Retirement is a huge milestone and a big transition from a set schedule to more fun and fewer responsibilities. Whether you choose to spend more leisure time or volunteer for something you’re passionate about, you probably won’t need as much equipment and stuff in your life anymore.
You may be surprised at how much money you can make by selling these items which and supplement your Social Security. You'll also feel much lighter not having to maintain them or hold on to things you aren’t using.
Here are some ideas on the things you already own that you could sell for some extra cash.
Eliminate your late tax debt
Each year, the IRS forgives millions in unpaid taxes. If you have more than $10,000 in tax debt, or have 3+ years of unfiled taxes, you could get forgiveness too. You might be eligible to lower the amount you owe, or eliminate your tax debt completely.
Easy Tax Relief could help you lower or get out of your tax debt for good. They’re well respected in the industry and have been recognized for their ethical standards when dealing with tax debt. While most tax companies just put you on a payment plan and file your taxes for you, Easy Tax Relief talks to the IRS directly. They can help you pay off your tax debt faster while potentially reducing what you owe.
Important: Not everyone will qualify. To take advantage of this special program you must owe more than $10,000 in past-due taxes.
Fill out this form to get started
Toys and baby clothes
![baby clothes with diapers are stacked with a pacifier and a toy bear](https://cdn.financebuzz.com/filters:quality(75)/images/2022/06/10/baby_clothes_with_diapers_are_stacked_with_a_pacifier_and_a_toy_bear.jpg)
Nostalgia can be life-giving, but the stuff from when your kids were little is just taking up space.
Vintage toys may be worth more than you think, and you can sell them and use the money for entertainment for the next stage of your life. Baby clothes are just sitting there in boxes keeping you tied to them instead of to the memories of your kids. It’s time to let go of the actual clothes.
Pro tip: If you really can’t stand the thought of letting something go, at least make it something you can display and enjoy. Turn baby clothes into a quilt or display them framed so they won’t fade or get dusty. Small toys can go into a shadow box and be displayed where you can see it regularly.
Timeshares
![tropical townhomes](https://cdn.financebuzz.com/filters:quality(75)/images/2022/03/10/tropical_townhomes.jpg)
If you were paying regularly for a timeshare for yearly vacations, you might want to reevaluate whether you want to be tied to that location and expense anymore.
It may make more sense to sell the timeshare and use the money to buy a vacation house, move to a different location for your primary residence, buy an RV and go mobile, or explore different vacation locations.
To sell your timeshare, search for a real estate agent who specializes in timeshares, or sell it to a clearinghouse company that buys and sells timeshares.
Pro tip: Put together a collage of photos of your times in the timeshare. Or print out your bank statements with the costs of carrying and maintaining the timeshare and think about how much money you won’t be spending in the future.
Work clothes
![Mens suits on hangers in different colors](https://cdn.financebuzz.com/filters:quality(75)/images/2022/06/10/mens_suits_on_hangers_in_different_colors.jpg)
If you dress up for work, keep one or two pieces for attending events, but donate the rest to clothes closets that help job-seekers dress for the positions they want.
If you wore a uniform, your place of employment might buy them back, or sell or give them to other employees who wear those same uniforms.
Pro tip: You probably aren’t going to miss wearing work clothes, but if you find yourself missing the structure of work clothes, create a retirement “uniform” for yourself that feels comfortable and lets you do the things you want to do.
Earn $200 cash rewards bonus with this incredible card
There's a credit card that's making waves with its amazing bonus and benefits. The Wells Fargo Active Cash® Card(Rates and fees) has no annual fee and you can earn $200 after spending $500 in purchases in the first 3 months.
The Active Cash Card puts cash back into your wallet. Cardholders can earn unlimited 2% cash rewards on purchases — easy! That's one of the best cash rewards options available.
This card also offers an intro APR of 0% for 12 months from account opening on purchases and qualifying balance transfers (then 20.24%, 25.24%, or 29.99% Variable). Which is great for someone who wants a break from high interest rates, while still earning rewards.
The best part? There's no annual fee.
Cars
![For sale sign on windshield of car](https://cdn.financebuzz.com/filters:quality(75)/images/2022/06/07/for_sale_sign_on_windshield_of_car.jpg)
When your commute disappears, you may not need your car anymore, especially if you have another vehicle in your household.
Selling a car also means getting rid of insurance payments, gas, and all the other expenses that come with owning a car. And you can use that space in your garage to stage all the other items you’re going to get rid of as you downsize.
Pro tip: Buy a bike, scooter, or new walking shoes with some of the money you get from selling your car so you can be car-free in style.
Your house
![home for sale sign](https://cdn.financebuzz.com/filters:quality(75)/images/2022/05/03/home_for_sale_sign.jpg)
When you sell your house, you can downsize and go smaller in the same community or move to a community that takes care of maintenance and has amenities. Alternately, you might want to move someplace you’ve always wanted to live, buy a vacation home, or go mobile and travel around in an RV or rent houses for a few weeks or months at a time.
Selling your house gives you the location freedom to match the time freedom you’ll have once you’re not working a job. And if you’ve paid off your house or have been in it for a long time, the equity in your house could change the possibilities for your retirement.
Furniture
![Flea market](https://cdn.financebuzz.com/filters:quality(75)/images/2022/05/10/flea_market.jpg)
If you’re downsizing, you don’t need as much furniture, so sell it to someone who will use it. If you have valuable pieces and can access buyers who will pay the actual value of the furniture, you can make a significant amount by selling the furniture you won’t use during retirement.
