Stuff!

I donate my low-value items to nearby Goodwill.

Big things that are worth a lot, like air-conditioners and such, I sell on Craig's list. Never had a problem.

You may not like eBay, but have you tried Amazon? It's very different--more professional. EBay is like a giant yard sale, so people can offer watches that don't run, electrical appliances missing parts, spare LEGO pieces, etc.

On Amazon, everything has to be complete, though some (I think) unknowing sellers cheat on that.

But it's much easier to post items on Amazon, and there's no charge till you actually make a sale. Unfortunately, Amazon recently raised its commission by A LOT.

Here's something to think about, OP, before you decide to donate your Stuff! to the Salvation Army.

Would a yard sale be a possibility? People like to buy these types of things at them.

I have way too many books, I threw some away but I still have dozens. Not best sellers, just books I bought out of curosiity. I really don't know what to do with them.

Did I post this? Same situation, here. I'm thinking about trying the Nextdoor app for things like furniture.

I donate it all. Too much trouble to sell it. Where I live, several charities will come to the house to pick up stuff. I either donate to them, or take stuff to Good Will. I've given away some relatively valuable stuff that way but I was no longer using it or needed it and that was the easiest way to get rid of it.

My public library has twice a year book sales to raise extra funds. Try your local library to see if they accept donations.

Have you tried used book stores for books? I know someone who does this. You may not get a lot, but you might get something.

What kind of VHS tapes? If they are hard to find classics, you might be able to sell them on Amazon if they never made it to DVD or if the DVDs are out of print. Type in the title name on Amazon, you might be surprised. Or perhaps you could sell them on ioffer.com.

I used to have boxes of VHS tapes, some bought, some recordings from TV. I gave store bought ones away to a relative who still has a VCR and likes the same old movies as I do. The others I could find nowhere even to recycle them. I finally just threw them out.

I agree with R7. I just donate stuff. The only stuff I've sold has been some coins and silver, to a dealer who specialized in that.

After my parents passed away, I was left with the task of whittling down the contents of an overstuffed house. The local library has a volunteer group that runs a shop that sells used books, magazines, records, tapes and DVDs. So I boxed up thousands of books I'd never read and VHS tapes donated those to the Friends of the Public Library.

Clothing got boxed and bagged up and donated to Goodwill and St Vincent de Paul. Excess food and personal care stuff was donated to the FreeStore. Getting rid of furniture and knicknacks that had been in the family for a long time was the hardest. I kept the nicest stuff, and sent photos of some of the stuff to various friends. Various friends were happy to claim some of the old furniture and china and glassware. My best friend runs an agency that provides staffing for adults with developmental disabilities, and he took the dining room set for one of his clients who's autistic. He told me his client was thrilled to have such nice furniture, and I thought that would have made my parents happy.

I went through my own clothes, and tried everything on, and the stuff that didn't fit anymore, or was too dated, all got bagged and boxed and donated.

When I sold my house in Denver 10 years ago that I had lived in for 15 years, I decided to cleanse and get rid of anything I hadn't used, watched, listened to, worn or read in over a year. It was very freeing and I have zero regrets.

I refuse to donate to Good Will or the Salvation Army. I had a garage sale, and when things were left I just gave it away.

For books-bring them to your nearest retirement centre . Or community centre.

I bring sellable things to this animal shelter's thrift shop. If it's clothes that are damaged, I recycle them at H&M (they have a bin at the register). If it's towels or sheets, I bring them to my local animal shelter.

Great ideas, folks! I will sell on Amazon. I've done it before. Don't know why I didn't think of it.

I also found a local Facebook 'garage sale'-style group. I'd rather sell to friends and their friends, etc, people with real IDs.

I have donated to Goodwill, and won't to Salvation Army (for their antigay idiocy, of course). But that's just the really used stuff.

R13 You need to look at this. They hate us. Give it a away to a homeless shelter first

When we cleaned out my parents' home after my mother died about 8 years ago, relatives were able to take some things, but we were left with my mother's prized dining room set (table, 6 chairs, buffet), kitchen table & 6 chairs, some nice headboards, coffee table, end tables, lamps, etc. All these things had been well tended by my house proud mother. I had done the house inventory and weeded out any junk, so what remained, while used, of course, was all in good condition.

It was at the time of the economic downturn and a lot of charities we called had had to cut back and no longer even had a truck to come pick up stuff.

Finally, I asked my sister if her church had a group for disadvantaged people who might be interested. A few days later she called to tell me that members of the group had arrived in a couple of vehicles, including a pickup truck and they were delighted to get everything which they loaded up themselves. They even took the ironing board, after asking my sister if it was OK.

We were delighted to see that the items were given to people who would be able to use them and perhaps would not have had any expectations for things so nice.

My mother and father would have smiled.

I have a bunch of stuff that I've been collecting since I was a kid and I'd like to sell a lot of it but Ebay doesn't seem to be worth the hassle anymore.

How about etsy.com?

Has anyone here used Etsy?

I've used etsy.com. I've never sold on there but I have bought.

Three times I purchased American girl doll clothes for my niece. There are some fantastic seamstresses who sell the doll clothes they have made. Not everything is the same quality, of course, because not everyone is as talented. But some of the things are very high quality. The best are not all that cheap.

Everything I bought was exactly as described I had no problems with my purchases.

Their stuff is a mixture of "new" and "vintage". Sometimes you can even find new linens, still in the packages. It's a mixed bag.

You might also try rubylane.com.

Etsy is for arts and crafts. I'm getting rid of stuff, not handmade trinkets or products.

The most difficult is porn. Used magazine stores are gone, online is a chore, and nobody at all wants VHS tapes. I hate the idea of just dumping them in the recycle bin. I even looked up a few "sell it for you on eBay" services, but they only want $25 or up items, and NO adult stuff.

r20, I'll take that stuff for the new youth group I'm starting.

