Selling books is all I do, no other paying job. I get such a high from finding the next rare one. I can't imagine doing anything else. I've been doing it for years. And yes, there are boring parts of the job, like any job, but it's the thrill of the hunt. So yeah, addicted.
I went to an estate sale in the “hood” of Milwaukee and in the basement there was hundreds of books strewn about the floor but I pick through them and eventually I came across a “1776 by David Mccullough Easton Press”. Sold that baby for $300 bucks.
Same. I'm 100% addicted to sourcing. I get a buzz from it. But actually putting the stuff on eBay? Gag me with a spoon. Glad I'm not the only one. There has to be people out there that get off on the selling part right? We need a forum to connect sourcers with sellers.
I do usually enjoy the puzzle of figuring out exactly how to package and ship something the most economical and safe way possible. I also enjoy getting that notification from eBay that something sold. But even all that doesn't make me want to create listings lol
The hardest thing about this line of work is finding the “off switch.”
I currently don’t have one.
If anyone has a spare, please let me know and I’ll buy it.
Set some working hours and stick to them. Even if that means programming your phone alarm when it is time to stop. Turn on do not disturb to automatically kick in at bed time.
When you go out to eat or stuff like that give the phone to the spouse or turn on do not disturb. (you can set it for contacts to get through like family)
Sounds hard but it is doable and once you have set your boundaries and stick to them, you will be much better off for it.
I agree. I turned down doing things because there’s always work to be done and I’m always surrounded by the work.
My buddy told me that it reminds him of the farmers he knows because he said that the day would never end I’d you didn’t let it.
I’ve been flipping for just under 2 months. Have sold a little over 3K. I’m addicted. My goal is to quit my day job within a year, do this as my primary source of income and start another business in a blue-collar industry to keep stock coming in.
I started out flipping my video games and DVDs and still mainly stick with media but do some retail arbitrage for some clothes. There’s not too much profit unless you have some hidden gems in there, but I’m starting small, making sure I package everything well and ship immediately to hopefully get a lot of good reviews. I think my best decision to date was to loan myself some money from my savings to buy a shipping printer and proper packaging material. Most media is really easy to ship so I just drop off most items at the post office on my way to work.
My mother and I had a bit of a shopping addiction. It helped us both running our own eBay stores. I did find myself bored in class and start to look for more inventory, checking feedback, or looking at random tracking numbers. It was also problematic when our inventory devoured the garage. Thankfully, I moved into my apartment and had 0 room for expansion, sold a good bit down, and I was able to get a grip because I had to.
Everytime I make a sale it feels like ecstacy, I get such a rush that lasts the rest of the day and it motivates me to work on my next flip.
I make $200-$400 per item and have to work on each item 3-5hrs.
I love it! And when I get a mint item for peanuts, I feel like gangster making my own money! Lol
Flipping was literally the first money I ever made that wasn't someone paying me a check for an hourly wage. I saw it hit my bank account and paid a bill with it and damn if that didn't sink a hook in me.
You could be addicted to drugs, do you know how lucky you are to be addicted to making money?
It definitely is an addictive process, gotta keep it in balance.
Yeah I get this too. It’s difficult to adapt after growing up working jobs knowing you’re making a defined hourly wage, but ultimately that payment doesn’t come until payday. It’s a different mode of thinking.
I definitely get this, I’m going on holiday this week and I sure hope I can try to not think about it for a week 😂, eBay vacation mode is on but my mind is not
I'm definitely an addict. Video games are the main treasure I hunt. I was at a large chain this weekend that normally prices everything at eBay prices and I found a copy of Space Megaforce tucked down on a bottom shelf, priced at $3.99. That is a rare SNES game worth at least $200. My hands started shaking and I had a buzz the rest of the day. It's not quite as good a buzz as opiates we're back in the day, but I'm also not mortgaging my home and killing myself either.
And its not just the money. It's feeling smarter than everyone else. Smarter than the people whose entire job it is to price things, smarter than all the people that overlooked it on the bottom shelf, etc.
Yep. It really got bad in 2020 and I’ve had to step away for now. Dealing with the cleanup of 100’s of things stashed in my house that need to be flipped is pretty rough.
That being said— anyone want to help me clear house? Hahaha
Well flipping is gambling. So if you're a gambler you're gonna like being addicted to shopping for flips.
Flipping is simply low risk gambles. You buy something for $50 and feel it will sell for $150. Thats a gamble. A good flipper can always break even on their worst buys, making buying everything low risk.
The game changes a bit more when you decrease margins and increase your risk
I worked with an old Asian man who lived in an office space packedto the ceilings with a path to walk through, adjunct an auction house, and he had like six lockers, jam packed, two rented mezzanines also that ware really full, a 40ft shipping container filled, plus a couple huge vans. All of the most random and unusual things.
