How to Make Money Flipping Furniture
There are a lot of things that you can sell, including shoes, clothes, and furniture. Flipping furniture is becoming more and more popular. A lot of people are making some good money doing this. This blog post will tell you how to find furniture to flip and the best places to sell your pieces.
What is flipping furniture?
Flipping furniture is buying furniture at a very low price, repairing it, and putting it on the market again at a higher price. The process is very similar to real estate investing, but instead of buying land and selling it for a higher price, you buy up furniture and sell it for a higher price.
Buying Furniture
There is a sure strategy to buy furniture for a low price. When a person starts flipping a piece of furniture, he must find the best deals. The best deals could be from a thrift store or even from Craigslist. The furniture that you are looking for should be of good quality. However, it would be best if you made sure the condition of the furniture is in good condition. The best way to do this is by doing thorough research on identifying furniture with problems.
Where to buy used furniture to flip
If you are looking for furniture to flip, you can visit a few places.
Craigslist
Craigslist is the most popular place to buy cheap used furniture for flipping. Craigslist provides very low-cost used furniture pieces that you can flip for a profit.
Thrift stores
Thrift stores also provide easy and inexpensive options for finding used furniture. As with Craigslist, thrift stores offer you furniture for cheap. However, the only problem with thrift stores is that they mark up the prices a little higher to offset their operating costs.
Yard sales
Yard sales provide more low-cost options compared to thrift stores. The only problem with yard sales is that you may not get any furniture in good condition. However, this does not mean you cannot still flip the pieces. It would help if you kept an eye out for certain types of furniture in good condition but are being sold at a ridiculously low price.
Flea Markets
Flea markets are also great places to find furniture for flipping purposes. Feel free to haggle on the price because the vendors at flea markets expect you to go back and forth a little. Never pay the fee the seller asks without offering something less to see if they’ll accept it. At flea markets, you’ll find furniture in excellent condition for a low price.
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Here is what you need to begin repairing used furniture.
You need a workspace to repair the furniture
You need someplace to repair, sand, and paint the furniture after you buy it. Before working on the furniture, ensure you have a clean workspace. Make sure it is organized and organized.
A basement, garage, or spare room is sufficient. You need a dedicated area to stir up plenty of dust and debris. You can’t work on furniture in your kitchen or living room because of the dust, chemical smells, and all the loud noise you’ll create.
You’ll need the proper tools to restore furniture
We’re talking paint brushes, saws, and other standard tools such as hammers and screwdrivers. You’ll also need time to find the correct paint and paint thinner.
You don’t need to buy everything right away. Instead, start collecting these tools and supplies and find your niche in the market. These tools are a must because you’ll use them as a furniture flipper throughout your career.
Now let’s talk about the type of furniture you should buy
The key thing to understand is buying furniture with an existing market. You might like spice racks, but you’re out of luck if there’s no market for them. Here are a few popular furniture items you can start flipping.
Tables
Tables are one of the most manageable pieces of furniture to flip. For example, you could buy an old kitchen table for $50, fix it, and sell it for $150 or more. Coffee tables are also easy to flip.
Chairs
Chairs can either be a piece of art or a work of art. You can also sell antique chairs at a great price. You can even transform them into a unique piece of interior design. Dining room chairs are great to restore if you have a table that goes along with them. You’ll get more money by selling the complete set to someone who needs it.
You can also restore things like living room chairs, but they’re trickier because you must reupholster them. The same thing can be said of couches and loveseats. If you’re not handy with a sewing machine, you’ll probably want to avoid anything that requires sewing.
Dressers
Dressers are great for flipping because everyone needs a place to put their clothes. When you restore a dresser, add a little paint and add some other unique touches. You should be able to sell the dresser at a higher price. Ask yourself what type of person buys the kind of dresser you’re refinishing, and that will go a long way in helping you target the perfect buyer.
Entertainment Centers
Entertainment centers are great for flipping. Think about it. Most people have a television, a VHS player, DVD/Blu-Ray player somewhere in the home. The only problem with entertainment centers is that people rarely replace them. So, you can buy an old entertainment center, fix it up, and sell it for a handsome profit.
Storage Chests
A storage chest is one of those wooden boxes pirates love putting their treasure in. Yes, people still love using those chests, and many folks collect them. You might find a rare storage chest worth big bucks.
