That is the question…
We’ll be storing all our possessions while we’re on the trip, so we’re trying to pare down…in a major way. Since we live in Illinois and garage sale season is a couple months off, we’ve begun dabbling with Ebay. Honestly, though, I haven’t been thrilled with it. I’m wondering, does it take a genius to figure this out? What am I doing wrong, and why am I not loving it like other people???
First of all, there’s the mailing issue. Just figuring out which box to use and maintaining a nice variety of boxes is a hassle in itself! Then you have to figure out shipping before you even list it.
After spending time creating the listing and uploading pictures, you answer email questions and monitor it. Then, once it sells, you need to box it up and run to the post office – before 5 when they close. The money goes straight to PayPal, minus EBay’s commission, and you never really get that cold hard cash in the hand feeling.
All that wouldn’t be bad, except 3 out of 6 experiences have had complications! One person backed out completely saying the credit card she used was bad, and we had to relist the item. At a 50% ratio, I’m a little leery to continue this venture.
I’ve found it’s much easier to list stuff in the classifieds in the local paper. I can get a 3 line ad for free if the item is $500 or under. The buyer calls, and I just set a time and place to meet. Easy as pie! Really? Who came up with that phrase? Since when is baking a pie easy? But that’s a whole another question…
-The Mom (the practical one)
I agree. Too complex & too costly for what it's worth. And, saw an announcement recently that ebay was going to up the fees, taking a percentage of the sale price (or some such thing)as well. That's why we no longer sell on ebay. I've heard some people have had great luck with Craig's list but am of the opinion that is only in large cities. Anyway, good luck!
ReplyDeleteI second the Craig's list. We sold our hot tub and Nate's car from it!
ReplyDeleteYou could still try a garage sale....my husband and I did one in the "off season" and still made almost $500 and cleared 80% of our stuff. It was better than I expected! And also, yes, Craigslist is awesome!
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