Selling on Ebay in NE PA (Scranton, Honesdale: sales, consignment, appliances)

[ff18wife]

Anyone have any luck selling on ebay around here? I have TONS of kids clothes and toys .... just wondering. I don't want to price things to high with the economy the way it is nowadays...

Or should I just load up the truck and head to Sally's???

[KarenRice]

If you're going to sell on eBay you need to sell clothes and toys in lots, unless it is something that will sell on its own for a good price. Check on ebay for stuff that is like yours and see what's sold. I've done OK on eBay in the past but I also checked ahead of time to see if others were bidding on things like mine and how much it was going for.

Lots of people pad their shipping and handling; that makes up for low bids that win...I would avoid padding shipping too much but you do have to take into consideration that a lot of work goes into doing ebay from start to finish: taking GOOD pictures, uploading it all, and then shipping it later on.

When I had a LOT of stuff, I took pictures of it and then packaged it and weighed it with a kitchen scale and etimated how much it would cost to mail it and added a few extra bucks on for good measure. I used boxes that I had saved (you could also go to the liquor store and other places to get boxes for free.) - left a note on the box as to the contents and the weight, and had it all ready to ship once I put the address on it.

Keep in mind that you will have costs associated with this (not only eBay fees, but the costs for strapping tape, packing materials, and driving to the post office.) IT's a LOT of work.

I'd never do it again cause the stuff I had hoped would give me big bucks went for pennies (but then again, a DVD I bought at Ollies for $5 sold on EBay for $47!!!).

If you can hold onto it till Memorial day, I'd have a YARD SALE! No packaging, forget the post office, no eBay fees...maybe not as much money but a heckuva lot less aggravation.

OR TRY CRAIGS LIST for some "good stuff." No fees, you can sell unlike on Freecycle....and you can tell people to come pick it up or meet them somewhere convenient!

[poconosmama]

We used to sell everything on Ebay, but now their fees are just way too high. Try amazon or craiglist. We've had good results with Amazon

[ff18wife]

Originally Posted by KarenRice

If you're going to sell on eBay you need to sell clothes and toys in lots, unless it is something that will sell on its own for a good price. Check on ebay for stuff that is like yours and see what's sold. I've done OK on eBay in the past but I also checked ahead of time to see if others were bidding on things like mine and how much it was going for.

Lots of people pad their shipping and handling; that makes up for low bids that win...I would avoid padding shipping too much but you do have to take into consideration that a lot of work goes into doing ebay from start to finish: taking GOOD pictures, uploading it all, and then shipping it later on.

When I had a LOT of stuff, I took pictures of it and then packaged it and weighed it with a kitchen scale and etimated how much it would cost to mail it and added a few extra bucks on for good measure. I used boxes that I had saved (you could also go to the liquor store and other places to get boxes for free.) - left a note on the box as to the contents and the weight, and had it all ready to ship once I put the address on it.

Keep in mind that you will have costs associated with this (not only eBay fees, but the costs for strapping tape, packing materials, and driving to the post office.) IT's a LOT of work.

I'd never do it again cause the stuff I had hoped would give me big bucks went for pennies (but then again, a DVD I bought at Ollies for $5 sold on EBay for $47!!!).

If you can hold onto it till Memorial day, I'd have a YARD SALE! No packaging, forget the post office, no eBay fees...maybe not as much money but a heckuva lot less aggravation.

OR TRY CRAIGS LIST for some "good stuff." No fees, you can sell unlike on Freecycle....and you can tell people to come pick it up or meet them somewhere convenient!

Thanks for the tips! I've done Ebay before and it IS a lot of work which is why I wanted to get some other thoughts on it before I did it again with the economy where it is.

I would LOVE to have a yard sale come spring time. Not sure if I can hold out that long. I really need to do a good cleaning out.

[ff18wife]

Originally Posted by poconosmama

We used to sell everything on Ebay, but now their fees are just way too high. Try amazon or craiglist. We've had good results with Amazon

I think I might try Craigslist. I've used that site for free stuff but never selling yet.

PS-I still have those toys if you want them. I am SOOO sorry for never getting back to you. I may even have more if you're interested.

[lialleycat]

I vote for Craigslist myself. Why bother with the shipping and the commissions from Ebay unless you have something rare that is worth money and has a limited audience. I'd say CL it, and whatever doesn't go, either donate to a local charity or 'curb alert' it on CL.

[I LOVE PA!]

I have sold a bunch of stuff on E-Bay, but when I wiegh what time I put into it, listing and uploading photos and mailing and packaging...well...it's 'almost' not worth the bother. I did sell a vintage motor cycle jacket that my husband had hanging in the closet from our younger days and I put a buy it now price of $350.00...it sold in 20 minutes. So..I bought the jacket new for $125.00 back in 1980....wish I wolud have bought a few more! I did sell a coat of mine that I no longer wore for more than what I paid for it new. Some things surprise you.
If oyu decide to do it...go with the calculated shipping costs, depends on where you are mailing it and it will calculate it for you, you just estimate weight of box. You can get FREE boxes on the USPS web-site, all sizes with a minimum order of 10. I ordered about 7 different size boxes. Yes...they are FREE. You can also get Tyvec envelopes for clothes from USPS for FREE...they are expensive to buy.

It might be worth taking childrens clothes to a second hand store.

[littlebunnie69]

I was a power seller until a couple of months ago. The problem with selling stuff on ebay, that i am having is most buyers want brand new stuff. You used to be able to sell anything used, old it didn't matter but know now a days people want new. You have to understand even the expensive companies are of lately giving huge discounts. For ex I recently brought GAP jeans at 15.00 new why would somebody buy used on ebay!. I also recommend selling on craigslist or NEPA TAGLIST both u can list for free and it's very easy. I would hurry about listing on craigslist (little bird told me that by march craigslist will start charging for posting an ads) I have an ebay drop off at my house and of lately most people that come in i explain that it might be better going other ways then ebay

[Cougargm]

We live on a rural road in Wayne county, so yard sales aren't effective for us. We've had a lot of success selling large items (lawn tractor, used furniture and appliances) with The Papershop. Brand new, small items that aren't too bulky (CD player, collectible clock) we've sold on Ebay. For used toys and clothes that are in good condition, we've used a very good consignment shop in Honesdale. They sell it and split the proceeds with you, sending you a check every other month or so. Other items that are in decent shape just get donated to the Salvation Army in Honesdale. Also, for things that still work or are in decent shape but you just want to dispose of try the Pocono or Scranton chapter of Freecycle online. It's an online community where people are basically recycling things with one another rather than throwing them away.

[wanneroo]

That is the biggest pain in the butt with ebay is doing all the packaging then doing the shipping. Especially if you have a lot of different or fragile items.