The trick is to find one that is in good condition. But if you find one, you can flip it for a nice profit. These can be difficult to find because they are hard to come by. However, if you do a good job restoring it, you can make some serious profits. Storage chests are items you can double your money on if you can buy them at low enough prices.
Where can you sell your furniture once you’ve restored it?
Selling your furniture is a vital aspect of this business. You need to be able to sell your furniture to make a profit. Here are some places where you can find buyers willing to pay you a fair price for your furniture.
Craigslist
Yes, you can use the site where you found the furniture to sell it once you’ve restored it. Craigslist is great if the furniture is in good shape and you’re not charging too much. You should be cautious of people who might not have the best intentions. Craigslist is well known for scammers and thieves who will rob you blind. However, you can find legit customers, and as long as you protect yourself, you’ll be fine.
eBay
eBay is among the most popular websites for buying and selling second-hand objects. This is where you can find buyers desperate to get their hands on something in good shape. You could also use eBay to sell the pieces you don’t want to flip anymore. If you have a garage full of projects you’ll never work on, you can sell those too.
You’ll want to target local customers on eBay unless you’re selling something small, like a chest that can be shipped through the mail. eBay isn’t the first choice for many furniture sellers, but it’s an option that will give you more chances to land a customer.
Flea Markets
Flea markets are another great place to find buyers. Often, the people who go to these markets are looking for good home furniture. If you want to make big money at flea markets, you’ll want to go with rare or unique items. That’ll help you get a better price.
Yard Sales
You can sell your furniture at a yard sale, though be aware that most people who go to these sales tend to want to haggle you to the point that it eats up your profit. You can put up signs throughout your neighborhood mentioning the yard sale, and selling something in your yard doesn’t cost anything. A yard sale is the best free option if you are okay with sitting outside all day while people who have no intent on buying anything stop by and look at what you have for sale.
Facebook Marketplace
Facebook Marketplace is a unique way to sell your items. It’s an extension of Facebook that allows you to sell things to people in your area. It works like Craigslist and eBay but can be accessed on Facebook. You can post what you have for sale and hopefully get some attention.
Now let’s turn our attention to the profit side of the business
It would help if you studied what restored furniture is going for in your area. You can do this by paying attention to where people sell furniture in your area. You can also use the internet to discover what furniture sells in your area. If you’re doing this, watch for items in good shape and how much the seller got for them.
You can also pay attention to the prices at flea markets for restored furniture and check out past auctions on eBay. You can see how many items went for in the past if you do an advanced eBay search.
The main factor in how much you charge will be how much you have into the item.
You must factor in your time, the cost of the supplies used to do the restoration, and how much you paid for the furniture. Ideally, it would be best to double your money on every piece of furniture you buy and restore.
It will take you some time before you can double your money on every flip. Sometimes your flip may turn out to be a flop, and you break even or lose a little. However, as you become more experienced at flipping furniture, you’ll be less likely to lose money in the long run.
Your time is the most valuable aspect of any restoring job
The furniture cost is essential, but your time is even more important. You need to figure out how much your time is worth and factor that into the price before you sell it or list it on eBay, Craigslist, or any other sales platform. Paying attention to how much your time is worth will help you earn the most money.
If you want to make money flipping furniture, this is a great way to make extra cash. You can make money even if you only sell one small piece of furniture occasionally.
It would help if you had a good eye for spotting furniture you think you can restore and sell quickly. As long as you can get a profit, it doesn’t matter how the profit is initially. It would be best if you got in the habit of flipping furniture to get to the point where you can start selling furniture for a significant profit.
If you love to work with wood, you can turn your passion into profit. If you’re a good craftsman willing to do the hard work, this could be a great way to make money. Furniture is one of those things that everyone needs, and some people are willing to pay top dollar for something that will make their home look fabulous.
So, if you’re looking for an exciting way to make money that will keep your hands and mind busy, flipping furniture is a great way to do it. Take a little time and learn the ropes, and you’ll be well on your way to seeing some green. Consider starting a furniture restoration service to restore furniture for people and make money that way too.
Jason Butler is the owner of My Money Chronicles, a website where he discusses personal finance, side hustles, travel, and more. Jason is from Atlanta, Georgia. He graduated from Savannah State University with his BA in Marketing. Jason has been featured in Forbes, Discover, and Investopedia.