R20, you have the makings of a beautiful decoupage project.

A lot of people say they have old, potentially valuable stuff that they're going to sell. Many never get around to it. Just post an ad on board and give it away for free or dump it in the trash. When you're in the mode of getting rid of clutter, don't stop to think too much about it. Purge, purge, purge!

OP, VHS tapes are garbage. This technology is totally obsolete. Like no one uses it anymore. Professional information workers consider it to be both a joke and a nightmare. All porn is digital now. Your best chance for not wasting it is to throw it in the trash so that some weirdo might scavenge it from a garbage tip. Save yourself a headache and just get rid of it.

Did somebody mention used textbooks?

Weirdly people are collecting VHS tapes now.

I donated a lot of stuff to Habitat for Humanity. They have a store called ReStore where they sell stuff cheaply. They picked everything up, too.

I oddly got a fair amount of money for my old VHS tapes about two years ago. There were a lot (over 400) and I sold them all for $175. I guess I had a fair number of movies that never made it to DVD. Some old, some foreign, and some just obscure.

I, too, have a ton of VHS tapes (bookshelves full) and cannot bear getting rid of them because many of them have things that I recorded off tv decades ago. Some things you just cannot get on DVD. And, though difficult to find, VCRs are still available to buy, they just usually come in the form of the DVD/VCR combo.

[quote]Etsy is for arts and crafts.

And "vintage" stuff (anything more than 20 years old). I just bought some vintage mugs (1980s).

What did it for me R29 is actually watching one. If you still have an old analog, tube, television, they look ... OK. If you hook up that VCR to a newer flat screen, the quality is just terrible. It just clinched it for me - I'd never watch one of these again. It killed me a little inside (not because I was attached to them) but because of the money. I doubt many of the younger gays realize what a Hollywood movie cost on VHS back in the day. $30-$40 (especially for Disney) X 400? Ugh..

^I know what you mean. I used to be a record-aholic back in the day which is why I have loads of VHS tapes. I often say that if I could get back the money I've spent in blank videotapes over the years ALONE, I would be very well off for quite some time.

Sold our home after 35 years, and could not move anything to our new home because of overseas shipping costs. We had LOTS of stuff, and were totally lost about what to do.

So we hired a professional organizer, also known as a declutter. She was able to help us identify what to sell, what to donate, and what to trash. She provided hands-on help to do the work, and managed all the donation pickups and deliveries, open houses, yard sales and online sales.

But most important, she provided us with the psychological support to deal with our often irrational and unrealistic attachments to "stuff".

Hiring her was the best decision we ever made. If you go this route, make sure you check references and that alll the personalities are compatible.

[quote]Weirdly people are collecting VHS tapes now.

Good God, WHY?!

I had the same problem OP. I just found it exhausting dragging things to the recycling place and the charity stores. I gave a lot of good clothing to my nephews, a lot with tags and still not worn. I sold some furniture and electronics on a local craigslist site. I couldn't believe how much stuff I had packed into my small condo. The problem now is that I'm buying stuff again now that I have the space, 70% of which I don't need. I still have boxes of stuff in my storage area in my building, that's going to be a real pain to get rid of. Just buy what you need in the future (I hope I can start doing that myself).

Bump

A have a pile of stuff to go out that's been by the front door for weeks.

I've helped my mother de-clutter her stuff over the last ten years in finding suitable, appreciative people to donate too.

It's not easy. There have been some items of value to libraries, archives and specialist retailers but the sad fact is most is suitable for the fire (just like her body, when the time comes).

We're not religious but we think about that Bible quote about 'Set thine house in order; for thou shalt die, and not live'. (Isaiah to Hezekiah'

Offer it to local charity and if they don't want it, its truly crap and worthless and take it to the recycling center.

There are salvage companies who will clear out the junk and anything they can sell or donate will give you a cut of the sale or charity receipt.

Donations: Books, CDs. maybe some mags to a used book store. Old VCR, maybe to a university library depending on what on them. knick-knacks good will. (Btw, you can write this off your taxes, i should think.)

If you have sometime, sell on ebay the vintage items (need pics) or set up a vintage store in esty or a place like that (to to pay).

Pitch a tent, fly some colorful balloons, and open a Thrift Store !

Etsy has an endless variety of merchandise for everybody and anybody.

Your all kind to donate your items. Cleaning out a deceased parents house is tough, moving and having to get rid of stuff is tough. I used to leave extra magazines at my local laundromat for customers to flip through.

I like my neighbors who drop off magazines at the laundromat. I no longer look at such mags otherwise.

But VHS porn homemade mixes? Mostly I can't stand that I have some rarities and refuse to toss ';em. But I also am never in the mood to watch old porn. I'd like to just dump it all. But someone might like them. Craigslist seems skeevy.

I doubt many of the younger gays realize what a Hollywood movie cost on VHS back in the day. $30-$40 (especially for Disney) X 400? Ugh..

r31, and this is precisely why many are saddled with crippling student loans. A generation raised to over spend and under save.

VHS with rare old tv appearances/porn/movies : transfer them to digital 1) to keep and 2) upload on youtube + try monetizing them.

Another George Carlin bit: "Stuff"

bonfire?

Throw it in the trash. Nobody wants your old shit.

R45 Craigslist isn't too skeevy for homemade porn tapes.

I knew Goodwill was full of shit,but I truly had no idea of the extent! What a scam ! That being said,Im a veteran thrifter of decades and I often find overlooked fabulous stuff there. Like a large sterling silver Navajo box for $4. Or a set of Gaudy Welsh dishes circa 1840 (27 pieces) for $20. So while Im morally outraged,my principles will lose out because Im just addicted to "treasures" .