Making Extra Cash This Summer

Are you looking to make a little extra money this summer? If you have been cleaning your house or maybe redoing one of your rooms, don’t just get rid of your old furniture. Sell it! I know there are a lot of items you just bag up and give to the church or Goodwill, but there are some things though like furniture or other collectible items that I sell on Craigslist.org. 

If you have never heard of Craigslist, it is an online site that you can go to and buy and sell things.  I usually sell things. I have been doing it for years and have made a few thousand dollars on things that I didn’t need anymore. You’ve heard the saying, “One person’s trash is another person’s treasure.” It’s true.  I have sold bedroom sets, tables, lamps, baby furniture and clothes, maternity clothes and a bunch of other items. The great thing about Cragislist is that you can localize the site to where you live. For our area, you would click on Tampa Bay. Within the Tampa Bay area are all the counties. It’s that local.  

Unlike Ebay you don’t have to worry about shipping and handling. Don’t get me wrong, I like to shop on Ebay, but I haven’t really sold anything on Ebay. I do have family members that love Ebay and they sell lots of things on it and make good money. I guess it depends what you have. When selling furniture or bigger items, I found it easier to try sell it on Craigslist. At least that’s my experience.

You do have to be careful when selling items or picking up items at a person’s home. When I sell something on Craigslist and the person is coming to my house to pick up the item, I always have someone at the house with me. Usually my husband is with me. There have been a few crazy Craigslist buyers and sellers. I haven’t had any problems in all the years I have been selling things, but you can never be too careful. 

The worst problem I have had happen with Craigslist is that a person will tell me they want to buy my item and they say they will pick up the item and never show up. You wait around and they never come, but they don’t call to tell you they aren’t coming. I have wasted some time with this, but most of the time people are pretty respectful and do what they say.

 One big tip for selling things on Craigslist is to make sure you have a photo with your item. People will most likely skip over your item if there isn’t a photo. Also if you don’t sell your item right away keep reposting it. I had an item on Craigslist for two months and finally sold it. Sometimes it takes time to get that one buyer who wants what you have.

I know some of you are saying this is just too much work to sell online. I will tell you it really isn’t and as a stay at home mom, this is how I get a little extra cash. If it is too much for you, than try going to a consignment store. You can make money there too, the only catch is you won’t make nearly the money you can by selling it yourself.