Declutter for Fun and Profit

Dear Lee:

We get calls from friends and readers all the time asking what to do with items that their families don’t want or need any longer. The good news is that decluttering can present an opportunity for profit. 

Remember, when you go to sell household goods, time is money. The more time you are willing to invest, the more will come in return. When you’re considering an auction, garage sale, local dealer, website or Facebook marketplace, decide how much time you are willing to invest first. 

Condition, quality, designer and manufacturer matter. You can’t even give away a regular sofa if it is stained or damaged. Most people won’t take mattresses and state law frequently doesn’t allow it. Some charities whose mission includes providing new homes for people in need may take mattresses if they are in clean and like-new condition. 

Furniture made by well-known designers or manufacturers—and even well-made furniture in the style of well-known designers—can be sold at auction. If the item is generic furniture from a big-box store, it’s best to give it away or sell it yourself. Same with household items: mugs, glasses, dishes and trays or other pieces designed by well-known designers or made by top manufacturers will sell at auction. Mass-produced, less expensive items are hard to sell.  

Jewelry that is gold, platinum or made with precious stones always sells for at least the material cost and it should be easy to find a buyer. As with everything else, “brand” adds value. If it was made by Tiffany, Cartier or another top brand, you can expect to get more. However, if the piece is monogramed you will likely need to sell it for meltdown value.  

Handbags and other leather goods are hot right now, but only those from the top brands—Hermès, Chanel, Louis Vuitton and Gucci, among others. Secondary brands like Kate Spade simply don’t sell as well and you may need to consider donation or try to sell it yourself. 

The brand situation is the same for sunglasses. And if there is a prescription in the glasses, buyers do not want to pay the extra expense to change the lenses. 

Good luck! And we’re not forgetting—Happy Mother’s Day! 

 

 

Stop! Read This Before Cleaning Out Adult Children’s Rooms

It’s graduation time and parents are proud, but they are also probably looking forward to “moving out” day. As they ponder the potential of the extra rooms, the purging bug takes hold. But as collectors, we know how dangerous “a purge” can be. So before loading up the car and going to a donation center, we have some very important tips.  Here are some general suggestions as you start.

• Be organized. Have separate piles: keep, sell, throw away and donate.
• Check with family members before purging anything. Do they have any interest in what you are planning to dispose of that they might want to keep? That Felix the cat childhood toy clock you think is trash may have precious memories.
• If you are like most people, you have plastic bins full of photo albums and loose pictures. You can start your children off without those paper items to move each time they settle in a new place.  If they aren’t already digital, get them scanned and stored in the cloud or on a removable drive. What a wonderful gift of family history! If possible, include the names of the people pictured, relationships, the year, location, and the event so that information, too, remains with the digital pictures.
• While assessing old toys that might be in attic bins or bedroom boxes, examine each carefully. The doll in mint condition with its original mint-condition box is worth about 30 percent more than the toy without the box. This is true of most collectibles; original finish, box, labels, and instruction books add to the value.
• Event-related objects, such as souvenirs of concerts or political campaigns, are worth a lot to some collectors. I have a friend whose sister went to Woodstock. She somehow got a box full of programs and brought them home with her. Ten years after the festival, her parents found the box of programs and tossed them. Similar stories about comic books and other now-valuable souvenirs of events being thrown out as trash are epic in many families. It’s a guess which one will become important later.  So, save for sentimental reasons or rarity. Don’t forget condition is the most important thing.  If it is already in bad shape, go ahead and throw it out.
• Save the school yearbooks.  They may never appreciate in value, but maybe one of the students will become the next celebrity. And more likely, your child might want to reminisce years from now.
• Most adult children’s bedrooms still have high school and college textbooks and stacks of class notebooks and old tests. Ask before you donate or throw out. Many textbooks are salable.  If not, check with your local library before getting rid of them or giving them to a resale shop.
• Do your research when disposing of any of your child’s collections, especially if they collected sports or Pokémon cards. A basic online search can provide you with collectors, specialized clubs, prices, and researched articles, to name a few. If you decide to try selling online directly, it will be more work, but you can expect to get more if it sells.

This is just an outline on how to purge a young adult’s room with care. Good luck and don’t forget to read our complete guide on downsizing at Kovels.com or visit our list of Popular Apps & Websites to Buy or Sell Collectibles, Household Goods and More.

 

 

Spring Cleaning Tips

Dear Lee,

The weather is warming and there are more sunny days than cloudy ones. That means: time for spring cleaning.

As a collector, I always worry when I see people downsizing and doing big spring cleanings. Without caution and research, they could be getting rid of valuable collectibles and heirlooms. They may donate an old coat without checking the pockets or give away a closet full of purses and miss that old jewelry or other valuables left inside. I have a friend who threw one old, crumpled Kleenex away in the trash and then weeks later remembered she had put an engagement ring in the Kleenex to take to the jeweler to be made smaller.

Here are some spring cleaning tips to help you maximize value of your no-longer-needed items and help keep the rest organized:

1. Before donating or throwing anything away, check its value. Everything from broken toys to old newspapers can be sold.
2. Take pictures of items you plan to sell. If you are using your phone, make sure you save the pictures in the cloud or transfer them to a flash drive. If you are able, start a list that includes each pictured item, size, color, marks, condition, price paid, history and the date. Some new phones allow you to add captions to photos so you may not need to keep a list.
3. Don’t throw away labels, stickers, auction catalogs or original boxes. They add to the value, especially if you are talking about old toys, paper bills or history.
4. Set aside a pile for family and friends to look over. You never know what people want, whether it’s an old music box, illustrated sheet music or a Hummel figurine. Put a note (“save for family”) on small pieces of paper and put the paper in or on the object. If the object has history, include that with the item.
5. Keep a separate trash pile. Look over the pile once or twice or bring a family member to go over it with you. Better safe than sorry!
6. Do you have a drawer or bag full of old cords or plugs or unidentified parts? Before throwing them out, check every one of your devices, computers, phones, iPads and notebooks to see if anything matches.
7. If you find any larger decorative items or old ceramics, think of your garden. A beautiful garden provides the unexpected, both in the flowers and plants, as well as items placed around the landscape. I have many “trash” pieces in my garden, including old street signs, metalwork, large planters and a fountain. Oh, and iron gnomes, of course.
8. Remember: Keep family photos or other historical records that might be wanted by future generations. Set those aside and put in a waterproof, mouse-proof container.

Once all the work is done, you will be able to enjoy your newly cleaned house without the worry that you threw something out you should have kept or donated.

Happy Spring! 

P.S. Did you know used coffee grounds are good to use in the garden? Add them to your garden soil to increase nutrients and help repel pests.

 

How to Settle an Estate

“What do I do now? I have to settle an estate and have a collector’s house full of furnishings, paintings, collectibles, old computers, phones, and the everyday dishes. Plus, I have questions about insurance and taxes. Do I have to get a legal appraisal? What records do I need? Can I do it alone or […]

Reflections on a Cleaning Binge