New Year clear outs are always popular as we enter January and start to look ahead at the coming months. With Christmas over, many of us will be turning our attention to giving our homes an early spring clean. Decluttering (opens in new tab) unwanted items is always a brilliant place to start your New Year clear out. But it seems that it could pay to be a bit more cautious when it comes to throwing certain items away (opens in new tab).
Whether it’s an old book (opens in new tab), a once-beloved stuffed toy or even tech items, your old clutter has the potential to make you some serious money. You just have to be aware of what to look out for.
To help you out when it comes to making money from unused clutter, storage expert, Vlatka Lake from Space Station (opens in new tab), has revealed the old items you should look out for in your loft. These could sell for three, four, five and even six figure sums.
But do you have any of these items in your home?
What to look out for
Beanie Babies
Potential value: up to £350,000
These were incredibly popular back in the 90s. But if you still have some hanging around in your loft, don’t throw them away! A whole variety of the stuffed toys, including Peanut the Elephant and Peace Garcia, regularly go for four figure sums online. A 1997 bear commemorating Princess Diana once reportedly sold for a staggering £350,000.
Harry Potter Books
Potential value: up to £40,000
With so many people owning a complete set of the popular series, it’s worth holding on to them just in case. According to a list of criteria from Abe Books, original versions can sell from as little as £200 to over £40,000.
Old money
Potential value: up to £300
It’s well worth examining old copper jars for rare coins as 20 pence pieces with no date on them and two pence coins from 1983 with the words ‘New Pence’ on them, can sell for hundreds of pounds. The old £10 note is due to go out of circulation on 1st March too, so it’s worth searching to see if you have any old notes lying around as well.
Lego
Potential value: up to £7,000
Lego is one of the most popular children’s toys across the world and plenty of households are bound to have old boxes of it. There is a big demand for rare individual Lego blocks. However, old Lego sets can also sell for a lot more now than when they were new. The 2007 edition of the Star Wars Millennium Falcon has been available on Amazon for more than £7,000 which is 20 times its original value.
Tech
Potential value: up to £500
Though some may believe tech loses value as it gets older, many classic games consoles and music devices hold their worth. They can also sometimes sell for big money. The resurgence in popularity of record players has seen their price rocket, and old games consoles such as the SNES or Nintendo 64 can now sell for several hundreds of pounds. Old Apple products are also worth looking for – an iPod Classic in mint condition can be sold for more than £200.
Where could you sell old items?
There are plenty of places to sell your old items and sites such as eBay and Amazon give sellers access to thousands of potential buyers from all over the world. Some websites also specialise in buying certain specific items such as coins or books. Above all, it’s important to do your research and compare various sites to ensure you get the best price if you’re selling online.
What should you keep hold of?
If you don’t have any items that could potentially make you some money in today’s market, it’s also worth looking out for items that are predicted to increase in value in the future. First edition versions of modern books are a good thing to keep an eye out for.
(opens in new tab)The Da Vinci Code and Game of Thrones are tipped to increase in value over the coming years. Original versions of tech like the Amazon Echo could also possibly make you money in years to come if you hold on to it, as might first edition PlayStations and Xboxes.
So if you’re thinking of doing your own New Year clear out, remember to keep an eye out!
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