Cleaning the closet
Most people clean out old stuff when the move from one place to another. However, you should probably try and go through your old stuff more frequently - even once per year.
The most common place to sell unwanted items is at a garage sale. You may be surprised what will actually sell at a garage sale. The old saying “one man’s trash is another man’s treasure” certainly is true when it comes to a garage sale. Many people make their living going around to garage sales and yard sales on the weekends and then re-selling the items.
Another great place to sell items is Craigslist. This is an online site with many services, one if which is free classified. The best part about Craigslist is that there are no fees to place an ad and no fee if something sells, unlike EBAY. However, the downside is that you are probably targeting your local area only. However selling large items like cars and furniture are easy and the buyer can just pick up the item or you can meet at a pre-arranged location to complete the transaction.
The final place to get rid of old items is through donation sites like Salvation Army. Places like this will usually take almost anything. Sometimes people have a garage sale and then what does not sell is donated. Be sure that you get your tax deduction slip when you donate. You can take up to a $500 deduction with almost no recourse. Over $500 and you better have a good record of what was donated.
A good rule to practice is that if you have not used something or worn something in one year, you probably will not miss it if you get rid of it. Exercise some caution when you get rid of stuff, and price it correctly unless of course you just want to get rid of it. With the internet it is very easy to check prices. I usually just jump on a site like EBAY and search for the item - there is usually the exact item for sale and you can easily see what the “Buy it Now” price is.
Most people clean out old stuff when the move from one place to another. However, you should probably try and go through your old stuff more frequently - even once per year.
The most common place to sell unwanted items is at a garage sale. You may be surprised what will actually sell at a garage sale. The old saying “one man’s trash is another man’s treasure” certainly is true when it comes to a garage sale. Many people make their living going around to garage sales and yard sales on the weekends and then re-selling the items.
Another great place to sell items is Craigslist. This is an online site with many services, one if which is free classified. The best part about Craigslist is that there are no fees to place an ad and no fee if something sells, unlike EBAY. However, the downside is that you are probably targeting your local area only. However selling large items like cars and furniture are easy and the buyer can just pick up the item or you can meet at a pre-arranged location to complete the transaction.
The final place to get rid of old items is through donation sites like Salvation Army. Places like this will usually take almost anything. Sometimes people have a garage sale and then what does not sell is donated. Be sure that you get your tax deduction slip when you donate. You can take up to a $500 deduction with almost no recourse. Over $500 and you better have a good record of what was donated.
A good rule to practice is that if you have not used something or worn something in one year, you probably will not miss it if you get rid of it. Exercise some caution when you get rid of stuff, and price it correctly unless of course you just want to get rid of it. With the internet it is very easy to check prices. I usually just jump on a site like EBAY and search for the item - there is usually the exact item for sale and you can easily see what the “Buy it Now” price is.