How much to pay for Used Tikes Playhouse?

[lpandorf]

My kids have been asking for a playhouse for the backyard for awhile. I found a nice used one by posting on Craigs list. It is one of the bigger ones that would retail for about $280 - $300. They are asking $150. Should I pay that or offer less?

Thanks!

 

[formernyer]

My kids have been asking for a playhouse for the backyard for awhile. I found a nice used one by posting on Craigs list. It is one of the bigger ones that would retail for about $280 - $300. They are asking $150. Should I pay that or offer less?

Thanks!

Used LT Playhouses and climbers sell for a lot, but that seems very high to me unless it's almost like new, with no sun damage/fading.

If you have the time to hunt around, shop the yard sales and you'll get a much better deal. I sold 6 used LT houses/climbers a few years back. The one I got the most for was the log cabin and I got $125. It had normal fading and wear for a 7-year old item. I thought the people overpaid big time, but of course I was happy.

If you need the item ASAP and it's in good condition, then you might offer $125, but if you hunt around you can probably find one for $50-$75. Some people don't know just how much these things will bring at a yard sale, so they underprice them. Just be aware that you need to be at the homes at about 6am to 7am in order to snag one...LT items are one of the things that the hard core yard salers wait outside your house for early in the morning.

 

[kfeuer]

That definitely sounds high. Wish you lived near me, my mom just found one of these at a garage sale for $10. She bought it to resell. Do you have any big semi-annual kid's consignment sales near you? Next month is the big month for them (back-to-school) and I know the one I sell at always has lots of Little Tikes stuff.

 

[Angel A]

Sounds high. Check yardsales, goodwill and friends.

 

[formernyer]

That definitely sounds high. Wish you lived near me, my mom just found one of these at a garage sale for $10. She bought it to resell. Do you have any big semi-annual kid's consignment sales near you? Next month is the big month for them (back-to-school) and I know the one I sell at always has lots of Little Tikes stuff.

Wow, $10 is almost unheard of for the large-sized playhouses! Your mom stumbled onto a great deal!

Consignment sales are normally not the best way to get a good price on one of these for two reasons. First, people who are selling at consignment sales generally know how to price items like this. Second, most consignment sales have a day prior to opening where the workers/volunteers can buy anything they want. Most of the good/cheap items will be gone before you can get there unless you volunteer to work the sale for the entire week.

The best way to get a good price is to shop the yard sales, but it may take a couple of weeks before you find one in the $50 range.

 

[kfeuer]

Consignment sales are normally not the best way to get a good price on one of these for two reasons. First, people who are selling at consignment sales generally know how to price items like this. Second, most consignment sales have a day prior to opening where the workers/volunteers can buy anything they want. Most of the good/cheap items will be gone before you can get there unless you volunteer to work the sale for the entire week.

That's probably true about them selling quickly, I hadn't thought about it (although I'm a seller, I don't shop the sales very often--after all the work of pricing stuff, the last thing I want to do is bring more junk into my house ).

What would you expect to pay for a decent-sized playhouse with some sun fading? My mom was going to put $50 on it, but sounds like she could get more. I've never paid much attention to these items since I have 2 boys.

 

[IDoDis]

I sold the kids' Little Tykes log cabin at our garage sale a couple of weeks ago for $10! It had hail damage on the room (large cracks) and the roof pieces didn't lodge together perfectly. DH and I had to haul it over our backyard wall and there was no way we were hauling back over again if it didn't sell. I started the price at $20 with no takers. Then, some old friends stopped by and offered $10, so I sold it. They had to leave it and come back later to pick it up. Of course after that I had several people ask about the house.

I bought it about 7 years ago used (at a garage sale) for $50.00 and it got LOTS of use, so I figured $10 was fine.

 

[formernyer]

That's probably true about them selling quickly, I hadn't thought about it (although I'm a seller, I don't shop the sales very often--after all the work of pricing stuff, the last thing I want to do is bring more junk into my house ).

