You may not know it, but your home could be a treasure trove of valuable objects that are easy to appraise and sell. Hunting around the house for sellable items is not only a great way to make some extra cash, it’s also a strong incentive to clear up your clutter. Whether you take your sellable stuff to a formal exchange event, advertise it online or just hold a yard sale, you can profit while you clean.
1. The Clothes in Your Closet
It’s amazing how easy it is to accumulate clothes over time. Those items you dismiss as old rags that haven’t come off the rack in ages could have a lot of resell value. Clothes that fell out of fashion years ago still have value in resale shops and online, especially as retro fashions come back in style.
2. Classic CDs and Vinyl Collections
As digital formats become the standard for how people listen to music, physical recordings like vinyl records, tapes and CDs can gain collectible value. Small pressings in good condition fetch the highest resale price, but it’s a good idea to see what any old album in your collection is worth. You can also get a good resale rate on used musical instruments. As long as they still work well, old guitars, violins, saxophones and other instruments are prized among people who are eager to learn how to play but don’t want to lift the heavy price tag of a new piece.
3. Your Collection of Reading Material
Just like with music, paper books are quickly being supplanted by digital options. This means that old books in your library, which were already worth money, will only gain value over time. Used book stores offer only so-so exchange rates, but online sales have decent potential. This is doubly true for early editions of a book, so do some research about a book before you sell it.
4. The Children’s Toys and Games
Never underestimate the power of nostalgia. Yesterday’s toys are today’s collector’s items. The same goes for old traditional and video games. Those that become rare over time can fetch hundreds or even thousands of dollars when kept in good condition.
5. Sporting Equipment
If you have a garage full of old tennis racquets, football helmets and baseball bats you’re not using, you can tap into the hidden market for used sports equipment. People just starting out in a sport or looking for cheap ways to get their kids started are more likely to pick up used equipment than brand new items, so it’s easy to capitalize on that demand.
6. Precious Metals
There are a lot of ways to accumulate gold, silver, copper and other valuable materials. Whether precious metals are gifts, inheritances or past purchases, you can profit from selling them at the right time on the materials market. It’s crucial to understand the value of your possessions. This can take a little more research than other resale ventures, but educational resources like Fisher Investments Press make learning the precious materials market a lot easier.
7. Baby Supplies
Everything from cribs to play pens can be fairly expensive at retail price, so a lot of parents are happy to take advantage of the deep discounts offered by owners of used baby supplies. If your tots have grown out of their strollers and car seats, you can make back some of the money you spent on those items by cleaning them and putting them on the resale market.
8. Priceless Antiques
People get hand-me-down furniture and other old items all the time without knowing how much they might be worth. That chair you got from Grandma or that hair brush you found at a cool vintage store could be valuable antiques. There’s an entire circuit of antique shops, conventions and appraisal enthusiasts, all dedicated to finding these hidden treasures. Before you give up those dated tables and couches, take some time to determine if they might fetch a high price among collectors.
9. Gadgets and Computer Parts
When you upgrade your PC, your smartphone or other pieces of tech, don’t just throw out or recycle the old gadget. There’s a small industry dedicated to refurbishing old devices and harvesting useful parts from obsolete hardware. If you’re tech-savvy yourself, you can learn how to join this industry. If not, there are plenty of people who will certainly be willing to take the tech off your hands.
There’s plenty of money-making potential in the clutter around your home. Instead of letting it all gather dust, put it to work. If you’re looking to simplify the space or just to earn a little extra cash, don’t think about what you can do without-- think about what others might want for themselves.
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