Making ends meet...ebay style

[marcyinPA]

I know alot of posters here ebay for Disney (as did I until Dh took a lower paying job for a better quality of life).

I was wondering how many of you ebay to make ends meet or to pay for those one time a year bills that come up (like a termite warranty, or life insurance bill, or the furnace service contract, etc.)

I just made about $150 on ebay in the last month, but honestly I can't sink it into a disney account right now. I need it just to pay for those "one time" bills. It is really getting me down. (although I'm glad I have stuff to sell or else I'd really be up a creek!)

I'm glad my DH loves his job, but our income is now half of what it used to be. OUCH...things are pretty snug.

 

[DMRick]

Our eBay income is part of our regular monthly pay, and helps to fatten our income. However, we no longer have kids at home, we both retired early, and we travel often, so that is what the money is usually used for..Disney, etc., our "extra's".

 

[mickeyluv]

As far as ebaying, can someone tell me what types of things you actually sell? Do you sell things you have in your house already or do you actually go out and buy things to sell? I was thinking of selling on ebay to make money to pay monthly bills, but just don't really know how to get started. Thanks for any help!!

 

[MouseClubMom]

My ebaying pays most of our grocery bill, all of the kid's stuff (clothes, toys, school supplies) and any "extras" that we need. Our homeowner's insurance just went up from $1600 a year to $1996 so I am sure some of the ebay money will go towards that as well.

This thread reminds me that I really should be listing stuff instead of surfing the DIS but I just can't help it.

Good luck with your ebaying!

MCMom

 

[Savin4Disney]

Some of the things I have sold on Ebay:
Movie gift certificates we could not use
Disney Dollars
Clothes
books.
Tupperware (I have way to much)

Right now I am using all my ebay money after fees etc for our trip to Disney. After that I will use it to pay off bills. I am paying off debt as I save for this trip.

Right now I am taking things out of house that we do not need or use anymore. I can see buying stuff really cheap and reselling but you just have to make sure you recoup what you paid for it.


So far I have been able to pay $90 in the last month on my trip just from what I made from selling on Ebay.

 

[Nik's Mom]

I am trying to sell things to make ends meet, but I'm just starting. I have things around the house that I don't need and list those.

 

[ptrbryant]

I've been trying to clear out a lot of stuff...one thing I've found is that items you'd think of as "pop culture" (i.e. DVDs, CDs, movie items, retro dolls, etc.) seem to get more money than many things with intrinsic value (i.e. brand name pottery, silver items). It's a great bargain if you're looking for things with a deeper value! I noticed sterling silver candlesticks not getting bids at less than $10!

So far, my year's eBaying has gone towards paying taxes, my son's speech therapy and our upcoming trip to Celebration III (Star Wars gathering in Indy---DS9 is a huge fan!). I've got about a month to build up our WDW trip funds!!!

Karla B.

 

[Taja]

I sell stuff sporadically on eBay.

Over the past 15 years, we have combined three households into one and have a lot of excess! I'm slowly selling unneeded household stuff. I also want to downsize in a few years (was hoping for this year, but that's a whole 'nother story!), so I'm working toward that goal, as well.

Most things sell on eBay, but not necessarily for what you may think they are worth. I think the lowest price I have listed something is $3.95 (I'm not willing to spend my time packing and shipping something for $0.99!).

I only list things that I think will bring a better price on eBay than at a garage sale. Sometimes I'm wrong and they don't sell, but usually they sell for a bit more that the listing price.

Things I've sold: household items (mostly vintage linens), ladies clothing (mostly plus size, either new with tags or laundered in preparation for alterations but never altered or worn), gold & silver jewelry (only if it's hallmarked), vintage (1970s & 1980s) handbags (is my age or is it strange considering 1970's & 1980s vintage?), 2 pairs of never worn ladies name brand sneakers, 2 pairs of never worn Birkenstock sandals.

Basically, things we don't need or use. The clothing and shoes were purchased for family members who passed on before the alterations were done or the shoes were needed. They would be pleased that they were sold to others who will use them.

The money generally is used for property taxes (ouch!) and homeowners' insurance--any lump sum that needs to be paid. I also used some of the money to replace the pool filter.

I'm not planning a WDW trip until December, 2006, so that isn't an issue at this time. I did use proceeds from eBay for my December, 2003 trip and covered about 75% of the total cost.

None of what I sell is income, in that it is all previously owned stuff that sells for less than its cost. I document everything sold with an estimate of actual purchase price (sorry, but I don't remember exactly how much a handbag cost, but based on the brand, style and approximate purchase date, I can extrapolate pretty well) and I do searches for information about the items to help establish the original cost.

The good news is that I have a lot more stuff to work through. The bad news is that I have a lot more stuff to work through!

