The old stuff: To Cash or To Trash?

Go into your garage, attic, or sort through rarely used portions of your closet and what do you discover? Weary clothes, rusting tools, retired electronic goods and kitchenware, tired shoes and lampshades, fatigued chairs and cushions well past their prime, clutter, junk, and trash! In other words, all the old stuff you collected over time because you just did not want to throw them away.

Get rid of old stuff:

Usually old things are filled with special memories and nostalgia, and therefore hard to part with. For example, that gold plated timepiece, it was a gift for your 10th anniversary from your husband. Moreover, how can you possibly think of parting with that old rattan two-seater; that is where he romanced you before popping the question! As for those faded Levis, how hard it is to part with it. Sure, you will never fit into them again, but it reminds you of your carefree college days! Old stuff just has a habit of collecting. However, if you are moving into a new house, you just do not want to get it cluttered with the junk. The solution? Just steel your heart and get rid of it.

Make your choice:

The best way to decide on what needs to be discarded is by making a list of what you absolutely cannot part with, what you can part with but with a heavy heart, and what you can throw away without a thought. While sorting through the stuff, you will often be delighted to re-discover things that had long vanished from your memory. Sometimes, they even turn out useful. Once you have made your list, you need to decide what you need to do with it all. Trash them, give them away, or turn it into cash by selling them.

Donate your stuff:

You could donate your less useful stuff, which are not too worn out, to a charitable organization, or give it to people who need it, and could even treasure it; as the adage goes, "someone's trash is someone's treasure". They would be more than happy to receive things that they can use for good. It not only feels good to give to somebody in need, but it also results in extending the life of your unwanted things. If you itemize it in your tax return, you could even get a tax deduction.

Earn from your trash:

Trash can always be turned into cash. Extra cash always comes in handy, especially when moving to a new house. Hence, why not earn some money from stuff you have decided to throw away anyway. Often, you will be astonished to discover that stuff you thought was absolute junk, fetches you quite a tidy sum. You could sell your things on online auction sites. All you need to do is place your stuff on auction at a low price, and allow people to bid on them. The items can be listed on the web sites for a small amount of money charged by them.

Research pays well:

The things that do not sell at an auction can be sold at a garage sale, or a nearby flea market. Everyday items like clothes, household goods and knick-knacks can be sold this way. You should find out the worth of an item by doing a little research in a library to check with the price guide of the things you have. The Internet can also prove to be very useful wherein you will get the price of almost anything. You can even explore pawnshops to find out at what price they sell similar things you have.

Hire an appraiser:

If you possess antiques, or things that you believe are valuable, but are not sure of their exact value, you could hire an appraiser. An appraiser will evaluate the piece, and get you the best worth for it. Even though he charges a fee, you are assured of getting a good price for your valuable goods.

Places to sell:

There are many places where you can sell your old stuff profitably. They are:

a) Antique dealers and collectors: They can help you sell a range of antiques. It could be old coins, accessories, old records, pieces of decor and the like, that are in good condition. These people usually resell the antiques to earn profit. You can get their telephone numbers from the yellow pages of your telephone book.

b) Flea markets: Local flea markets are a great help when you want to profit from your junk. You can sell a whole range of books, papers, real or artificial plants etc, at flea markets. Since haggling is the norm here, it will be advisable to inflate your price a little, and then deal with them to get the actual worth for your old stuff.

c) Classified advertisements: Classified ads can help you sell your old furniture conveniently and inexpensively. You need to contact the person concerned to place an ad in the newspaper, and your old stuff can easily find a new owner.

d) Friends and co- workers: They can spread the word around and get buyers for you. Many times, they will buy the stuff themselves.

Hence, whether for profit, or for charity, or just fun, there are many ways you can either cash or trash your old stuff.------------------------------------------If you are a business owner get listed at Best Finance Site, part of Localwin Network.