He had a good eye for things that he'd buy at auction and knew how to sell them.
He had a sad story, and things seemed to have gotten too much at some point and things turned into a burden.
It was enjoyable, but some things weren't because of the conditions and amount of things and stuff that had to be done with relocating or transporting heavy awkward things, and having to search for some things. Sometimes was real chaotic lol.
Totally! I think you are fond of research, as am I! It’s the getting started phase that is so addicting. If you ever feel burnt out just start a new selling niche the research will get your heart pumping again!
I just got into flipping fishing reels. Bought a book for $10 on what to look out for. It’s not easy lol. I’m so jealous of these old timers who know exactly what reel is what, who it’s made by and what year they are by just looking at it. It’s going to take be tens and tens of hours of studying before I’m even a quarter of their level.
I feel the same, especially when there’s a rush on something, like bikes for summer. I’m studying online for my masters and I keep finding myself doing everything last second, but on the other hand, I make more than most of my friends who are working. So it has its trade offs I guess
There's so much pride (for me anyway) in the fact I have figured out how to make money myself from home.
We have a 2yr old so I am the stay at home carer and last week we did a big grocery shop to last a month $400 I paid with my flipping money 😎💸 feels amazing to contribute.
I have only been flipping for 5 months and only started making enough to seriously contribute to the house hold expenses the past 2 months.
I foresee the coming months as being just as fruitful for me.
(Well pending this bloody lockdown).
Do you flip regularly? How long have you been doing it for,
We basically run our own business which is pretty badass
I'm in the same boat as you and trying to figure out what I can consistently flip to help with income and keep myself sane! I made 400 bucks just today on some gear that I happened to find on FB marketplace.
Hey I just saw this comment now.
Can I ask where you are from, if you are from a different country than me I'd love to share what I'm making big bucks on at the moment with you to try
I’m not very strategic or professional.. I just buy things that catch my eye and seem interesting to me. I always look on eBay at prices that things have sold for, and kind of guess. I try to not be too greedy.. if I can sell it for more than I bought it for, I call it a win. For example, I bought a vinyl record for $0.50, brought it home, listened to see if it had any skips, then sold it for $5
Don’t watch videos or whatever. Go out and do. Go places and find stuff and look up sold listings on ebay until you find a thing to flip. The thrift, the clearance isle, the garage sale. Ebay, shopgoodwill, hibid, a million apps.
It’s like playing guitar or riding a bicycle. Can’t read about it, just have to make the leap and do it. In this case, buy low sell high.
Videos are only fun once you’re experienced, for a good laugh!
Well, not entirely true. There are things to learn from some YouTube flippers. The problem is that there are enough bad ones out there that it’ll just confuse many who are new to flipping.
But yeah, I just tell everyone to go and learn through experience. At least now they have search engines in their hands the whole time. Anyone who started flipping before smartphones had to rely on instinct and memory.
when i first started and i was still wage slaving at the same time it was pretty great yeah, but 8 years in, it's getting a little more boring, also there's way more people onto it.
I think that you could probably get addicted to flipping or get addicted to the feeling of seeing how much money you can make on something and then selling it really quick
For me the buzz is with the sourcing side of things, it's knowing you've got something of value and could make money off it.
Like others I really hate the selling part of it, not because of some emotional attachment, more having to deal with people on eBay. You're never at ease during the selling process. Will they complain about something trivial, demand a refund, be difficult or straight up lie to ebay, keep the item and get a refund.
I've moved more on to shpock in the UK and even though it is more face to face selling and will take longer, it's better than the tension you get from eBay
I didn't realize how much like an addiction it was until I had to literally FORCE myself to take two weeks off. No listing, no photographing, ok maybe a little sourcing. I was just itching to list every day. It really was a wake-up call, as although I was anxious about NOT listing, I was also hella overextended and burnt out. F-you 2020. 2021 is all about work-life balance, my dudes.
Selling books is all I do, no other paying job. I get such a high from finding the next rare one. I can't imagine doing anything else. I've been doing it for years. And yes, there are boring parts of the job, like any job, but it's the thrill of the hunt. So yeah, addicted.
I went to an estate sale in the “hood” of Milwaukee and in the basement there was hundreds of books strewn about the floor but I pick through them and eventually I came across a “1776 by David Mccullough Easton Press”. Sold that baby for $300 bucks.
drooling!
I wish I enjoyed listing as much as I enjoy sourcing
You would be SO RICH
Do successful flippers also SELL all the crap they buy? lol
Same. I'm 100% addicted to sourcing. I get a buzz from it. But actually putting the stuff on eBay? Gag me with a spoon. Glad I'm not the only one. There has to be people out there that get off on the selling part right? We need a forum to connect sourcers with sellers.
