Investing vs reselling. Where do you fall?

[Beachkid23]

This is my biggest struggle. I keep finding awesome things. I want to keep them for myself. But I have been full-time eBay for the last three years or more. Have kids, family, mortgage...all the fun stuff but I struggle every day with keeping versus reselling. I know I’m not alone. I think keeping a piece of gold versus a $100 bill, the gold is probably better investment. Maybe I’m wrong. But I need some advice. . I struggle with this daily... this is my drug. I want to keep everything yellow but it just doesn’t work that way. Should I go back to work to be able to keep things I find?. Or is it just not worth it. Like to me, these cufflinks are amazing. But no one else in my family will ever feel the same way! is it just normal that men like to collect things to feel good about themselves. LOL money is nice but things are fun to look at! Make me feel normal!

 

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[cheech]

Describe normal to us this is normal but to the next person it may not be I too feel just about the same way I have let some things go that I wish I never had the way I see it it’s whatever makes you the happiest if you feel like going back to work and that makes you happy then so be it me I’m the opposite I would like to do what you’re doing full-time and have the freedom to spend with the family and take vacations and not have a boss breathing down my neck so for me if I had to let a few items go that I really like to keep my freedom then that’s what I would do good luck to you whatever decision you make

 

[ARC]

Unfortunately BK... money does not grow on trees... at least not in my neck of the woods.
If you have money to keep afloat and you are not choosing a cool item over paying a bill...
then collect...

But if you have to choose this a lot...
My advice to you would be to always sell off enough to cover your expenses of operation... no matter how you feel about it ...

Keep the very best of the best BUT never pass up on a sale / buyer willing to give full value...
May be hard to find another buyer willing to pay that...
Then your investment now becomes a sacrifice.

Cant keep it all and you cant take it with you.

Like my mother once told me... "its just stuff".

PS... I too have been in the same boat as you describe... but... I got over it.

 

[can_slaw]

I agree completely with AARC. I work for someone else full time, and sometimes catch myself drooling over the finds you make on here. Not because of the items per say, but because of the freedom they represent. You have a knack for doing this, and can scratch out a living doing it. That my friend is the really cool part about those cuff links IMHO.

 

[RTR]

Once it gone(whatever it is) its gone.

 

[trdhrdr007]

Collectibles and precious metals are cool & fun to have but they aren't investments. Except for 2 relatively short periods of time ( roughly 1978-81 & 2003-16) precious metals didn't even keep up with inflation. Keeping cash isn't investing either. If you are serious about investing you have to learn about real estate or stocks. I know that's not a popular line of thought here so let the flame wars begin.

 

[tamrock]

Working for the man sucks. Stick it out and never fall in love with any of that stuff that won't love you back. Just let it go and put the increase into what matters now. My kids are all gone now and doing well and now I can start keeping the stuff I like. Then sometimes I look at it and think, it's time to let it go and let someone else enjoy it. Good luck with this struggle your going through.

 

[diggingthe1]

I’m in the same boat. Except I have a night job and have collected to much stuff

 

[tamrock]

I’m in the same boat. Except I have a night job and have collected to much stuff

My jobs great for treasure hunting. I don't have to pay for gas, lodging meals and I get to stop by all these little town and big thrift shops, pawn shops antique shops and malls, as I go from place to place. Someone told the owner of the company what I was doing and he told him I don't think you want me to tell my guy your a snitch and so F.O. and mind your on business. My boss is completely okay with it, as I'm not out gambling, getting drunk and picking up any hay-bags out there. We had a guy during the holiday season have some kind of holiday depression syndrome befell upon him once. He went out on a drinking and gambling binge and went through $14'000 on the company credit card. My boss ask I go and take his company truck and all cards and keys away, because he felt he'd put a bullet in him if he went to do it. So I went and did all that and if it wasn't bad enough he was left with nothing and was also kicked out of his rental house and sleeping in our shop as a result of his gambling problem. I even gave him a $150. out of my pocket so he could get a greyhound to LA. Last I herd he was working for the postal service in Alaska and he still owes me the 150. With all that my boss is a-ok with me out looking for stuff to collect or sell. Maybe look for a job like I've got BK ?

 

[pjdentry]

Precious metals and other tangibles can be part of good portfolio.

I would say that I resell 90% of what I buy. Keep what you love and sell the rest. If you love it, you can't go wrong. You can always sell it later if need be.

