Trash to Cash: How to Turn Throwaways Into a Cash Generating Business

You’ve heard the expression, “One man’s junk is anther’s man treasure”. What if you could take the junk (throwaways) of others and turn it into a literal treasure; a money generating business? This article will show you how to do just that. And you could start earning cash right away.

What Will You Need

Although you could manage without one, it is to your advantage to own a truck, SUV or van. The larger vehicle will allow you to collect larger items which can earn you greater profits, for example, furniture and large appliances.

A garage or basement for storage is a plus allowing you to gather items as you see them and not just collect and sell immediately. A computer with internet access and a digital camera would provide added resources for generating revenue. Later I will explain how you can use the internet to generate income.

Where To Find Marketable Throwaways

To begin finding throwaways that you can turn into cash profit, start by advertising on bulletin boards and in free ads that you will haul away the contents of basements and attics for free or a small fee. Many times Individuals will be happy to pay a modest fee to have these areas cleaned out. This is especially true when persons are moving from one location to another and are not taking everything.

Watch the local ads for yard sales & estate sales. Stop by the sales and leave a business card, offering to haul away yard sale remains for free. Although there are charities that these items can be donated to, if you are ready and able to provide the convenience of collecting these items, the home owner will be delighted to have it out of their hands. You can also find merchandise at these sales for a nominal fee that be resold for a cash profit. Charity sales, library sales, and church bazaars often have nice marketable items that you can turn around and sell that will cost you very little out of pocket money.

For example, I once purchased an out of print book at a library sale for a dime and later sold it for $80.00 on eBay. Obviously, all your profit margin will not be that great, but the possibility of a good profit exists.

Leave business cards with local estate sales dealers. It may be more difficult to haul away the left overs of estate sales, but not impossible. Not all estate sales items are antiques and there are throwaways that will need to be cleared out.

Thrift Stores often have end of season sales where you can pick up marketable items for minimal cost. Some have bag days where you fill a bag for a few dollars. How much can you get in a bag? A ‘Good Will’ store I stopped in one day was selling boxes of old books for 5 cents each. I got a box full and sold nearly all of them for anywhere to a few dollars apiece up to twenty some bucks each.

Near the end of the month, start checking out the trash in apartment complexes. This is a great place to find furniture, appliances, exercise equipment and small items such as music tapes and books. Even clothes that are thrown out and cleaned can be marketed if quality brands and good condition.

Dumpsters behind stores and shopping centers can be resourceful. Many large department stores throw out items that may slightly flawed which you can still sell for cash. In time you will know which store dumpsters will be productive.

County Dumps can be a great place for finding all kind of junk you can turn into trash. It is wise to be aware of the county laws. Some areas may not allow you to go through the dump and may impose fines.

How To Generate Income

You can charge a modest fee for the hauling, however, there are also numerous other ways to earn cash. Online auctions, like eBay will be great for some of the items. Register with eBay as a seller. You will have to put a credit card on file. If you open a PayPal account you can collect payments immediately. You can do that at www.paypal.com

Once registered as a seller you will be able to check on items that have previously sold and the selling price giving you an educated guess at the items value. EBay has easy to understand instructions and live chat support. Getting started will not be difficult, but take it slow, and see how the process works. You will want to start off with small items first until you build some positive feedback. EBay buyers will not pay a good price on a large item for a new seller. Save the larger items until you have at least fifty or more positive feedback in order to get a good price. EBay has listing and closing fees.

Periodic yard sales can be another way to generate cash. How often you would have a sale would depend on how much junk you collected. I know some who have them weekly while others do it monthly or less frequent.

Flea Market Stands generally draw a big crowd. You will have the overhead of the stand rental fee. There are Flea Market Circuits across the nation. Do an internet search for Flea Market Listings.

Consignment shops can be profitable. Furniture, clothing, books, cd’s and more can be marketed at specialized consignment stores. These stores can take as much as 40% commission, but they can generally get a good price.

If you are a little creative and have a garage or basement, you could take furniture and repair it (if needed) and then resell. Paint a piece in some unusual and creative fashion and sell it as a one-of-a-kind designer piece with a certificate never to be duplicated. That way you could sell the piece for a large amount of cash.

Still other items may be traded for services provided. The barter system works well and you will be collecting any number of items that may be useful to someone else.

Lastly, there will be some junk that will have no value to you. Take these items to a community center, Salvation Army or a charity of your choice. You can get a tax receipt and take a deduction for the value of the items.

This is a real business. Keep records. Pay taxes. Each state is different. Familiarize yourself with the laws in your area. You may have to collect sales tax. You may need to obtain a business license, most areas it is only $25.00 or $50.00 a year. Check zoning laws if you are going to work out of your home.

With a little time and effort and a whole lot of creativity you can turn another man’s junk into a treasure trove of cash. Have fun and prosper.

Categories: Home business | Tags: budgeting, craft ideas, economizing, generate money, junk, junk biz, profit from junk, throways, trash to cash, trash to treasure | No Comments »