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So you want to flip used items and make cash? Cool!

daivey

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Thanks for sharing these awesome tips, Mr. OP, Appleseed and Omega.

I've been working on this myself, armed with a modest budget and living in nyc, I thought I would have the best chance at succeeding... One week later and bust. I either have no eyes for deals (yet!) or focusing on the wrong items. Again thanks for sharing.

Here's the thing with the "flip" and "hustle" that you see a lot of this online.

Can you do it? Yes
But you will need to invest a lot of time in it, learning a few niches/products, inside and out, so that you know what to look for.

In larger city centers and urban areas, where the population is "smarter", university educated, and have professional jobs, it becomes more difficult to flip the smaller gadgets/gizmos, because people are not dumb. That is, you're not going to get an iphone for $50 and sell it for $400. It's almost impossible to do that in a large city.. Unless you buy it from a grandma that doesn't know what she has and trying to get rid of it.

the other issue with that is that there are thousands of people doing the same thing - specially in a big city. Again, people are not dumb.

The price abritage is being wittled away because lots of people are doing this same "hustle".

Even "low balling" people, will likely results in a lot of no answers. You might snag a few "yes" to desperate people, or might be able to open the door to negotiate, but it's rather difficult.

I'm not "whining" and saying it's not impossible. What I am saying is that POPULAR, COMMON items, that easy to flip and take no effort, likely have their margins reduced because of how easy/common the information is.
So this is where you need to use knowledge and elbow grease/sweat equity to make any profit. And it will be hard.


is it worth it? in my opinion, in large cities, in 2018, the craiglist hustle is pretty much gone. The time you will need to spend to make it worth your while- you may as well do the best u can at your current job.
 
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LittleWolfie

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Also craigslist has hardly any traction and Facebook is not as popular as whatsapp, so I'm trying the same approach using other sites.
 

F Wings

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I've been trying to raise some cash flipping items. All the items have been some kind of electronic gadget. Tablets and phones. I'm not an "I" person myself, but there seems to be a never ending market for iPhones.

Obviously this hustle lacks many if not all of the CENTS. Well, you can scale in magnitude if you have more capital to invest per item. I found out I can increase the E and N by doing fix & flip instead of simply flipping. To simplify, I buy a broken Iphone with say broken screen or battery for cheap, fix it and sell for profit. It requires very little know how because there are free videos and guides online for pretty much every problem and model out there. Parts are easily available online as well.

Scaling & time of course will remain an issue, unless you are able to make some kind of repair business or franchise. But that's why this is called hustle, not fastlane.

So far I've made more money with the simple flip because I invested a bit into repairing equipment (heat gun & some other tools to make the work more handy) also had to pay some dues by buying an older model for too big price but I wager I'll get couple of bucks from that too in the end. All in all it seems promising. I estimate it could be even possible to top my day job earnings doing this. Have to see how it goes, it's quite fun. Perhaps I make a thread about it down the line & if I can get some tasty name for it like "I was able to quit my day job doing this hustle".
 

minivanman

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It is fun, that's why I do it. A video came up on my Youtube so I watched it. A guy went out all night buying Monopoly games from WalMarts and posted them on ebay. He bought like 130 and by the next morning he had sold I think 70 of them and made $2500 in profit. That was the video anyway... being in this business, I believe him.
 
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No Excuses

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It is fun, that's why I do it. A video came up on my Youtube so I watched it. A guy went out all night buying Monopoly games from WalMarts and posted them on ebay. He bought like 130 and by the next morning he had sold I think 70 of them and made $2500 in profit. That was the video anyway... being in this business, I believe him.

I just read that story on Market Watch. He is gaining a lot of attention! Over 1M+ views now.. making as much or not more on the video itself ;)

How one guy made $2,500 in a day flipping ‘Monopoly for Millennials’ games

Edit: Just noticed Amazon deleted the entire listing to this Monopoly Game
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07K2SYDJ1/?tag=tff-amazonparser-20

Edit 2: Looks like Amazon reinstated the item again
 
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minivanman

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I just read that story on Market Watch. He is gaining a lot of attention! Over 1M+ views now.. making as much or not more on the video itself ;)

How one guy made $2,500 in a day flipping ‘Monopoly for Millennials’ games

Edit: Just noticed Amazon deleted the entire listing to this Monopoly Game
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07K2SYDJ1/?tag=tff-amazonparser-20

So that serves him even better. He should send Amazon a thank you note. :) And, he will get more subscribers that will watch more videos in the future so it nets him more money in the future videos as well.
 

