eBay & Money

eBay is not free - not by a long shot. And it appears to be more expensive percentage wise for sellers of lower priced items. So imagine the exact opposite of a progressive system of taxation, and you'd be pretty close.

Be that as it may, we make a profit, and it's cheaper than maintaining a brick & mortar store down on Main Street. Even down on Main Street in Valdese.

This is what eBay does for us at this point, money wise. First, and most important, it pays for itself. The items we sell cover the listing fees, the final value fees, the PayPal fees, the fees for our store, the cost of envelopes & packaging supplies, printer ink & paper, plastic polypropylene sleeves we store postcards and photos in, tape and probably some other things I'm not thinking of.

The money we get from eBay also pays for what we spend on inventory - things we buy to re-sell. Inventory is not an 'expense', though it's not free. Inventory is an asset, if we don't sell it, it is our property. So the money we make on eBay covers our business related expenses and the cost of inventory.

It has been a long time since we actually lost money during a one month period. Sometimes when all the expenses are figured in there is not much left, but most of the time there is a significant amount left over. Not enough that we can splurge on an unneeded luxury or spend without any thought or concern, but enough to really help with household bills. If it wasn't there, we'd notice it.

And it goes a long way to keeping me from having to get a 'real' job - with any luck my days of having a 'real' job are over. In one sense, it is a lot of work for the amount of money it generates. Most people could not tolerate that - but things have worked so we're in a situation that we can. But the big benefits - not having to live a cubicle life, being able to set your own schedule, not having a boss of any kind - are hard to put a price tag on.

When I look back over the records I kept from 2007, I'm surprised we kept with it. There were some pretty dismal months. It took awhile for us to get to the point where the money we earn thru eBay would be noticeable if we didn't earn it. Perhaps I should be satisfied, but I'm not. My goal is to get it to the point where we can take a month's profits and splurge on an unneeded luxury if we want, at least every now and then. It'll be awhile.