally surprising when you realize that it’s all in good shape because you didn’t use much in the first place. Figure out what you could sell, then consider these options:
- Craigslist offers a place for you to connect with local buyers. And, unlike the Classifieds section of the newspaper, Craigslist is free. This is a great place for larger items that are hard to ship.
- eBay is a tried and true method of selling. However, you should only put up your best items, and remember to consider the cost of shipping as well.
- Amazon Marketplace offers a great opportunity for things like music, movies and books. You can sell your used stuff at Amazon and get a little cash. (Sign up for the affiliate program while you are at it and monetize your blog).
- Garage sales are a lot of work, but they can be helpful in moving all that stuff you couldn’t get rid of online. You will have to offer deep discounts, though.
- Freecycle can be a place to go if all else fails. If you can’t sell your items, you can give them away on Freecycle. Maybe someone else could use what you have. And you might find something that you actually need.
In the end, there is always donation. Your local thrift store can accept items in good condition and offer you a receipt for their value. This way you can at least get a tax deduction for the stuff that you don’t need anymore.
image source: eBay Web site
Great pointers on selling stuff – it does seem like each venue has its own ups and downs – craigslist for big stuff, ebay for pricier electronics/etc and amazon for books/movies.
Thanks! I think it takes a little doing to get the hang of different sellers, but if you learn the ropes, you can sell more efficiently in the future.
Jct: If you start a timebank, you can have a flea market and get timedollars for your stuff which can be used to buy the stuff of other time-traders.
That’s pretty cool. Thanks for the tip!
I started selling stuff on eBay but now I find Craigslist a little easier.
The annoying thing about Craigslist are the low-ballers.
I think you’re right about lowballers, TStrump. I think, though, that you can find them anywhere. But Craigslist seems to be full of more of them. Probably because you are local and they figure you’d rather just get rid of it quick.