No Excuses

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So that serves him even better. He should send Amazon a thank you note. :) And, he will get more subscribers that will watch more videos in the future so it nets him more money in the future videos as well.
This is a gated item and I'm not sure if Hasbro or Amazon shut it down. Could have been a lot of fraud going on since it's a hot item or possible they just didn't like the attention it was getting.

I see eBay it's trending around the $45 mark and that includes shipping.
 
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ShamanKing

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is it worth it? in my opinion, in large cities, in 2018, the craiglist hustle is pretty much gone. The time you will need to spend to make it worth your while- you may as well do the best u can at your current job.[/QUOTE]

Why not do both.

;)
 

minivanman

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is it worth it? in my opinion, in large cities, in 2018, the craiglist hustle is pretty much gone. The time you will need to spend to make it worth your while- you may as well do the best u can at your current job.

Why not do both.

;)[/QUOTE]

Apparently you aren't hustling the right stuff. I don't get my stuff off of Craigslist anymore... but I could. I actually bought 2 sets of washer/dryer from Craigslist last week just because I like it. Do you see how often I'm on here? Between dealing with several other businesses AND selling washers and dryers I will make an easy $90,000 taxable income this year just from washers and dryers alone. I had a few months where I really hustled just to keep up with the buyers so that put me ahead of my projections. Anyway, if a person is making $25,000 or $40,000 why wouldn't they double their income? The Craigslist hustle is alive and strong. I actually plan to buy a few more from Craigslist in 2019. You see a set for $600... ask if it's still available.... then wait a day.... tell them your budget won't let you spend that much (No lie. You should always have a buying budget). Now you've made a few contacts with that person so you aren't 'strangers'. In a few days get back with them and ask if they sold it yet. If not, tell them you have $250 in your budget and you know they can't take that low of an amount but what would be their lowest they would take. They might say $500. Tell them you will be trying to put more money in your budget.. 3 days later tell them you have $300 and you think that's all you will be able to put in your budget.... notice how I've never lied? I never said I didn't have the money, it's my budget that doesn't have the money in it. Sometimes they will sell it for $300 that day, sometimes they will never sell it to you for that low of an amount but SOMETIMES..... ding ding ding..... we have a winner! So now you buy it for $300 (maybe a few days later because they really want more but need to sell it), clean it up, take better pictures and put it on Facebook market place for $599. Just make sure it's a set you can sell for $599. Sometimes you will need to buy at $225 and sell for $375... it depends on the set. Don't have trash on your Facebook page. People will be checking your profile. If you look trustworthy, people will pay you $599 on Facebook but those same people would never trust you on Craigslist.

1 reason I'm giving up this secret to those that don't know how to wheel & deal.... I need everyone in my area to buy up all of the cheap sets from Craigslist/Facebook/phone apps and that way we can all sell them for higher prices. The people you bought it from needed to get rid of it before the 1st of the month. You don't have a time line so if you keep it 3 weeks, that's ok.

You could do this same thing with lots of stuff. Just don't be a $10 hustler. If you aren't going to make $100 profit for your effort, find something to make a minimum $100 from. You will get to where doubling or tripling your money won't be that hard.... I'm not talking about buy something for $5 and sell it for $15.

Or, was this post a ploy to get people to not do the Craigslist hustle so it leaves more stuff for you? If so, sorry :)
 
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ShamanKing

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@minivanman Dropping knowledge like always. Currently have no Rep++ to give you but I always enjoyed your feedback.
May I add that I have much more success in negotiations when being super polite and kind. I always thank a person for their time regardless if the deal goes down or not. Anyhow, as we speak I just made a deal on FB Market place. See yal ina few....
 

F Wings

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Just sold an iPhone like 10 minutes after putting it up for sale. Funny thing, I wasn't expecting to sell it for that high. The problem is, I kind of messed up and bought what I thought was in good condition but didn't see that the screen was broken, or I just miscalculated it; dunno. So I had to put a kind of exorbitant price on it. Profit: 5€ but I'm glad I got anything. Still learning and paying my dues. Oh, and I also managed to break a replacement screen while installing it. There goes another 35€... Paying the dues. I'll get it back and more.

