Freecycle & Gumtree

purple1969

Hi all,

From time to time I've picked things up on both Freecycle and Gumtree that I've eBay'd.

Can anyone recommend any other sites like these?

lisawood78

That isn't really in the spirit of Freecycle as i'm sure you are aware.

purple1969

lisawood78 wrote: »

That isn't really in the spirit of Freecycle as i'm sure you are aware.

I'm not running a business from this and anyone posting on these sites has the option of eBaying their items first. I'm currently unemployed and life is tough. So please get off your high horse.

lisawood78

I am entitled to my opinion and as this is a public forum I will voice it as such. I have added you to my ignore list so will bid you farewell.

purple1969

lisawood78 wrote: »

I am entitled to my opinion and as this is a public forum I will voice it as such. I have added you to my ignore list so will bid you farewell.

It is all very well taking the moral high ground when you have food on the table. When I worked and need to get rid of things I always took it to my local hospice so someone else got the benefit from it, but now I need a little extra cash to make ends meet and don't see anything wrong in it. Yes you're entitled to your option but all I've done is ask a straightforward question and wasn't expecting some stuck up answer. I hope you never fall on hard times and have to reevaluate your morals.

[Deleted User]

what about craigslist and friday ads

purple1969

ilikethesimpsons wrote: »

what about craigslist and friday ads

Thanks for that.

Another couple of useful sites I've found are 'I Love Freegle' and a cheap site to buy from is 'Preloved'.

Pembroke

I'm with Lisa on the subject of Freecycle, people advertise stuff on there on the expectation that the item they give away will be used by the person they give it to and then passed onto someone else who will use it themselves and not sell it on, but if you tell people that's what you intend to do with the items they give you then there's no problem as they can refuse to give you the item.

Other places to look would be your local free newspapers, vivastreet, local paid for newspapers and if you really get into the buy to sell lark the 'wholesale and job lots' category on Ebay, but please see below.

However BE CAREFUL as buying to sell in they eyes of the law makes you a self employed trader, you must register as sell employed with HMRC and you must tell the DWP of you change of circumstances if you're currently claiming benefit. Don't think that they won't find out as anyone in your local area who sees you with a bit of money and still on benefits can phone the confidential number. It's not all bad though as if you put in sufficient hours per week then you can still claim working tax credit. Good luck you'll be out doing boot fairs next :-)

loztiggy

I gave away a table to a person through freegle and promptly saw it appear on ebay when looking for its replacement.... suffice to say I wasnt happy as they had spin me the "poor with nothing" line, Some freegles ban users for doing that if they dont state thats what they are doing. They got £40 for it. I wanted it to go to a needy home where it would be loved and used, by someone who couldnt afford £40, not sold on for profit.

Norman_Castle

Freecycle exists to keep usable items out of landfill. If you are asking for or accepting items from other freecyclers for resale you are expected to be honest about your reason for wanting the item.

purple1969

Pembroke wrote: »

I'm with Lisa on the subject of Freecycle, people advertise stuff on there on the expectation that the item they give away will be used by the person they give it to and then passed onto someone else who will use it themselves and not sell it on, but if you tell people that's what you intend to do with the items they give you then there's no problem as they can refuse to give you the item.

I've always found human nature to be interesting and how the scale of an action can move something from being shrewd to being unacceptable. To give you an example of what I mean this site promotes 'tarting', as I'm sure you know the moving of the balance on your credit card to a 0% interest card and its seen as a very good idea. But by doing so you stop the big organisation behind the card from making money from interest charges, they're giving you 1000's for nothing and thats shrewd and savvy and yes that's something I do to. But scale that down to a one to one basis and it becomes unacceptable and I've never worked why, if they can't afford to give it away then why are they and surely once an item is someone else's possession then its up to them what they do with it. I did think it's because of intent, that you know your going to sell it but the same could be said about tarting as you know you're doing it to not have to pay any interest.

I also find carboots can be awkward. Many times I've seen someone on tv brag about buying something for 75p knowing it was worth 100's and we all sit there and think lucky sod wish that would happen to me. But they never tell the seller that the item is worth considerably more and that they should get it valued, no they rip their arm off and leggit. But isn't that morally wrong? Human nature again.

But thank you for your point about being self employed, I can honestly say I hadn't considered that or more than likely hadn't wanted to consider it. I shall look into where I stand in law. Wise words indeed thank you.

loztiggy wrote: »

I gave away a table to a person through freegle and promptly saw it appear on ebay when looking for its replacement.... suffice to say I wasnt happy as they had spin me the "poor with nothing" line, Some freegles ban users for doing that if they dont state thats what they are doing. They got £40 for it. I wanted it to go to a needy home where it would be loved and used, by someone who couldnt afford £40, not sold on for profit.

This is one of the problems of giving things away, you don't have any control over what happens to them. But you can give things away knowing what will happen to them if you give them to your local hospice or charity. I always took things I no longer needed to my local Mary Stevens Hospice as they do remarkable work and constantly need funding. they sell it on so somebody gets a bargain and the hospice can continue caring for people.