What would you expect to pay for a decent-sized playhouse with some sun fading? My mom was going to put $50 on it, but sounds like she could get more. I've never paid much attention to these items since I have 2 boys.

The girl-style houses sell for slightly less than the unisex style (like the log cabin or the ones in primary colors). If the fading is normal and not excessive, and there are no cracks, then you should price it anywhere from 30% to 50% of the new MSRP, depending on condition. So if it's a $300 house in average condition and no cracks, figure on getting about $100 to $125 for it. Expect that some people will haggle with you and price it on the upper end...that way you can come down a little on the price and make them feel better about their purchase.

Always powerwash the items before trying to sell them. It makes more of a difference in their appearance than you could ever imagine. Washing with soap and water isn't enough...find somebody with a power washer and borrow it. It takes very little time and can increase your sale price by quite a bit.

If the house/climber has cracks it can really impact the price, because bad cracks fill with water and get really dirty looking.

 

[roadtripper]

I have seen these on www.freecycle.org
Once our kids were out of the backyard plastic phase, I couldn't get rid of that stuff fast enough! Subscribe to your local freecycle email list-- they do come up frequently. Good luck!

 

[Mickey527]

There are plenty of bargains around if you have time to wait but it always works out that when you need it there are only the most expensive available.
I found the huge two tower two slide playhut with a tunnel that sells in TRU for $399 in the paper for $15. I didn't call for 2 weeks because I was sure that there was a misprint and they wanted more. When I called she said no one else had called in 2 weeks. It is a little faded but in great condition.
I found another one outside during the town trash pick up in the next town over. I also got the LT picnic table and the red volkswagon. My brother found me the two seater wagon. I have two Fisher Price cars from the pick up too.
the town does pick-up 3 times a year and I am always driving around. I have to stop looking for toys now and focus on stuff to sell on ebay. I guess people would rather toss it out than donate it or sell it themselves.
I put a 12X16 indoor outdoor carpet on my lawn and put all the climbers on that. It killed my grass underneath but I don't have to move them to mow the lawn and when he outgrows them I can put in grass seed again.

 

[lsg1]

I recently sold our little tikes playhouse - the one that has a kitchen and one wall that swings out and has 2 chairs and a table on that wall. I sold it through craigs list. I got $75 for it, and on the first day i listed it, i had about 10 people inquire about it. I bet if I listed it for more, I would have gotten more.

 

[cats mom]

I sold the kids' Little Tykes log cabin at our garage sale a couple of weeks ago for $10! It had hail damage on the room (cracks) and the roof pieces didn't logde together perfectly. DH and I had to haul it over our backyard wall and there was no way we were hauling back over again if it didn't sell. I started the price at $20 with no takers. Then, some old friends stopped by and offered $10, so I sold it. They had to leave it and come back later to pick it up. Of course after that I had several people ask about the house.

We sold ours for $10 too - but part of the deal was that the folks who bought it had to haul it out of the backyard themselves.

I just made a for sale sign and stuck a picture of the cabin on it.



For the Op: Sounds like it might be priced a bit high. You can always offer lower and see what kind of response you get.
If they say no it's just a matter of whether you'd rather pay more and be done with it or if you're OK putting in some time and effort to try and find a better price.

 

[ceecee]

I sold a large climber for $75.00. I had 7 cars at my house at 7:00 am for a 9:00 garage sale. A lady partically threw $100.00 at me with the garage door half open. I'm sure I could have sold it for more. Someone even came the night before the sale.

 

[IDoDis]

I sold a large climber for $75.00. I had 7 cars at my house at 7:00 am for a 9:00 garage sale. A lady partically threw $100.00 at me with the garage door half open. I'm sure I could have sold it for more. Someone even came the night before the sale.

I started my last garage sale at 6:00am. I had already made $550.00 by 9:00am. The earlier you start it, the less competition you have because no one else is open yet. Next time I'll start at 6:30. I think that's when the first person showed up. By 7:00 I had 15 people milling around and it was non-stop after that until 9:00. Between 9:00 - 11:00 traffic was steady. Then, I'd get no one for 15 min. and then 5 people would show up. By 12:30 it was pretty dead. The earlier, the better.