Pro tip: Keep one or two pieces that have sentimental value, and choose buyers who really love the pieces they’re buying from you.
Retirement News: Almost 80% of Americans fear a retirement age increase — here’s the real reason why
Books
![books inside a box](https://cdn.financebuzz.com/filters:quality(75)/images/2022/06/10/books_inside_a_box.jpg)
This is a tough one, since a lot of us are in love with our books, and most mass-market books don’t have resale value. But if you’re downsizing and moving to a smaller space or changing to a more mobile lifestyle, books can take up space you just don’t have.
If you have true collectibles and early editions, selling them can be a legitimate way to make extra money. However, you’re better off donating books without collectible value than trying to sell them. Thrift shops may not take them, but a local used bookstore could give you store credit for donating books.
Or donate to a homeless shelter, domestic violence shelter, prison education project, teen after-school program, or language learner program. If your local library has a book sale, you can donate books for others to use.
Pro tip: Track the books you read in an app so you can have a record and remember your reads without having to keep the actual books.
Lawn care equipment
![gardening tools and lawn care equipment on green grass](https://cdn.financebuzz.com/filters:quality(75)/images/2022/06/10/gardening_tools_and_lawn_care_equipment_on_green_grass.jpg)
Odds are you won’t be mowing your own lawn every week once you’re retired, because you’ll have moved to someplace with yard maintenance, will be on the road, or will pay someone to do lawn maintenance for you. This is a great time to sell your yard equipment to someone who wants them.
Pro tip: Houseplants are easy to maintain and you can have someone check on them weekly if you’re traveling. Or get a plot in a community garden so you can grow vegetables in the summer but don’t have to maintain the entire yard all year.
Kitchen equipment
![Utensils for cooking classes on table in kitchen](https://cdn.financebuzz.com/filters:quality(75)/images/2022/06/10/utensils_for_cooking_classes_on_table_in_kitchen.jpg)
If you won’t be hosting big dinners and will be moving to a smaller kitchen space, selling or donating your big or specialty kitchen equipment makes a lot of sense.
Fondue pots, big food processors, canning gear, and other specialty items are all stuff people with the room for it would love — and that you can happily live without in your smaller space.
Pro tip: Practice and perfect a recipe for something impressive that doesn’t require any special equipment, like the perfect roast chicken, crispy scallion pancakes, or killer brownies.
If you’re over 50, take advantage of massive discounts and financial resources
Over 50? Join AARP today — because if you’re not a member you could be missing out on huge perks. When you start your membership today, you can get discounts on things like travel, meal deliveries, eyeglasses, prescriptions that aren’t covered by insurance and more.
How to become a member today:
- Go here, select your free gift, and click “Join Today”
- Create your account (important!) by answering a few simple questions
- Start enjoying your discounts and perks!
You’ll also get insider info on social security, job listings, caregiving, and retirement planning. And you’ll get access to AARP’s Fraud Watch Network to help you protect your money, as well as tools to help you plan for retirement.
Important: Start your membership by creating an account here and filling in all of the information (Do not skip this step!) Doing so will allow you to take up 25% off your AARP membership, making it just $12 per year with auto-renewal.
Bottom line
![Garage sale yard sale](https://cdn.financebuzz.com/filters:quality(75)/images/2022/06/10/garage_sale_yard_sale.jpg)
You’ve been planning for retirement for years, researching the top high-yield savings accounts, and exploring options for living in a meaningful way when you retire. Part of all your planning needs to include what objects you own to keep, and what to sell or donate.
There’s an opportunity cost to keeping items, along with an actual financial cost in finding space to store them, which is about $10 per square foot per month. Sell the things that will bring in enough money to be significant to you, and donate the rest.
Donating won’t give you cash, but it could give you a tax write-off and free you up to make more fulfilling choices for your retirement plans.
More from FinanceBuzz:
- 7 things to do if you’re barely scraping by financially.
- Are you a homeowner? Get a protection plan on all your appliances.
- 6 genius hacks Costco shoppers should know.
- Learn how you can escape the paycheck-to-paycheck grind.
Lucrative, Flat-Rate Cash Rewards
FinanceBuzz writers and editors score cards based on a number of objective features as well as our expert editorial assessment. Our partners do not influence how we rate products.
Wells Fargo Active Cash® Card
Current Offer
$200 cash rewards bonus after spending $500 in purchases in the first 3 months
Annual Fee
$0
Rewards Rate
Earn unlimited 2% cash rewards on purchases
Benefits
- Low spend threshold for its welcome offer — $200 cash rewards bonus after spending $500 in purchases in the first 3 months
- Cell phone protection benefit (subject to a $25 deductible)
- Can redeem rewards at an ATM for literal cash
Drawbacks
- Foreign transaction fee of 3%
- No bonus categories
- Select “Apply Now” to take advantage of this specific offer and learn more about product features, terms and conditions.
- Earn a $200 cash rewards bonus after spending $500 in purchases in the first 3 months.
- Earn unlimited 2% cash rewards on purchases.
- 0% intro APR for 12 months from account opening on purchases and qualifying balance transfers. 20.24%, 25.24%, or 29.99% Variable APR thereafter; balance transfers made within 120 days qualify for the intro rate and fee of 3% then a BT fee of up to 5%, min: $5.
- $0 annual fee.
- No categories to track or remember and cash rewards don’t expire as long as your account remains open.
- Find tickets to top sports and entertainment events, book travel, make dinner reservations and more with your complimentary 24/7 Visa Signature® Concierge.
- Up to $600 of cell phone protection against damage or theft. Subject to a $25 deductible.