Consignment vs. Ebay vs. Garage Sale vs. Donation

[spaceacewannabe]

I thought I was going to go the consignment route, but I'm kind of uncomfortable with the policies at stores around here. There seems to be a lot of trust involved...

So I'm wondering...what have you had most success with? I have a LOT of clothes and some shoes...mostly good brand name, barely or never worn. I attempted to sell some of it on ebay (3 pairs of shoes and a blazer) and none of it sold...I wonder if it was a bad time of year, thought (this was last week).

What have you found to be the best combination of ease and financial benefit?

 

[Kies99]

I thought I was going to go the consignment route, but I'm kind of uncomfortable with the policies at stores around here. There seems to be a lot of trust involved...

So I'm wondering...what have you had most success with? I have a LOT of clothes and some shoes...mostly good brand name, barely or never worn. I attempted to sell some of it on ebay (3 pairs of shoes and a blazer) and none of it sold...I wonder if it was a bad time of year, thought (this was last week).

What have you found to be the best combination of ease and financial benefit?

Clothes are really iffy to sell. We have never had any luck with selling in a Garage sale so we don't do that. While we sell a lot of items on Ebay, it's not worth it to us if an item is not sold at $10 or more (too much effort for too little return). We've come to the realization that donating is the way to go. We downloaded a valuation guide from the Salvation Army (I think) and we use that to itemize our deductions. It gives a price range and we generally go the middle ground.

 

[rockyroad]

If you are planning to get the stuff out of the house, around here there are seasonal children's clothing sales in which you hang and tag your stuff. If it sells then they get a cut for the church and if you choose not to pick-up your left overs then they are donated to charity.

My daughter got ours ready once and she kept the money.
It's a pretty good deal.

 

[Stein]

Unless I can get $10 or more for it, it goes to donation. With the fees at either eBay or consignment, it just isn't worth the trouble.

 

[Andrea_loves_Disney]

I ask myself the same question all the time!! I have sold on Ebay, had garage sales and given to Goodwill/Local Crisis Center. I sold kids clothes on Ebay several years ago and did fairly well (Name brands, new or almost new condition) - but I hear that it is really getting harder and harder to make any money on Ebay with all the fees, etc.

I have had numerous garage sales and the last time I said NEVER AGAIN! Too much work and people want you to give it away! It just isn't worth it. I would rather really give it to Goodwill than to people who came to my garage sales and try to barter down to nothing!!!

I tried selling to a resale shop once and I found what they offered to be so minimal....and I couldn't stand the fact that they were going to give me $1 for something and then turn around and sell it for $6-8.

So, my final thought is that I am just going to give to Goodwill and/or friends/neighbors who want my "good stuff". I spend a lot of money (too much, admittedly) on clothes and it is a shame I can't get any money back but I have just given up!

Sorry to be a pessimist, but that is just how it has turned out for me!!

 

[grlpwrd]

I am in agreement with Stein...I used to own a thrift and consignment store. The one's that are in our area do not offer a good deal for me compared to just selling things myself. Yet even ebay and PayPal fees sometimes don't even make it worthwhile. Sometimes it's just not worth it.

I just go down the line. I start with Craiglist and then if it doesn't sell I try eBay next. Then if it still isn't sold I take it to a charity-sponsored thrift shop, but this year I plan to have a yard sale first.

 

[kathyanderson28]

I too have tried it all. I have 3 kids 4 and under, and the clothes, toys, etc, have piled up fast. I didn't like the consignment route, I didn't make a lot of money, they didn't want to accept a lot of my things and donated them so the consignment shop got the write off, not me. Plus they only issue checks twice a month.
I usually do one yard sale a year, where I set my clothes up and sell them for 50 cents a piece, and still only sell a small amount. Last year, I actually told people to fill a bag for $2, and I still had an undesirable amount of clothes left, that I ended up donating to good will.
So that left me to try ebay. In my experience, it is only worth it if I can sell a lot of clothes. I will put together a box of clothes the same size, same season, and put it on ebay for a starting bid of $5. Each box has about 20 pieces of clothing (a piece could be a one piece outfit, or a bib, I explain each item in the description), and they have each sold for about $20-30. So this is better than a yard sale, I get paid right away, so it's better than consignment. I have to make sure though, that these clothes are in great shape, and if you have name brands they sell even higher.
Toys are the same way, I put together a lot of 19 baby rattles/teethers, etc. At a yard sale, I'd sell them for 25 cents each, and maybe sell 4 or 5. These sold for $20, so I was thrilled, to make 20 bucks and get rid of unwanted toys.
Anyway, what I do now is a combination. I sell on ebay, donate what I don't think will sell, and I'll still have one yard sale in the summer to sell items that are too big to ship (baby swing, exersaucer, etc).
This is what I do, since I can't afford to work outside the home with 3 kids who would need daycare if I went into the office again.

-Kathy

 

[kfeuer]

Are you talking about adult's clothes or kid's clothes? For adult clothing, I agree that consignment stores don't offer very much (the best one near me only pays the seller 45%).

For kid's clothing/toys/equipment, I sell at a huge kid's consignment sale that's held twice a year. I have to tag everything, but at least I know I'm happy with the price! I get to keep 70% of what the items sells for minus a $10 administrative fee. I've made at least $300 every time I do it, and it keeps the clutter at bay.

 

[AngieWin]

The past couple of seasons, I have taken the kids clothes to a resell store (not really consignment) and I get more $ by getting store credit. I then garage sale and what is left, I donate.

But if it is household goods or adult clothes I attempt to sell at garage sale and then donate. We had over $2000 in tax deductions with all the cra... um stuff we donated last year!

 

[ZPT1022]

I tried selling to a resale shop once and I found what they offered to be so minimal....and I couldn't stand the fact that they were going to give me $1 for something and then turn around and sell it for $6-8.

