- This topic has 10 replies, 8 voices, and was last updated 6 years, 11 months ago by
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Every now and then I buy items on eBay. One thing where I can consistently find a deal is on raw unused postage. Usually you can buy stamps at 60% of face value. Are there other everyday items that people regularly purchase at a discount outside of the one off specialty items and collectibles?
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I purchase household and drug store type expendables. Examples: eye drops, vitamins, even OTC medications. It can be more convenient than getting out to the store and I still try to make sure that I am saving with the purchase. Sometimes the savings is significant. And, yes, there are a few sellers that I favor for repeat buys.
Shipping and office supplies work too but there are a few sellers that seem to short ship on purpose. For example, rolls of bubble wrap. As a general rule, you must check that you received everything that you paid for when the package arrives.
I avoid buying most batteries. There seem to be too many knock-offs. You cannot tell by looking at them, but they don’t last anywhere near as long as they should. They seem to last just long enough to avoid returns and bad feedback.
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I buy clothes for myself pretty often. Usually because I have something I really like but it’s getting worn out and I want to replace it. I have a saved search for a particular REI dress. It’s the best dress ever, and I’ll keep buying one every couple years for as long as I can. I also had a saved search for a particular jacket from Anthropologie that I loved but would never buy at full price. I figured it would eventually come up in my size at a palatable price – took about 4 months of getting alerts.
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I’ve had the same issue with bubblewrap. Seems all the vendors changed the definition of 700 ft. Either what they were selling previously was overly generous, or they are all now short-changing buyers (probably the latter). The last time I made a purchase, I just went for the cheapest price rather than buying again from my normal seller. I’m not going to count every sheet to see whether I’m getting the amount I was promised or not.
I have bought some dishes in our pattern to make up for breakage over the years. Replacements.com sells one of my bowls for $40 (including shipping). I was able to buy them for about $15 on eBay. I did have one break, but the seller refunded promptly.
I’ve also made one purchase of my silver plate pattern. I have an alert set up for it. I still have a few pieces to get to service for 10.
I do buy watch batteries, either on eBay or Amazon. I look for brand names and sellers with good ratings. I realize that they could be knockoffs, but I haven’t had any issues.
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Every single item I buy online is searched for on multiple platforms, including eBay. I often find stuff cheaper on various platforms, not just eBay. However, I’ll buy anything on eBay that I like the price of, with a good description, within the time delay I’m comfortable with, and with good seller feedback. The list of stuff I’ve bought on eBay is large and comprehensive; from office supplies, to clothes, to cleaning supplies, to auto parts, to decor items, to candles and bath salts.
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Personally I have not found stamps at 60% face value (there is some counterfeiting of the Forever flag rolls so I don’t recommend some of the too-good-to-be true pricing on those from low feedback sellers) but I don’t spend much time searching or monitoring for deals. Last year I bought 500 unused mixed sheets of Forevers for $223, at that time $250 face value, so about 11% off. Here’s an active listing: https://www.ebay.com/itm/1000-New-USPS-FOREVER-Stamps-Mixed-Lot-Please-see-pictures-for-details/123768295964?hash=item1cd12a521c:g:t1gAAOSwUIJc21t1
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The deals are not in Forever stamps, unfortunately. I inherited a sizable amount of raw postage from a collecting relative who would buy sheets, but only use one or two the stamps in the sheet. I am inundated in stamps ranging from $.25-$.41. This is a blessing and a curse. I was constantly going to the post office to buy small denominations to get enough postage for a first class letter. That is until I found deals like this: https://www.ebay.com/itm/US-POSTAGE-STAMPS-GUMMED-200-FACE-LOW-DENOMINATION-DISCOUNT-UNUSED-/401754781566?_trksid=p2047675.l2557&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&nma=true&si=BOsaU2PMk0Mt3REqyN2sefdd8hk%253D&orig_cvip=true&nordt=true&rt=nc
Yes, they are gummed and small, but $120 for $200 of face is a steal. Now if anyone has any ideas about using raw postage to ship eBay items and turn those unused stamps to cash, I am all ears. I have found that it requires a trip to the post office and you don’t get the negotiated discounts from eBay. But for large items where the shipping is considerable it can be worth it. Just be prepared for an angry postal clerk. It takes a special person to see the beauty in a package with 30 $.41 stamps attached.
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That is a good deal. Well, you can definitely sell stamps to get rid of them. They are in the top two of worldwide collectibles, to this day (the other is coins). If you get tired of looking at them and sticking 30 on a package you could list them in bits and pieces. Sellers do get over face value in smaller lots of older stamps. Or if they’re common and boring you can lot them up to sell so that 2 or three together in the lot add up to .55 and get close to face value, like this:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/US-Postage-Love-Bird-Below-Face-50-each-52c-3c-Mint-Unused-/153353413051?_trksid=p2047675.m43663.l10137&nordt=true&rt=nc&orig_cvip=true -
Yeah, Temudgin, but not desire to sell them and pay fees on the sale. I would rather use them slowly over time. I am known for the eclectic and colorful stamps on my thank you notes.
My dream would be if we could apply existing postage to eBay labels as we print them. If they upgraded the shipping service to allow us to add our own postage amount, I would be ecstatic. For example for a first class package that needed $3.06, we could add one forever stamp ($.55 at today’s prices) and $2.51 in printable voucher. USPS would charge you $2.51 and know to look out for the forever stamp on the package.
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