Freecycle or Garage Sale

[~M~]

I live in the country and have tried the G- sale thing with no luck. I didn't even make enough for my ad in the paper. That being said, I Freecycle everything now. I was so pleased last month when we got rid of a wood furnace that was in our basement when we bought our house 8 years ago. Someone came, took it all apart, and are able to use it. It's a win/win situation!

[TinyFish]

I'd say unless you have a strong need for the money or some really good stuff that would go well at a garage sale, give it away! As Flylady says, you can't organize clutter! Are you really going to store all that stuff for 8 months? And then still have the enthusiasm to set up the garage sale too?

Maybe as a compromise you could sell a few big-ticket items using craigslist or some such and give the rest away.

Depending on how you give it away you can either get a deduction (charity) or possible future 'credit' (freecycling). I've had people on freecyle offer me first dibs on things because they know I often give away nice things that are in usable condition.

Funny the remark about people selling things from freecycle. When I re-did my kitchen I freecycled some old appliances that were functional, but for various reasons not suitable for the new kitchen. The guy who was doing the renovation was around when a freecycler picked up a stove. Renovation guy told me indignantly that 'That guy had all kinds of appliances on his truck, I think he's selling them or using them to set up rental properties'. I replied 'GOOD, glad someone is using them!'. I think of freecycling as like a gift. You give it to someone and they are then free to do what they want with it.

Ima, wish I was near you and could get some nice cheap windows

Regards,
TinyFish

[mountainmist]

Originally Posted by pearlieq

If it's new with tags (less than 1 yr old) you could probably still deduct the store value, but you'd need to be able to back up your claim if it were ever questioned.

For everything else, it's thrift store value--what would they be selling it for at the Goodwill.

I will admit, I'm a garage sale haggler even though I'm not needy. I always thought that was an accepted thing for garage sales. Very few people turn down my offer!

I've gone to plenty of thrift shops in my life, and see plenty of current fashions in them, but I've never seen any article of clothing having the RETAIL price, so I do not think that this is accurate information.

If you have something with a really good label, which is in current fashion, purchased within the the last three years, has NO stains, NO rips, is not worn out -- you can try taking it to a consignment shop.

It the article originally retailed at 24 bucks, they will probably price it around 8 bucks, and your cut would be around 3. IF it sells

[MonkeyMama]

I son't have the energy to garage sale.

I generally donate goodwill and what they won't take, or all the crap I Freecycle. I love love love freecycle because I do not like to throw things away. & I rarely do anymore. I find it super convenient as well - I just leave things on my doorstep all the time for freecycle people to pick up. I tend to post things a few at a time though because it does take a while to sift through responses.

A garage sale and then freecycle/donate I think is a good idea. Get some money and then easy way to get rid of the rest.

[Saving in So Cal]

Depending on where you live, listing somes items for sale on craigslist.com may be an option. We have successful sold items through that site.

[JanH]

I don't know that we have freecycle here. But you can put stuff on the curb every two weeks here to get rid of by the city. However, before they get to it, it's gone! People know which neighborhoods are due for that week. So they come around (some with trailers) and pick up what they can use. Most stuff doesn't work and they fix it or use it for parts. The stuff that is good and works, we take to goodwill. We are getting consignment shops now, but I don't have that many clothes anymore.

[kealina]

i love going to yard sales but don't like having them as there are easier ways to get rid of stuff... my mom has a stall at the swap meet (local flea market) so i just take my small amount of extras down there to sell... certain items we might craigslist or even Ebay...

i actually like the idea of freecycle for cheap but usable stuff (stuff you wouldn't get much if any money for)... there are lots of people out there who aren't poor enough for government assistance but could still use the help... honestly, hard-working people that i don't mind giving to...

unfortunately in practice it is difficult to implement... i see people on freecycle asking for things that just make me shake my head... so i try to practice freecycle in a more personal style... for any useful item that we have that don't sell, i try to make sure i give it to somebody i know who can hopefully use and enjoy it... we try not to throw things away if possible...