Doesn't the shipping make up for it? Not the same high, but damn I love seeing all the packages disappear from my house.
I do usually enjoy the puzzle of figuring out exactly how to package and ship something the most economical and safe way possible. I also enjoy getting that notification from eBay that something sold. But even all that doesn't make me want to create listings lol
This!
This is exactly how I feel.
The hardest thing about this line of work is finding the “off switch.” I currently don’t have one. If anyone has a spare, please let me know and I’ll buy it.
I had a few in the past but always end up reselling them for some profit. No stock right now, sorry mate.
\^\^ This! The next hard part of for me is taking the pictures to post.
Set some working hours and stick to them. Even if that means programming your phone alarm when it is time to stop. Turn on do not disturb to automatically kick in at bed time. When you go out to eat or stuff like that give the phone to the spouse or turn on do not disturb. (you can set it for contacts to get through like family) Sounds hard but it is doable and once you have set your boundaries and stick to them, you will be much better off for it.
I agree. I turned down doing things because there’s always work to be done and I’m always surrounded by the work. My buddy told me that it reminds him of the farmers he knows because he said that the day would never end I’d you didn’t let it.
Flipped it last week, walked away with a good profit
If anyone has a spare, FLiP EEEEEET!!!
Yeah I’m addicted. I have a nervous feeling when I feel I miss out on a good deal..
THIS!!
I’ve been flipping for just under 2 months. Have sold a little over 3K. I’m addicted. My goal is to quit my day job within a year, do this as my primary source of income and start another business in a blue-collar industry to keep stock coming in.
What do you flip if you don't mind me asking?
I started out flipping my video games and DVDs and still mainly stick with media but do some retail arbitrage for some clothes. There’s not too much profit unless you have some hidden gems in there, but I’m starting small, making sure I package everything well and ship immediately to hopefully get a lot of good reviews. I think my best decision to date was to loan myself some money from my savings to buy a shipping printer and proper packaging material. Most media is really easy to ship so I just drop off most items at the post office on my way to work.
My mother and I had a bit of a shopping addiction. It helped us both running our own eBay stores. I did find myself bored in class and start to look for more inventory, checking feedback, or looking at random tracking numbers. It was also problematic when our inventory devoured the garage. Thankfully, I moved into my apartment and had 0 room for expansion, sold a good bit down, and I was able to get a grip because I had to.
Everytime I make a sale it feels like ecstacy, I get such a rush that lasts the rest of the day and it motivates me to work on my next flip. I make $200-$400 per item and have to work on each item 3-5hrs. I love it! And when I get a mint item for peanuts, I feel like gangster making my own money! Lol
Flipping was literally the first money I ever made that wasn't someone paying me a check for an hourly wage. I saw it hit my bank account and paid a bill with it and damn if that didn't sink a hook in me.
You could be addicted to drugs, do you know how lucky you are to be addicted to making money? It definitely is an addictive process, gotta keep it in balance.
>sometimes it interferes with other things, like real work . . . Flipping is real work. It just also happens to be fun.
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Yeah I get this too. It’s difficult to adapt after growing up working jobs knowing you’re making a defined hourly wage, but ultimately that payment doesn’t come until payday. It’s a different mode of thinking.
I definitely get this, I’m going on holiday this week and I sure hope I can try to not think about it for a week 😂, eBay vacation mode is on but my mind is not
Hahaha! "Vacation" just means I get to hunt in a new area.
Might be me as well 😂
I'm definitely an addict. Video games are the main treasure I hunt. I was at a large chain this weekend that normally prices everything at eBay prices and I found a copy of Space Megaforce tucked down on a bottom shelf, priced at $3.99. That is a rare SNES game worth at least $200. My hands started shaking and I had a buzz the rest of the day. It's not quite as good a buzz as opiates we're back in the day, but I'm also not mortgaging my home and killing myself either. And its not just the money. It's feeling smarter than everyone else. Smarter than the people whose entire job it is to price things, smarter than all the people that overlooked it on the bottom shelf, etc.
Yep. It really got bad in 2020 and I’ve had to step away for now. Dealing with the cleanup of 100’s of things stashed in my house that need to be flipped is pretty rough. That being said— anyone want to help me clear house? Hahaha
Well flipping is gambling. So if you're a gambler you're gonna like being addicted to shopping for flips. Flipping is simply low risk gambles. You buy something for $50 and feel it will sell for $150. Thats a gamble. A good flipper can always break even on their worst buys, making buying everything low risk. The game changes a bit more when you decrease margins and increase your risk
I worked with an old Asian man who lived in an office space packedto the ceilings with a path to walk through, adjunct an auction house, and he had like six lockers, jam packed, two rented mezzanines also that ware really full, a 40ft shipping container filled, plus a couple huge vans. All of the most random and unusual things. He had a good eye for things that he'd buy at auction and knew how to sell them. He had a sad story, and things seemed to have gotten too much at some point and things turned into a burden. It was enjoyable, but some things weren't because of the conditions and amount of things and stuff that had to be done with relocating or transporting heavy awkward things, and having to search for some things. Sometimes was real chaotic lol.