 

[grlpwrd]

One of the brands I specialize in selling on ebay and Craigslist is Little Tikes.

It seems like a high price, but it also depends on how rare and if it is in good condition. I know there is a demand for the one's not being made anymore and in our area it seems the playhouses that are only used indoors tend to command more $$$. Of course, YMMV.

Keep in mind, too, folks naturally look on ebay and figure they can ask for nearly the cost of what has been sold there, too. Check on ebay, too. Many people in my area sell Little Tikes items and they don't go for crazy high prices because they are pick up only auctions. You might want to check on ebay per your zip code or thereabout.

I personally wouldn't buy it for that price because I know I can find it cheaper or I would just wait, but if it is something you noticed that rarely comes up for sale on Craigslist then I would consider it. I am just used to finding Little Tikes for really good prices because that is what I do for a living.

Don't forget you could also place a "wanted" ad and see what you can get. I have found my wooden playground that way. (Funny story.... my dd's friend's mom who lives down the street responded to my ad and only discovered this when we emailed each other. )

Oh, and an upcoming site like Craigslist is www.kijiji.com . Not as much traffic, but an option nonetheless.

GL!

 

[lpandorf]

Thanks everyone for your responses! I went to see the playhouse and offered $100, $50 less then they were asking. It was it good shape, but was stored outside so had some fading and the roof was slightly out of shape. But overalll in good condition. After reading all the posts I figured I could get one for less but did save some from what they were asking. And seems like a reasonable rate at a garage sale was $75. I was not sure they were going to take my offer. They said how about $125 and I held firm so the lady had to go in and check with her husband. He said ok - he wants the cash for - TRIP TO DISNEY this summer. We got to talking and they go every year and stay at OKW or SSR so nice to chat with her a bit.

So the kids are happy and I saved some money.

 

[kaw1218]

Wow, $10 is almost unheard of for the large-sized playhouses! Your mom stumbled onto a great deal!

Consignment sales are normally not the best way to get a good price on one of these for two reasons. First, people who are selling at consignment sales generally know how to price items like this. Second, most consignment sales have a day prior to opening where the workers/volunteers can buy anything they want. Most of the good/cheap items will be gone before you can get there unless you volunteer to work the sale for the entire week.

The best way to get a good price is to shop the yard sales, but it may take a couple of weeks before you find one in the $50 range.

Must have been my dad's twin. Our neighborhood had a block sale a few weeks ago, and someone asked my dad if they could buy our little tykes house, so he gave it to them for $10. I asked if the guy RAN away with it Around here, it probably would have went for about $70.

I think it's crazy!!!

 

[Jakesmom504]

GRLPWRD~~~




I'm going to be putting DS's Castle Slide up on Ebay soon. It is in perfect condition, it's always been inside, never once outdoors. How much do you think I should start the bidding at? Just curious!
Thanks!

 

[formernyer]

GRLPWRD~~~




I'm going to be putting DS's Castle Slide up on Ebay soon. It is in perfect condition, it's always been inside, never once outdoors. How much do you think I should start the bidding at? Just curious!
Thanks!

I'd suggest Craig's list for this type item. With eBay you need to pay fees and a lot of times it's difficult to sell "local pickup only" items on eBay. I'd try Craig's List for a week first and see what happens. At least there are no fees to you.

Figure out what the item sells for new and then try to get 60% of that amount. You should be able to get it since it's probably in "like new" condition with no fading.

 

[LoveBWVVBR]

I haven't read the other responses, but I'd probably pay $50-$100 for one of these LT playhouses, depending on sun damage and wear/tear. I haven't been able to find one for sale for DD on Craig's List yet, but our neighbors gave us their $600 LT climber/slide/fort set when they moved. Needless to say, we were VERY greatful!!!