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I sell patches at a pretty regular clip and never charge less than $12.49 (price includes shipping). If you have the only one on eBay someone will pay. They are definitely more long-tail using this method, but they don’t take up much space.
Listed! Thanks to @broadstone and @Antique Frog
@antique Frog – For condition, I decided to go with the following. No need to use the word woodworm (yuck).
Please look closely at photos – this is the exact item you are purchasing. I have provided close ups of a few places where the finished is scuffed. Pinholes exist only in the fruitwood frame and should be considered an intentional artistic decision.
They are overhauling the listing process. Have you guys been asked to switch yet? Right now it’s in beta. The plan, is to make the listing experience the same between the phone and the desktop.
And yes videos in listings is coming. I tried it and got VERY frustrated as their algorithm automatically declined almost everything I tried to post. Hopefully they get the bugs worked out of it.
I would recommend everyone listen to the podcast. There are few surprising things. From what I understood, returns and discounts are not deducted from the income total.
For example- I sell a widget for $20.00 and the customer returns it for a full refund. The $20.00 will still be part of my total income for 2021 and it will be my responsiblity to claim the return as an expense. In this scenario, I can also claim additional expenses (since a return is usually more costly than a non-sale) but it’s my job to account for them.
I think the general rule of thumb is once, the money is earned, it’s reported to the IRS. It’s always our job to show the expenses that offset the income.
I think that might be the difference between a lithograph and an original. I suspect I have a lithograph but it’s really cool. I’ll post photos when I list.
hmmmm
My looks a bit campier than this one, but it’s close. Dang I gotta get approved to list on first duibbs
@Amatino Thanks for the research!
@antique Frog – Thats a match! At least I now know it’s a not a one-off.
@jay – nope no distinguishing marks or labels.
@Amatino I am pretty sure this thing dates back to at least the 1980s (90’s at the latest but maybe earlier?). It was in a basement CAKED is dust, like decades worth of dust and stored near other items from that era.I am hesitant to go with Blenko, just because this one feels kitschier than the one in the link you provided.
@Will B – I like the story. You cousin had chuztpah.
The thing that ruffles my feathers about “Whats the lowest price you will take” is the laziness and sense of entitlement.
Admittedly thats my baggage. Ultimately people can do what ever they want and I acknowledge that.
If you got it for free – the cost of goods is zero. Quick aside- if you drove 17 miles to pick up the free item, the mileage would be tax-deductible (but still not part of the cost of goods). Since you didn’t pay anything for the item, there is no cost of goods.
I am NOT a CPA, and I have not had the following confirmed by a tax professional, but here is how I handle other items in my inventory.
If it’s something I have owned and maintained for years, it’s valuable (i.e., an old iPhone), and I have not sold it for more than the purchase price, I claim zero profit on the item. For instance, I paid $1,000 for an iPhone and sold it for $300.00. After shipping and eBay fees, the net sale (total amount moving into my bank account) is 270.00. I claim the COG as $270.00.
Again an important aside, this assumes I did not claim the iPhone as a business expense in a previous year. If I had taken a business deduction on the phone, then the cost of goods would be 0 (you can’t take a deduction on something twice).
Another scenario – I make a profit on the item sold, it is from my household, and it is easy to establish the original purchase price.
For example, I bought a book about the movie “A Nightmare on Elm Street” for $50.00. I can prove I paid $50.00 because it is printed on the back of the book, and I have the receipt in my Amazon purchase history. If I sell the book at a profit (more than $50.00), I treat it like any other asset and claim the $50.00 as the cost of goods.
If the item sold from my household is a shirt or pair of paints that I have used for many years, and I don’t have a receipt, I assume the cost of goods to be zero. I figure it’s not worth the trouble.
You can never claim a loss on an asset purchased for your own use. Go back to the Nightmare Elm Street book example. If I paid $50.00, read it, let it sit on a shelf for ten years, I can’t take a loss on the sale if I sell it for ten bucks.
On to the random items in the death pile:
If you know you didn’t pay much for the things remaining in your death-pile, then don’t bother claiming a cost of goods. It’s not worth the effort. If you can look at the pile and reasonably assess how much you paid in total. Then I would arbitrarily distribute the cost amongst the items. You paid $100.00 for the items in the death-pile, and there are 50 individual items for sale. The cost of goods for each item is $2.00. Just be able to provide proof you spent $100.00 at some point. If you are spending cash at yards sales or thrift stores that don’t give receipts, make sure you keep a spending log.
This is how just one guy handles things – curious to hear other approaches.
Thanks @mycottage. The pile gets crazier the deeper I get into it. The balancing act with Instagram using it as a promotional tool instead of an ego boost. All those likes and follows are fun, but if they don’t translate into $$ – whats the point?