 

[jason4kstate]

I really struggle with this. My line of thought is that I keep 1-3% of my portfolio in precious metals. If precious metal is not going up 8% a year its better off in my mutual funds and stock.

I try and cycle out the other collectibles. For example, if I come across a better antique clock than the one I have at home I sell the one I have at home. Just keep in mind that you can sell up to $20K tax free online (paypal) per ssn number. If you go beyond that you have to file with the IRS.

 

[Drmad7]

I love the cufflinks and I’ve had some great finds also. But the one thing I have learned by picking up stuff...it all belonged to someone else at one point and they couldn’t take it with them. I make a rule that everything I own has a price and I’m willing to sell it. Period. I can’t buy time with family, but those items can pay for vacations with family. You are in a truly awesome position and your talent is working well for you. Keep what you like and can afford and if you suddenly have a need and have to sell something...sell it. I take pictures of things and I can go back and look at them...but I don’t regret selling anything if the price was decent.

 

[JimDon]

Tough call. It is hard to keep things when you are a dealer. You have to be very selective and you have to make sure you are really making a profit. The more I do this the more I realize the miles and time spent reduces my “profit” significantly to the point where I question it. That being said I have the security of a good job with benefits that allows me to use my profit as a slush fund to buy/keep my best finds. Consider trying to find work that blends the two.

 

[trdhrdr007]

I really struggle with this. My line of thought is that I keep 1-3% of my portfolio in precious metals. If precious metal is not going up 8% a year its better off in my mutual funds and stock.

I try and cycle out the other collectibles. For example, if I come across a better antique clock than the one I have at home I sell the one I have at home. Just keep in mind that you can sell up to $20K tax free online (paypal) per ssn number. If you go beyond that you have to file with the IRS.

That's a fairly common misconception. Paypal is only required to issue a 1099 if you sell more than $20,000 and more than 200 (?) items in any given year. That's not the same as being able to earn $20,000 tax free. Under current tax law you are supposed to file and pay taxes on ALL income.

 

[jason4kstate]

Ah thanks for clarifying. Its not like the tax laws are confusing or anything :/ It makes you wonder how this whole ebay Paypal switch out will work in the next few years.

 

[kingskid1611]

My wife would tell you I keep to much and I might but if ever in a tight spot I can always sell....fingers crossed that a tight spot never comes.....

 

[treasurekidd]

As much as I LOVE treasure hunting the flea markets and antique shops, things are just things, and the important things in life are NOT things. I do keep a very small collection, but 99.9 percent of the things that I buy are for resale, and the money (for the most part) is added to my IRA and brokerage accounts and invested for the future. I too have the wife, kids and mortgage, and I realized a long time ago that providing for them now and for the future was a LOT more important to me than a bunch of things gathering dust on a shelf some where even if those things are really awesome antiques or collectibles. Just me 02, good luck!

 

[Hawks88]

Keep the best and sell the rest.

 

[diggummup]

As far as gold and silver, the way I see it is, if you can afford to hold it because you like it then do so. It's money in the bank, if you ever do need quick cash. You have kids to worry about. I don't envy you, they are expensive. When it all boils down, everything I own has a price as far as I'm concerned, family heirlooms or personal keepsakes from old friends aside. I have no personal attachment to anything I purchase. I'm here to pass it along to the next person. I do love sitting around looking at all my cool stuff though.

I agree and disagree with trdhrdr007's comments in reply #6. I don't think investing in stocks and/or real estate is a viable option for some people. I think precious metals are always a good investment, if you purchase them at a low enough price. The problem is you never really find an amount that is investment worthy. By that I mean we find our gold or silver a piece or few at a time. We aren't spending 1k on 2-3k worth of gold or silver each week. It's more like $20 for $100 worth or whatever, you know what I'm saying.
So there lies the problem if you think of "investment" as a large chunk of change spent at once for future gains, which most people do. Then no, it isn't. However, if you nickel and dime it over a course of many years, then you will have a large investment of gold and silver to liquidate in the end. They don't call it a redneck 401k plan for nothing.

 

[ramjet2187]

My wife would tell you I keep to much and I might but if ever in a tight spot I can always sell....fingers crossed that a tight spot never comes.....

More than once the coffee cans of change my dad squirreled away paid for the groceries when he was otherwise broke. We lived hand to mouth when I was growing up...I don't anymore, but still keep some change sitting around, in case of a rainy day.