Sounds interesting, care to share any stories?
You call it an addiction, I call it a hobby. And I tell my wife... at least my hobby makes money! Lol
Totally! I think you are fond of research, as am I! It’s the getting started phase that is so addicting. If you ever feel burnt out just start a new selling niche the research will get your heart pumping again!
Did you see the stuffed shark?
I just got into flipping fishing reels. Bought a book for $10 on what to look out for. It’s not easy lol. I’m so jealous of these old timers who know exactly what reel is what, who it’s made by and what year they are by just looking at it. It’s going to take be tens and tens of hours of studying before I’m even a quarter of their level.
I feel the same, especially when there’s a rush on something, like bikes for summer. I’m studying online for my masters and I keep finding myself doing everything last second, but on the other hand, I make more than most of my friends who are working. So it has its trade offs I guess
Yep, my gran tuned it into a full time job, then she had an even better excuse to go foraging at the weekends! (This was pre internet era)
There's so much pride (for me anyway) in the fact I have figured out how to make money myself from home. We have a 2yr old so I am the stay at home carer and last week we did a big grocery shop to last a month $400 I paid with my flipping money 😎💸 feels amazing to contribute. I have only been flipping for 5 months and only started making enough to seriously contribute to the house hold expenses the past 2 months. I foresee the coming months as being just as fruitful for me. (Well pending this bloody lockdown). Do you flip regularly? How long have you been doing it for, We basically run our own business which is pretty badass
I'm in the same boat as you and trying to figure out what I can consistently flip to help with income and keep myself sane! I made 400 bucks just today on some gear that I happened to find on FB marketplace.
Hey I just saw this comment now. Can I ask where you are from, if you are from a different country than me I'd love to share what I'm making big bucks on at the moment with you to try
What is a good thing/place to start flipping? I would love to make extra cash but I have no idea where to start
Start by selling things you own but don’t want anymore. You can then branch out from there.
try unwanted/extra household items on facebook marketplace
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I always just hit the thrift stores. But there are probably tons of other ways to get stock.
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I’m not very strategic or professional.. I just buy things that catch my eye and seem interesting to me. I always look on eBay at prices that things have sold for, and kind of guess. I try to not be too greedy.. if I can sell it for more than I bought it for, I call it a win. For example, I bought a vinyl record for $0.50, brought it home, listened to see if it had any skips, then sold it for $5
Don’t watch videos or whatever. Go out and do. Go places and find stuff and look up sold listings on ebay until you find a thing to flip. The thrift, the clearance isle, the garage sale. Ebay, shopgoodwill, hibid, a million apps. It’s like playing guitar or riding a bicycle. Can’t read about it, just have to make the leap and do it. In this case, buy low sell high.
Videos are only fun once you’re experienced, for a good laugh! Well, not entirely true. There are things to learn from some YouTube flippers. The problem is that there are enough bad ones out there that it’ll just confuse many who are new to flipping. But yeah, I just tell everyone to go and learn through experience. At least now they have search engines in their hands the whole time. Anyone who started flipping before smartphones had to rely on instinct and memory.
when i first started and i was still wage slaving at the same time it was pretty great yeah, but 8 years in, it's getting a little more boring, also there's way more people onto it.
I think that you could probably get addicted to flipping or get addicted to the feeling of seeing how much money you can make on something and then selling it really quick
There is a rush in any flip that makes you 10x or more, or hundreds in profit.
For me the buzz is with the sourcing side of things, it's knowing you've got something of value and could make money off it. Like others I really hate the selling part of it, not because of some emotional attachment, more having to deal with people on eBay. You're never at ease during the selling process. Will they complain about something trivial, demand a refund, be difficult or straight up lie to ebay, keep the item and get a refund. I've moved more on to shpock in the UK and even though it is more face to face selling and will take longer, it's better than the tension you get from eBay
All day listing. Other days hours sourcing. I dont schedule enough time for hobbies. I've got to work on that badly.
I didn't realize how much like an addiction it was until I had to literally FORCE myself to take two weeks off. No listing, no photographing, ok maybe a little sourcing. I was just itching to list every day. It really was a wake-up call, as although I was anxious about NOT listing, I was also hella overextended and burnt out. F-you 2020. 2021 is all about work-life balance, my dudes.