Make some real cash out of unloved trash

SOPHIE ELSWORTH

I HAVE to concede I’m a clean freak; I cannot tolerate mess.

So when I started hearing about Japanese tidying aficionado Marie Kondo’s tales of how we should clear out cupboards and discard piles of unwanted belongings, I jumped on the bandwagon.

While I certainly don’t hoard, I definitely have items around my place that I haven’t touched in years.

I decided to get tough with myself and finally part ways. But not without trying to make a quick buck first.

This is when I put on my money-saving hat and worked

PERSONAL FINANCE WRITER I even sold the boxes I used to move my possessions

out how I could make some cash by offloading my junk to someone else.

Over the years I’ve sold so much stuff on second-hand sites, including eBay and Gumtree, adding up to thousands of dollars in sales. Clothes, beds, watches, bookcases, barbecues, curtains and – this is a true story – I even sold my mate’s caravan. It was a retro eggshaped thing with two wheels ... $1500 later, he was one happy man.

It’s amazing how many unwanted things we have lying around the home.

While I often hand some of my items to charities, there are other either items I know I can make a few dollars from.

If you do a quick zip around your home, chances are you will be able to fill a washing basket with items you don’t want or need. Decluttering guru Marie Kondo, with children Miko and Satsuki, urges people to discard what “doesn’t spark joy”. Picture: Timothy Archibald/The Wall Street Journal

MINIMALIST:

When I first moved into my apartment, I sold old wall heaters I didn’t want and got some cash for blinds I pulled down the minute I moved in. They were so ugly I just couldn’t bear looking at them. They were destined for the bin, but I thought I’d try my luck at selling them. Sure enough, they were snapped up.

I even sold the boxes I used to move my possessions – someone took away the mountains of cardboard I had amassed.

I sold a 10-year-old washing machine and it was collected within half an hour. It must have been too cheap.

I recently sold a Garmin running watch and a bed I no longer wanted; out the door, all cash in hand.

Many of us complain about not having enough money, but if you take a good hard look at what you do actually own, there’s a chance you could part ways with some of it.

Almost everyone has an old mobile phone sitting in a drawer. I sold two last year.

Putting items online is easy to do. It takes just a couple of minutes to upload a few neat photos and a short description of what it is you are trying to flog. And as they say in the classics, one man’s trash is another’s treasure.

@sophieelsworth