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I used to buy video game lots on CL and then list the components individually on eBay for big profits until that category got overrun with other resellers and high prices. I’ve tried buying some other items but overall I find dealing with the people on CL to be a major time waster. Its very common that I’ll start negotiating on a price with a person only to have them stop communicating before we can set a time/place to meet. I’ve also had tons of people waste my time by either not showing up at the meeting place or by being super late. I’ve had it take days of messages and missed meetings before we finally meet up to do the transaction.
I think Jay and a few others on here hit the nail on the head when they pointed out the price difference. Macs are quite expensive and while I like my MacBook Pro there is nothing about my Mac that makes it “better” for eBay. In fact, I do most of my listing on my 6+ year old Windows 7 PC even though I have a much newer Mac laptop. Bottom line…if you were already wanting a Mac for other reasons then it’ll work just fine but I wouldn’t recommend using eBay as justification to spend that much more money on one.
I had a similar thing happen a few weeks ago on a $24 video game. Buyer said it did not work and opened a return case 40+ days after delivery. I decided to accept the return but kept a very close eye on the status. 10 days later the buyer still had not shipped the item back, I called ebay, they closed the case and all done. In this case I “guessed” correctly that somebody who takes over a month to open a return request probably would get lazy and not ship the item in a timely manner. Since we were dealign with a small dollar amount I made a gamble and won.
Those are perfect, can’t believe I missed them when looking through the free packing supplies on the site! I’ll have to order some.
I don’t go dumpster diving however people leave all kinds of things out on the curb on trash day. I’ve gotten shelving for my eBay storage, furniture for my office and even the occasional eBay inventory item just by driving through my neighborhood. I’ve been very tempted to try going to dumpsters behind retail strip malls to see if I can score free boxes and packaging. I follow a guy that goes by the name Craigslist Hunter on YouTube, he actually did a dumpster diving video last week: https://youtu.be/-ioklciRR1M
Having lost my job with FREE health benefits several months ago this has been a major concern for me as well. I’m fairly young, 35 and fairly healthy so I have a feeling I’ll qualify for some sort of personal plan but the cost will certainly be a factor.
Ironically, even employer health plans are not the saving grace they once were. Many employers are making major cut-backs to both benefits and what they contribute towards premiums. My wife has group health insurance through her work however they do not contribute anything towards the premium for spouse/children. We would have gone from paying about $250 a month for just her insurance to $1,200 a month for the both of us.
Politicians on both sides love to say they are PRO small business but health insurance costs are a major roadblock for anybody considering becoming self employed. I was considering not getting another traditional job after getting laid off but I might be forced to if I can’t get health insurance I can afford.
When I started selling on eBay a few years ago I was one of these “pack first ship later” people. I was trying to solve a few issues I had when an item sold such as not having the right size box or miscalculating the total shipping weight after packaging is added. I very quickly learned that space was way too precious to use this method. I keep all my inventory in a 6’x5′ walk-in closet in my house and I pretty much filled it after only listing about 100 items. I now store items in numbered plastic bins and on numbered shelves and I can easily accommodate 500+ items. My inventory runs the full gamut of sizes from tiny little pieces of jewelry to large stereo receivers and luggage.
I found loose bullets in a box of video games once…not sure what that thought process was on that one. Other things include children’s play money in a VCR and a porno DVD in what was supposed to be a video game box.
I agree, my sales seem quite sluggish. Had a burst of sales on Friday and have not sold anything yet today. Honestly, this whole fall season has been very hit or miss. My video game and electronics items sell well just as they always do but my other items such as hats, men’s shirts, shoes & housewares seem to be selling at a snails pace.
Those look nice, I like that they are clear however if I did my math right 48 quarts = 12 gallons so those would be smaller and a little more expensive than the 18 gallon grey ones I’m using now.
I get almost all my inventory from yard sales. They do tend to be the best price but I find there are a couple types yard sales and some are very good while others are worse than the thrift store.
There are the people who are just trying to get rid of things and those are the ones who sell everything for $1-$5 and you can make a killing. Then there are the people who NEED money so they have a yard sale, these can be hit or miss because they often look things up on eBay and won’t come down on price. These are also often the same people who complain that yard sales are a waste of time because they don’t sell anything! Lastly there are the people that I call “lifers.” These are people who scavenge like we do, often they are flea market dealers or guys who buy the contents storage units. Some of these guys can be negotiated with and I do on occasion get a deal but most are just trying to dump the junkiest of junk at their weekly garage sales.
