Tuesday, May 27, 2008

Selling "Stuff"

I've been on a stuff-selling spree. Just today I (think I) sold the twin bed and boxspring that's sitting out in the garage for $60. The lady is coming tonight around 6. She says she is pretty sure she wants it; I want her to inspect it and make sure that she's entirely happy before she drives away.

I have a debate about what to do with this "found" money from selling our items.

Smart Thing To Do 1: Put this money towards debt.
Smart Thing To Do 2: Put this money in our Orange account and use it to buy other stuff.

Okay, 2 doesn't sound all that smart when phrased that way. I just reread it and went, "oh my." Here's what I really mean: There are certain things that we need or will need to buy. Whether it's for an individual, the adults, the baby, or the household in general, it's almost impossible to get buy without buying more stuff at some point.

An example would be new straps for my husband's knee brace. The VA will pay a thousand dollars towards replacing the whole thing but refuses to pay a hundred dollars to replace the straps when they wear out, which is once every few years. It's not something that happens on a regular basis and it's hard to find money each month to save towards. We feel it's not right to waste money like that so we pay the $100.

Another example would be tires on the older car. (PS: I LOVE my new car! So does mom!) We shouldn't need them for awhile, but it's very easy to hit the edge of a curb or run over a nail here in FL and end up needing repairs to the tires or entirely new tires. I'd prefer to have money set aside rather than draining our fabulous emergency fund. You know?

So I'm thinking that having a "stuff fund" would be a neat idea. If we have something we really want or need we have to raise money by getting rid of stuff we aren't using. This helps to manage both our pile of stuff as well as our budget.

Where do you apply your "stuff" money?

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