Best profit for an item so far is 30€. But I want to make much more than that. Now my rule I wont buy unless I can assume to make at least 30 in profit.
 

minivanman

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@minivanman Dropping knowledge like always. Currently have no Rep++ to give you but I always enjoyed your feedback.
May I add that I have much more success in negotiations when being super polite and kind. I always thank a person for their time regardless if the deal goes down or not. Anyhow, as we speak I just made a deal on FB Market place. See yal ina few....

Oh yeah, I'm always nice to them no matter if I buy their stuff or not.
 
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Sander

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Haven't been doing this for a while. Busy with school, freelance writing, travel etc.

This morning I thought I would give it a go today, just for fun.

Two minutes in, I found a listing with two TV's for a pretty good price. A 37" and 32" for a total of $74. I offered $59 in cash, and I would pick it up right away. She accepted.

The ride was 10 minutes each way.

Picked up the TV's, drove straight to an used electronic store, which buys and sells TV's, iPhones, computers etc.

Had my hopes up for a better price, but took the lowball offer at $45 each. Could've re-listed online, but didn't want to store them, don't have much space at the moment.

Still made around 50% profit, and now I have around $31 more in my pocket than I did this morning. Minus a buck or two in gas.
 
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mikeyjd

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Why not do both.

;)

If you can develop a repair technician and brand it properly you can make a lot more. If you can get to the capacity to take appliances by the truckload from local "New in Box" mom and pop retailers they will sell you truckloads of appliances for $15-20 apiece if you are a regular buyer (trust me I have 3 regular accounts we acquire about 20 pieces from per week each). This will allow you to sell appliances at 10x margins even if only half of them work. I've been doing this exact thing for almost 4 years and we do roughly $100k per month now.

If you are willing to settle for triple your money back you can sell scratch and dent with manufacturers warranty and if you are content for doubling you can sell new in box bought at promo pricing or closeout deals.
 

minivanman

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If you can develop a repair technician and brand it properly you can make a lot more. If you can get to the capacity to take appliances by the truckload from local "New in Box" mom and pop retailers they will sell you truckloads of appliances for $15-20 apiece if you are a regular buyer (trust me I have 3 regular accounts we acquire about 20 pieces from per week each). This will allow you to sell appliances at 10x margins even if only half of them work. I've been doing this exact thing for almost 4 years and we do roughly $100k per month now.

If you are willing to settle for triple your money back you can sell scratch and dent with manufacturers warranty and if you are content for doubling you can sell new in box bought at promo pricing or closeout deals.


Yeah but then I wouldn't have the fun that I'm having now. I've had a few guys around my area that try to get me to buy a truck load but right now, I like flipping how I do it. There is a friend that flips like I do but he is young and needs money, I've been trying to talk him in to buying a truck load and try it out but he is scared. I've thought about going in on the 1st truck with him just to get him started but it really doesn't excite me. I have racing trips planned through June and I've thought about going in on a truck with him after June. I will see how he is doing by that time. He actually quit his job as an appliance tech to flip them.

Thanks for the info though mikeyjd.
 

mikeyjd

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Yeah but then I wouldn't have the fun that I'm having now. I've had a few guys around my area that try to get me to buy a truck load but right now, I like flipping how I do it. There is a friend that flips like I do but he is young and needs money, I've been trying to talk him in to buying a truck load and try it out but he is scared. I've thought about going in on the 1st truck with him just to get him started but it really doesn't excite me. I have racing trips planned through June and I've thought about going in on a truck with him after June. I will see how he is doing by that time. He actually quit his job as an appliance tech to flip them.

Thanks for the info though mikeyjd.

If he was an appliance tech by trade he should be able to advertise repair services and make a similar amount of money repairing people's appliances in home. We are mostly a retail business but we do about $20k per month in repair work with 1 field tech and 1 scheduler. That part of the business is 95% hands-off for me and generates $5-10k per month in profit and is one of our best methods for marketing and referrals.
 
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minivanman

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If he was an appliance tech by trade he should be able to advertise repair services and make a similar amount of money repairing people's appliances in home. We are mostly a retail business but we do about $20k per month in repair work with 1 field tech and 1 scheduler. That part of the business is 95% hands-off for me and generates $5-10k per month in profit and is one of our best methods for marketing and referrals.

