While I wait on tax documents to get here so I can power through the taxes, and the much dreaded FAFSA(yes, I said that word!), I've been going through and calculating my eBay numbers.
Yes, if you sell stuff on eBay it's income and you had better report it.
I'm just sayin'.....
Even with just selling stuff for 2 months last year, the amount of paperwork and numbers I have to wade through is mind numbing. It took me three solid HOURS to get through it tonight!
Ugh.
After deducting all the fees, supplies and the costs of the goods I sold, I netted a whopping.....you'd better sit down for this!......$1710.10.
And that's not deducting for the portion of the storage unit fees I incurred to store the things I sold. I "could" deduct that IF I could come up with an acceptable formula to divide the storage unit fees between the square footage the eBay stuff occupied and the square footage where all the non-eBayed stuff sat. I could also try deducting lots of other things too....like part of my internet connection cost, part of the cost of my computer/printer/paper/ink/etc. But all that takes documentation and effort and sends up audit flags. I'll just take that hit and not even bother. I am beyond caring to go there.lol
So in the end all the fees I paid to sell this stuff?
It almost cost me as much as I netted!
I will not depress myself by figuring what my hourly wage was to make that $1710.10.
But I suspect I'd be better off wearing a paper hat and asking if you want fries with that! lol
This all just confirms my belief that selling on eBay as an income stream is so not worth it. Might have been years ago but now?.....nah!
It's a great way to get rid of things you have laying around the house and such. Or selling off things you don't want anymore.
But as a sustainable fulltime job? Not so much.
I'll stick to Focus Groups and some Survey work.....though my patience for that stuff is wearing thin too lately. ;-)
I need to find someone who wants to pay me to sit around and drink adult beverages!
Yah, now THAT'S the kind of work I could so get into!! 8-)
Sluggy
I couldn't agree more - when you take into account the ebay fees, paypal fees, and dishonest, cheating buyers who just want something for nothing, it's just not worth it.
ReplyDeleteEbays new motto : THE BUYER IS ALWAYS RIGHT- even when they're wrong !!
as you can tell, I've been on the receiving end of bad practice by ebay and even worse buyers !
It's a great way to get rid of things you have laying around the house and such.
ReplyDeleteI tried eBay once long ago. It was so not worth it for me. I made five sales, selling all I listed. However, one woman made me never want to go back. And, tales I hear keep me away now.
ReplyDeleteAs a sustainable fulltime job? Not for the Average Joe. I think you'd have to have access to a lot of product at a cheap price (much like the freight salvage stores around here do). Then it might be.
ReplyDeleteI never went into it looking at as a source of substantial income. It was a good way to make a little money and to find new homes for things that might otherwise end up in a landfill. It was just part of bigger scenario of holding garage sales, renting flea market booths and using craigslist. Really, there's a veritable fortune in reselling used stuff, IF you have the right venues at your disposal. Some things just aren't suitable for eBay, but are great for garage sales or flea market booths. And vice-versa.
I don't sell nearly as much on eBay as I used to. I've made fewer than 1,000 transactions as both a seller and a buyer. I am wary, and I do think eBay is buyer-focused, but at the same time, I have a 100% rating and have never had any problems with any buyers or sellers. The problems I've had have been with eBay themselves. Like Facebook, they have a fondness for fixin' things that ain't broke.
I'm so glad for this post. Every time I go into a thrift shop and see a killer deal, I consider buying it and selling it on ebay. Thanks for reminding me what I haven't. What about Craigslist though? I know it's probably harder to do with just the local audience who reads the section.
ReplyDeleteeBay is still decent for buying (if you can find listings that provide actual details about the products in question), but boy is it lousy for selling. I fled to Amazon Marketplace years ago, since I mostly get rid of old books and DVDs, and don't regret it. The process is much more streamlined and there aren't nasty fee surprises.
ReplyDeleteThat's also why I don't do adsense. I don't want to have to declare a tiny bit of income that just might nudge me up into a higher tax bracket! Ughh! Once I retire however, that would be different as my income will be...well...MUCH lower than it is now.
ReplyDeleteHubby and I had this discussion on Saturday. He agrees that ebay is just not as fun or as lucrative as it used to be. I told him he could stop and I would just give him some money. Like I would be giving it to him....it's OUR money. Truthfully, I think he lost money on ebay last year.
ReplyDeleteEbay lets buyers like antiquesplus997 manipulate sellers and does nothing about it. Look at her old feedback history
ReplyDelete