Have you ever pawned anything?
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Have you ever pawned anything?
| Wed, 01-21-2009 - 9:08am |
I was wondering if it would be worth it to take some things to a pawn shop to get a bit of extra cash.
| Wed, 01-21-2009 - 9:08am |
Not worth it. Many years ago I pawned a few pieces of gold jewelry. I got about $75 for it total. It's much better to try to sell the items on the internet (some sites don't charge you either). Pawn shops don't give you nearly the value of the item and if you want the item back, you have to pay what you borrowed plus interest.
Melissa
I think it depends on how bad you need the money. I have done many things in the past including ebay, craigs list, pawning, consignment and yard sale.
Ebay - you can typically get a good price for your stuff. I sold a pair of nearly new maternity pants from a brand name store and got 10 dollars for them. Not bad for a pair of jeans I probably got on clearance for 19.99! The woman loved them and everyone was happy. BUT, ebay is a lot of work. Getting a good picture, maybe not selling your item and having to repost it. It does cost to post things (pretty miniscule, but something) and then having to ship it. It's definitely work! And the whole process takes about a week and a half. Plus, you need to know a little bit about computers and what is going to sell. I would definitely suggest trying it out at some point though. I've sold many baby items using ebay.
Craigs list - sometimes easier than ebay because the people have to come and pick up your item and they email you with questions and you can accept different payment arrangements than ebay, but I've had things on craigs list for months and nothing came of it. At the same time, it doesn't hurt to post an item and see if you get some interest. You have nothing to lose. I sold my grand piano on craigs list for 2 thousand dollars. I also found some business as a wedding pianist. You can post anything on craigs list!
Pawning - I sold some gold pieces a few months ago. I really needed the money and gold is selling at a pretty good price right now. I sold our wedding bands which didn't fit anymore and a class ring and a necklace that was ruined and got about 120 dollars for all of it. Not great, but I really needed the money and the gold was useless to me.
Consignment - I consign my clothing all the time. I have a box in my room where I throw in items that the kids grow out of that I know I can sell. They have to be in good condition, no stains and they have to fit the current season. For instance, I couldn't give them a box of summer items right now. Once I have a box full, I wash it and sometimes iron a few pieces and drop the box off at the store on the days they consign. They either take it or don't, but if they don't, then I just have them donate it. Once the items sell, a portion of the sale goes into an account and I can either get a check or use it as store credit. I've made at least 200 dollars in the past 4 months doing this. I also consign my clothes, not just kids clothes. A womans consignment store in the area takes my items and sends me a list of what they may sell for and a pick up date. My current pick-up date is 2/1 and I have the potential of making 216 dollars from my stuff. I probably won't make that much but anything is good. They donate whatever is not sold. This is a lot of work as well, but worth it for me.
Yard Sale - Every year we have a yard sale, I have a box that I continually put items in that I no longer use and my mom does the same thing for me and allows me to sell her stuff. I usually make about 300 dollars. A lot of work!!!! But it's nice to see the cash for a weekends worth of work and to get rid of junk! There is also a furniture/home/jewelry consignment store in my area. I could sell my yard sale stuff there, but I've never done this before. Last summer I noticed a lot of spanish people picking up my clothes that I had for sale. I was selling them for a dollar each and they were just cleaning house! I asked a man who had about 6 pairs of pants if he had a lot of boys and he said "No, I send them to my country!" I was so happy that my kids clothes would be sent to a country in need. I would have never even thought of this!
Hope this info helped.
Abbie
I agree.