Turn your second-hand items into a quick money-making exercise

Marie Kondo set the world on fire with her approach to tidying up your home - but decluttering can also help you make some serious money.

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 all clear out our cupboards and discard of 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 with them.

But not without trying to make a quick buck first.

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This is when I put my money-saving hat and worked out how I can 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 egg-shaped thing with two wheels — $1500 later and 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 and hopefully they are given to someone in need, there are other either items I know I can make a few dollars from.

Tidiness guru Marie Kondo gives Otti Logan, 16, a folding lesson. Picture: Joanne Rathe/The Boston Globe via Getty Images

If you do a quick zip around your home chances are you’ll be able to fill up a washing basket in no time of items with things you don’t want or need.

When I first moved into my apartment I sold old wall heaters that I didn’t want and got some cash for blinds that I pulled down the minute I moved in. They were so ugly that 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 first and 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 way too cheap.

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

And now I’ve got a pile of items ready to go out the door.

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.

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

Putting items online is easy to do. It takes just a couple of minutes to upload a few neat photos and short description of what it is you are trying to flog.

And as they say, one man’s trash is another man’s treasure.

@sophieelsworth

Originally published as Turn your second-hand items into a quick money-making exercise