Clearing out clutter from your home is a great way to start spring cleaning. But before you start throwing stuff away, you should consider the potential value of unwanted items. With a few extra steps, you can give your clutter a second life and earn some money doing it.
Here are seven ways to turn a profit from your spring cleaning project.
If you have unwanted clothes and fashion accessories that are still in good shape, consider taking them to a consignment store. These stores will do the work of reselling your clothes and give you a cut of the profits, saving you the hassle of selling or donating the items yourself. And if you don’t live near a local consignment shop, you can ship your clothes directly to an online consignment store like thredUP.
2. Pawnshops
Pawnshops will give you a loan in exchange for just about anything with cash value, including jewelry, electronics, musical instruments, and more. To reclaim your stuff, you’ll have to pay the loan back within a predetermined time frame. Or, you can just walk away, pocketing the money and letting the pawnshop claim your stuff.
Remember, any loan you get from a pawnshop will probably be a fraction of the item’s real value.
3. Electronics recyclers
Throwing away old electronics is not an environmental or cost-effective method of disposal. Instead, you can take your old cell phones, televisions, computers, and more to a business that recycles them. Some companies like Best Buy and Target will give you store credit for old electronics, while others like Gazelle or BuyBackWorld offer cash. Either way, you’ll be helping the environment and earning some value from your unused tech.
4. Garage sales
Bargain hunters will be happy to hunt for treasures among your old things. You can sign up for the next community yard sale or simply pick a weekend to use your front yard as a marketplace (make sure to put up signs around the neighborhood a few days ahead of time). As you clean out your clutter, make sure to sort items into categories and assign each a fair price. You can always donate what you don’t sell, which brings us to our next tip…
5. Charitable donations
You can donate old clothes, furniture, and other items to local charities or national organizations like the Salvation Army. While you won’t get cash, you can request receipts for your donations. During tax season, you can use these receipts to tally up your itemized donations and reduce your taxable income, giving you a bigger tax refund or a reduced liability. Save your receipts!
6. Online listings
It might be worth the effort to sell your bigger ticket items online. For example, old collectors items might fetch a great price on websites like eBay or Craigslist.
7. Trade-ins
Many stores will sell your used clothing, books, video games, and more. Even when retailers don’t pay cash for trade-in materials, they will probably offer store credit. Keep an eye out for trade-in materials that can be traded for cash or store credit.