 

[va32h]

I sell online for a living. Ebay is part of my business - but I sell on other venues as well.

It is possible to make a living this way - I don't gross as much as I did when I worked outside the home, but since I don't have to pay for childcare, gas, tolls, drycleaning, meals out when I was too tired to cook, etc. I am netting just a few dollars less than I did when I worked - and I am a lot less stressed and my whole family is much happier.

Anyway - it is work. I spend several hours a day photographing, listing, updating my web page, etc. I have a sales tax permit and buy my products wholesale to resell. But I would never suggest that to someone just starting out.

If you are just starting on ebay, I always recommend that you start with things around the house. If you do decide to start an ebay business, my advice has always been to pick a product line that you like and are (or can make yourself) knowledgable about. And picking something that is lightweight and easy to ship doesn't hurt either.

Good luck!

 

[grlpwrd]

I am on my 8th year selling on ebay. I started out just selling used items out of my home (children's clothes, housewares, books, etc.) because it was easier and more profitable than hosting a yard sale. Eventually, I started buying items from thrift stores/yard sales/etc and sold them for a good profit. It was time and space consuming, though, because the items needed to be cleaned, stored, and listed plus it took a lot of time to actually find sellable items in the first place. Then I specialized in selling women's clothes, sports equipment, and books.

Now I have branched off into a scrapbooking design business. (I won't divulge my username or business name because I have "haters" out there from past online experiences and I've even been threatened so I keep my personal and online business mum now.) Anyway, it has been profitable for me.

I started out using my profit (well, the resold things - things I had already owned - weren't sold at a profit), but the money I made was used to pay for extra, non-essential expenses, like school lunches, short weekend trips, and that sort of thing. Then as my business grew I have used the money for big expenses, like health insurance, unexpected car bills, to deposit into my emergency account, etc.

**edited**

 

[pediatric-rnp]

grlpwrd - I just pm'd you.

 

[crazymomof4]

Dh took a lower paying job for a better quality of life).


I'm glad my DH loves his job, but our income is now half of what it used to be. OUCH...things are pretty snug.

I don't have much eBay experience but I wanted to post to say "Kudos" to you and DH for chosing quality of life over money!

I'm borrowing a line from disneysteve's signature here:
"Enjoy the little things for one day you may look back and realize they were the big things."
So true!
(I hope disneysteve doesn't mind.....I've always liked that quote!)

 

[sanibelover]

I agree about the quality of life thing. When I had our first child, we decided I would stay home. HUGE cut in pay (well over half). It certainly was tought for a while, but 11 years later things certainly are different. It will get easier. I don't think we went out to eat for a year..........congrats on making the choice for a happier life. Hang in there, it's worth it!!!

 

[d-man's mom]

I've sold some things on ebay- mostly clearing items out of my house.

People will buy anything- I sold a Santa PEZ dispenser on there once (still in plastic) that I got as a grab bag gift for $5 to a Santa collector.

I cleaned out my son's room yesterday and have a bunch of things to list for our disney account- I don't mind if I only make a dollar or two on stuff, at least it's not going to the landfill.

 

[EsmeraldaX]

I mainly sell stuff I already have; old dvds, books, cds, clothes, but the only thing I make any decent money on is old Disney figurines and snowglobes. Occasionally, I'll spot something at a yard sale or something that I think I can get a profit from.

Honestly, I can not imagine doing EBay to make ends meet. I do Ebay to :
a. clear out clutter
&
b. make extra cash for vacations and things

It's too unpredictable to be using it for bills. I've had months where I make over $1000; I've had months where I make less than $100. You just never know what you'll have to sell, and how much people will be willing to spend for it.

 

[Coach Rick]

I just had my first encounter on selling with eBay, and I can't wait for the next. I put left over meal vouchers on there, and they sold quite easily. Now I am hunting for new stuff to sell. I wish I had more of those meal vouchers!

 

[Tikiman]

I got to get my wife to start selling her stuff on Ebay and maybe I need to sell some stuff. We have a lot of collectables between the two of us that are very expensive but it would be better to get something for them other than filling up our 5th bedroom. It could help with our $8000 a year property tax on our home here and out $1300 a year property tax on the Maui property. That and gas has gotten up past $3.00 a gallon.

Time to start posting stuff on Ebay and make some space. There is stuff we never even opened.

The only problem I see with selling too much is if you do it on a regular basis They are starting to track people and consider them a business (even if there is no business license) and are going to hit them up for taxes on the income. A friend of mine works for the Government and said this will be a big issue soon and come with no warning.

 

[4fordisney]

Maybe this would be a good time to start working for the IRS because they are going to need a LOT more employees if they start tracking ebayers...we're talking a huge amount of people!