That's been my experience. I brought a bunch of baby stuff to a baby & kids consignment store here, thinking I was doing good, getting rid of clutter and making some $$ for the family too. I felt so taken advantage of when I left. They kept a HUGE amount of baby clothes and I walked away with nothing. At least that's what it felt like. I personally just can't sell my kids baby memories for cheap like that. I cried in the car and even DH who doesn't get worked up about much agreed that for the amount I brought I got next to nothing. It's just a horrible process. So now, while there's no financial gain, I try to give things to people I know who will use them. DD's kindergarten teacher is getting all our old boy clothes. It's just so much nicer to give them to someone who sits there and picks through the box and oohs and aahs over everything and gets genuinely excited than to have someone tell you the stuff is worth next to nothing and then turn around and sell it for almost what I paid for it. Perhaps craigslist will be better but I will NOT be going back to the consignment store. If it's a clutter issue and you just want stuff gone from your house, don't forget about freecycle. there are some unscrupulous people on freecycle but if you watch for a little bit you can figure out who they are. Good luck!

 

[pjlla]

I ask myself the same question all the time!! I have sold on Ebay, had garage sales and given to Goodwill/Local Crisis Center. I sold kids clothes on Ebay several years ago and did fairly well (Name brands, new or almost new condition) - but I hear that it is really getting harder and harder to make any money on Ebay with all the fees, etc.

I have had numerous garage sales and the last time I said NEVER AGAIN! Too much work and people want you to give it away! It just isn't worth it. I would rather really give it to Goodwill than to people who came to my garage sales and try to barter down to nothing!!!

I tried selling to a resale shop once and I found what they offered to be so minimal....and I couldn't stand the fact that they were going to give me $1 for something and then turn around and sell it for $6-8.

So, my final thought is that I am just going to give to Goodwill and/or friends/neighbors who want my "good stuff". I spend a lot of money (too much, admittedly) on clothes and it is a shame I can't get any money back but I have just given up!

Sorry to be a pessimist, but that is just how it has turned out for me!!

This is pretty much what I was going to say. Ebay is useless these days, except for larger, higher priced items. I haven't tried Craigslist yet, but I would like to. I will go ahead and occasionally garage sale a larger item (such as a winter coat), but if it doesn't sell, off to the Goodwill (or the church yard sale). I was also horrified at the $$ I got from our local kids resale shop. I truly felt ripped off afterwards. So I give away what I can, sell a bit a the occasional yard sale, and the rest goes to the Goodwill (be sure to get a receipt for your taxes). Good luck.............................P

 

[Whosemom]

Not so much a clothing thing, although you hear it sometimes, but around here we have another option. One of the local AM radio stations runs "the trading post" every morning where people call in with what they have or what they want. I have afew things I've meant to sell on ebay, but didn't want the hassle. I think I;m going to call trading post instead. NO shipping, the people show up with the $

 

[3js13]

I sell my kids stuff at a couple of large consignment sales where you bag and tag everything yourself. I get 70% of my sales minus the $5 fee. It great to get rid of everything at once.

 

[KarenAylwood]

We were having a garage sale anyway so we decided to take a stab at selling some of my old clothes. We had put an ad in the newspaper about the sale and in it mentioned "size 8 brand name womens clothing." I put up a sign saying $3 each piece and laid it all out on a blanket on the lawn. We were SHOCKED at how much money we made on the clothes alone- around $50. We only had two people try to bargain with us (one woman on multiple items, another on just one skirt).

Then we gave the rest to the Salvation Army.

It might not always work, but it didn't cost us anything to try to sell it first since we were doing the sale anyway.

 

[englishteacha]

How do you go about getting receipts for a tax deduction when you donate clothes to Goodwill or Salvation Army? I give away a lot of clothes each year and have never gotten a receipt. Can you get a receipt from a church having a yard sale if you donate, too?

 

[soccerchick]

If you are planning to get the stuff out of the house, around here there are seasonal children's clothing sales in which you hang and tag your stuff. If it sells then they get a cut for the church and if you choose not to pick-up your left overs then they are donated to charity.

My daughter got ours ready once and she kept the money.
It's a pretty good deal.

Watch the classified ads for charity groups and MOPS groups. I just received a consignor check for $194!!

Usually, if you work a volunteer shift you get more % back. standard is 50% around here.

 

[Gillian]

I've seen a few of those large group consignment things advertised but haven't tried them out yet. We have been donating a lot lately, because it's just the easiest thing, and we itemize our deductions.

This year I'm going to try a flea market thing to benefit the new town library. It's $10 for a table (or parking space? I'm not sure exactly how it will work). I'm planning to bring a small rack to hang clothes. I figure that with a bigger crowd than at a typical yard sale, I can hold out for slightly higher prices. The early birds at yard sales really try to get you! I should know, my MIL is one.

Ebay seems like too much trouble.

 

[Scrappy Tink]

I sell on ebay dont have much luck with clothes but my friends who buy all the designer stuff do they have sometimes gotten more for it than what they paid for it on sale. I suggest lotting items together same size same season. But I do better with clothes at garage sale . No matter how you look at it its not like we are going to make alot of money off used clothes. And it all takes time and energy which ever way you look at it.

 

[carmie3377]

I've never sold clothes on ebay because I don't want to miss a small stain, snag, ect and sell misrepresented merchandise. I take my childrens' clothes to a consignment shop. The owner keeps 60% of the sale, I keep the 40%. If it doesn't sell, I don't pay her anything. I usually get $2-$4 per piece, which is better than the .25-.50 I'd get in the yard sale. If it doesn't sale at the consignment shop, I'll donate to a neighbor or goodwill.