I know and I keep telling him but he doesn't want to listen. I'm going to show him this post and maybe since you wrote it and it's not me telling him, he will listen. It took his dad and me 2 years to talk him in to quitting his $18 an hour job. I might just buy the 1st load myself and tell him if we make profit we will split it and if not, he owes me nothing..... yes, I know we will make profit but that will just be the way I can get him to do it.
 

mikeyjd

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I know and I keep telling him but he doesn't want to listen. I'm going to show him this post and maybe since you wrote it and it's not me telling him, he will listen. It took his dad and me 2 years to talk him in to quitting his $18 an hour job. I might just buy the 1st load myself and tell him if we make profit we will split it and if not, he owes me nothing..... yes, I know we will make profit but that will just be the way I can get him to do it.
I can understand the hesitation of making the big investment. I think it's not likely he'd make less than $100/ hour flipping scratch and dent loads.
 

mikeyjd

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I know and I keep telling him but he doesn't want to listen. I'm going to show him this post and maybe since you wrote it and it's not me telling him, he will listen. It took his dad and me 2 years to talk him in to quitting his $18 an hour job. I might just buy the 1st load myself and tell him if we make profit we will split it and if not, he owes me nothing..... yes, I know we will make profit but that will just be the way I can get him to do it.
Then again, a competent tech with a secretary can pull that wage with service work. It seems like he's missing out if he's not using that as his primary form of marketing. We perform 5-10 replacements per week for customers who find out they have a cost-prohibitive repair and need to get something else. We charge $75 for the service call and offer a $37.50 credit towards a replacement with us. This leads to around $2-4k sales per week.
 
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Sander

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Just did another TV flip.

Bought for $30, flipped for $60 within an hour.

The original price was $75, bid $30, and he accepted right away. So don't be afraid to bid low. This dude was moving and just needed to get rid of the TV. Maybe 8 out of 10 would laugh at your offer, but the last 20% will just take it, because they're tired of waiting or need to get rid of the item ASAP.
 
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Sander

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Went to a local thrift store the other day and snapped som photos of their bookshelves.

Wen't home and made a listing with 1/5 of these books (didn't have time for more).

Just had my first sale.

No money out of my pocket required.

This is only $4-5 profit, but still. Did this with $0 out of my wallet. No risk.
 
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Conscripted

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Went to a local thrift store the other day and snapped som photos of their bookshelves.

Wen't home and made a listing with 1/5 of these books (didn't have time for more).

Just had my first sale.

No money out of my pocket required.

This is only $4-5 profit, but still. Did this with $0 out of my wallet. No risk.
What happens when a book you listed isn't at the thrift store when you need it?

Where did you list them?
 
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Sander

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What happens when a book you listed isn't at the thrift store when you need it?

Where did you list them?

Say it's already been sold.

My country's version of ebay/craigslist
 

Sander

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Bought a PS4 today for $132. Those are going for $175-$250, so hopefully that will sell quick. Aiming for around $190.

Also went by the local thriftstore today - they had 50% off everything. The only thing I found was 2 CD boxes (30 CD's and 40 CD's) - Mozart The Masterworks and Masters of the Millenium II. Don't have a clue about these, but with 50% off, I got both for $7 in total.

When I got home, I noticed that the Mozart cd box was missing CD 1, so not a complete box-set, unfortunately. So I place my hope with the Millennium box.

One Millennium box-set recently sold on Ebay auction for $26, and on Amazon the box-set ranges from $39.99 to $174.99 for the pre-owned versions.

It's a long shot, and I have no clue about classic music. But the gamble is worth the seven bucks I think.
 

steelandchrome

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Not posting to brag as I'm really not even close to happy with these numbers, but I've basically been "flipping" for the past few months to make income on mostly Amazon and Ebay. I am posting more as motivation to others to get off your a$$ and go flip something if you need some cash as it is easier than you think for some things and a hell of a lot harder for others but you won't know till you try. I need to get on the $100k a month scale like the big dogs above ;)
 
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Sander

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Not posting to brag as I'm really not even close to happy with these numbers, but I've basically been "flipping" for the past few months to make income on mostly Amazon and Ebay. I am posting more as motivation to others to get off your a$$ and go flip something if you need some cash as it is easier than you think for some things and a hell of a lot harder for others but you won't know till you try. I need to get on the $100k a month scale like the big dogs above ;)

For me, that is some serious numbers. Well done!
 

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