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Strollerderby
Clear the Clutter, Make Cash: Sell Old Baby Clothes and Toys!
Sell baby clothes and toys - make money!
Get cash for your kids’ outgrown clothing and toys!
Looking to clear the clutter out of your home and add some money to your bank account?
Good Morning America’s “Show Me the Money” series offers up some good recommendations for selling those baby clothes and toys – putting a little cash in your wallet while getting rid of stuff you no longer have a need for.
The GMA piece says the average American family spends between $700 and $1,000 for baby clothes during the first year, but then add in the baby gear and toys… and you’re likely sitting on a pile of stuff that could be making you some money instead of collecting dust.
Look in my attic and you’ll find boxes full of outgrown clothing, pack and plays (for some reason I have two), a baby swing, bouncy seat, exersaucer and a bunch of old toys.
In our case, we kept a lot of things on hand “just in case” we had another child after the first two. But once we clearly weren’t having more, there really wasn’t any need to hang on to these things.
But did we donate any of it? Some. Did we sell anything? Not so much, despite the best intentions to do so. The follow through, unfortunately, wasn’t so great.
And so, it has all piled up, amounting to something I like to call “Hoarders Lite.”
Here are some options for making cash from those outgrown clothes and long forgotten toys:
Consider consignment shops that will pay you for gently used items. You can take your items to one of these stores and they’ll give you their best offer. You can always pass if you think you’ll get more money elsewhere.
Sell stuff on eBay. I have long considered putting clothing and toys on eBay, but somehow can never get organized enough to get my act together and sell anything.
Note that anything still with tags and name brand items will bring in more money, but consider grouping items in lots for eBay sales to maximize the bidding potential.
Items in original packaging and with directions also will be better sellers.
Donate. We do a fair amount of donating to the Salvation Army, but you may find a local other resources for donations: Goodwill, Baby2Baby, Baby Buggy and Room to Grown.
Sell on Craigslist. Check out your local Craigslist and start listing items. I was able to see a perfect condition Cozy Coupe car for a very grateful mom who didn’t want to pay full retail price.
Have a garage sale. You may not make as much cash, but you can certainly put everything out you no longer need and get rid of most of it in an afternoon. Some areas even have a community garage sale, like this one in Wisconsin, called Kids to Kids, where kids sell their stuff to other children!
Before selling anything, it’s a good idea to check out recall information and make sure any gear you’re getting rid of has all parts and is in good, safe working order.
Happy selling!
Catch up on money talk at Babble’s Family Finance Channel!
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6 Comments
Diera commented on Aug 30 11 at 9:15 pmI endorse the community consignment sale option. Not only do you get money back, if you consign stuff you usually get in early to the sale itself when the selection is better for stocking up for the coming year. There are four different sales around here, so there are plenty of opportunities. In my experience, eBay isn’t worth it unless you have something easy to mail and in hot demand, and my individual yard sales have never done well (even from the perspective of just getting rid of things). I also donate a lot of things that are too good to toss but not quite good enough to try to make money on.
Shawna Woodson commented on Aug 30 11 at 11:56 pmIn Arkansas there are at least two separate bi-annual consignment sales. They are huge and hundreds of families bring things to sell. They usually last 2-3 days. In the one I’m participating in, Rhea Lana’s, you make 70% of the profits and 30% goes to the people who run the sale to help pay for renting a space, necessary supplies, etc. It’s a great deal and a great way to shop as well. I got over $500 worth of stuff for $180 last year.
Kate commented on Aug 31 11 at 12:53 amI like to take stuff to a consignment store in a neighbouring city (our town is so small, the consignment here has really low turn over). I cleaned up a swing we were given and they sold it for $90 (missing power cord), 60% of which we get. We take clothes in all the time, too. We’ve made probably $150 since we started taking things in a month ago, and it’s not like it was designer stuff we were consigning.
Voice of Reason commented on Aug 31 11 at 8:13 pmThese are great ideas, but I will not support the Salvation Army with donations of any kind since I read this:
http://www.salvationarmyusa.org/usn/www_usn_2.nsf/0/B6F3F4DF3150F5B585257434004C177D?Opendocument
Voice of Reason commented on Aug 31 11 at 8:21 pmOh dear, the link doesn’t work properly. Click on ‘Homosexuality’ once you’ve clicked on the link.
/
There are plenty of worthy organizations to which we can contribute, which do not demand celibacy of their homosexual followers.
Andrea commented on Sep 01 11 at 1:37 pmFlow Chart for Kids: “Should You Get Rid of That Toy?” via Bedtimes are for Suckers.
http://bedtimesareforsuckers.com/2011/08/31/confessions-of-a-5-year-old-hoarder/
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