{"id":285,"date":"2021-10-15T06:23:16","date_gmt":"2021-10-15T06:23:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/yardsalesearch.com\/blog\/?p=285"},"modified":"2023-01-17T01:05:10","modified_gmt":"2023-01-17T01:05:10","slug":"paying-taxes-on-garage-sales-navigating-the-legalities","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/yardsalesearch.com\/blog\/paying-taxes-on-garage-sales-navigating-the-legalities\/","title":{"rendered":"Paying Taxes On Garage Sales \u2013 Navigating the Legalities"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t<div data-elementor-type=\"wp-post\" data-elementor-id=\"285\" class=\"elementor elementor-285\" data-elementor-settings=\"[]\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-section-wrap\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-859df0a elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"859df0a\" data-element_type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-3e51c92\" data-id=\"3e51c92\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-be40a57 elementor-widget elementor-widget-html\" data-id=\"be40a57\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"html.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t<iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/anchor.fm\/yss-podcast\/embed\/episodes\/Paying-Taxes-On-Garage-Sales--Navigating-the-Legalities-e1r3i4q\" height=\"102px\" width=\"400px\" frameborder=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\"><\/iframe>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cba716e elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"cba716e\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>From getting rid of clutter to socializing with your community, we all love to hold and attend a good garage sale! There is another aspect to the sale, though: money. If we were strictly against receiving any money for our old stuff, we might call them garage donations\u2014but we certainly don\u2019t! Of course, nobody is upset about making a quick buck or two in exchange for letting go of things we don\u2019t use anymore, but there is one uncomfortable topic to navigate whenever money comes up. Taxes.<\/p><p>Taxes 101 tells us that you technically have to report any sort of income you have throughout the year, but as we\u2019re all well aware, things aren\u2019t always that straightforward, especially when it comes to taxes. So, do you have to pay taxes on your garage sale income? Are you a federal criminal for not doing so thus far? Is living on the edge just another benefit of the almighty garage sale?<\/p><h2>The simple answer<\/h2><p>No\u2014most people don\u2019t have to pay taxes on their garage sale income. The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hrblock.com\/tax-center\/income\/other-income\/capital-gains-garage-sale\/\">loophole<\/a> here is that most people sell their garage sale items at a lower price than what they originally paid. This means that there is a personal loss rather than a capital gain. In other words, if you bought a pair of headphones for $200 years ago and sold them for $50 last Sunday, you didn\u2019t actually make $50, you lost (a non-deductible) $150\u2014as far as the IRS is concerned. As long as your garage sales operate in this way, selling items for less than you originally paid, you probably don\u2019t owe anybody anything.<\/p><h2>The more complicated answer<\/h2><p>Most people are only going to have occasional garage sales and sell their items at a relative loss\u2014if this doesn\u2019t sound like you, though, there might be some nuance to consider.<\/p><p>The first point is to consider actual capital gains. If you have an item that has appreciated in value, a garage sale is probably not the place to let go of it anyway, but that profit would need to be declared! Gifts are another sneaky item that might fall into this picture. If you\u2019re selling some old golf clubs that your brother gifted you some time ago, you technically didn\u2019t pay anything for those clubs, so any amount you sell them for will likely be a capital gain.<\/p><p>Also, if you make a habit of repairing or refurbishing items in order to sell them again, this might be considered a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hrblock.com\/tax-center\/income\/other-income\/capital-gains-garage-sale\/\">hobby or a business<\/a>. If you only sell items occasionally, and also don\u2019t do so with the intent to profit, you might be considered a hobbyist. Here, you might actually be able to deduct some of your expenses. If you sell more often and with the intent of profit, then you might be considered a business. Here, you will have to declare the profit, but business tax benefits can help you declare a net loss.<\/p><p>If you\u2019re in these more technical waters, and especially if you\u2019re bringing in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.yardsalesearch.com\/article-how-much-money-can-you-earn-from-garage-sale.html\">quite a bit of cash<\/a>, it\u2019s important to talk to a tax professional to iron out the details. Here at Yard Sale Search, we\u2019re a (self-proclaimed) authority on all things Yard Sale, but the intricacies of taxes are a little bit outside our forte! Living on the edge or not, long live the yard sale!<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-74542b0 elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"74542b0\" data-element_type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-167ddf9\" data-id=\"167ddf9\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-1789cf5 elementor-widget-divider--view-line elementor-widget elementor-widget-divider\" data-id=\"1789cf5\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"divider.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-divider\">\n\t\t\t<span class=\"elementor-divider-separator\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-5086b2a elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"5086b2a\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>Yard Sale Search is the most popular platform to post your yard sales and garage sales online. If you want to get maximum visibility on the web, then you need to\u00a0<a style=\"background-color: #ffffff;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.yardsalesearch.com\/sale\/manage\/intro\">post your yard sale<\/a>\u00a0with us.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-a8d3e7d elementor-align-center elementor-widget elementor-widget-button\" data-id=\"a8d3e7d\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"button.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-button-wrapper\">\n\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.yardsalesearch.com\/sale\/manage\/intro\" class=\"elementor-button-link elementor-button elementor-size-lg\" role=\"button\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"elementor-button-content-wrapper\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"elementor-button-text\">Post Your Yard Sale<\/span>\n\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-63759ef elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"63759ef\" data-element_type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-d7d54b7\" data-id=\"d7d54b7\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-4ade13f elementor-aspect-ratio-169 elementor-widget elementor-widget-video\" data-id=\"4ade13f\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-settings=\"{&quot;youtube_url&quot;:&quot;https:\\\/\\\/youtu.be\\\/DMeoGrZuawI&quot;,&quot;video_type&quot;:&quot;youtube&quot;,&quot;controls&quot;:&quot;yes&quot;,&quot;aspect_ratio&quot;:&quot;169&quot;}\" data-widget_type=\"video.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-wrapper elementor-fit-aspect-ratio elementor-open-inline\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-video\"><\/div>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-36d4eaf7 elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"36d4eaf7\" data-element_type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-55ad38a\" data-id=\"55ad38a\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-19d2b435 elementor-widget-divider--view-line elementor-widget elementor-widget-divider\" data-id=\"19d2b435\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"divider.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-divider\">\n\t\t\t<span class=\"elementor-divider-separator\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-49351096 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"49351096\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t<h3 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Subscribe to the Yard Sale Search Podcast<\/h3>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-6cf4955b elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"6cf4955b\" data-element_type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-25 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-3d853b1b\" data-id=\"3d853b1b\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-87c7990 elementor-widget elementor-widget-image\" data-id=\"87c7990\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"image.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/music.amazon.com\/podcasts\/18bb68a2-6431-4dc0-a973-5ee44f6d3409\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/yardsalesearch.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/amazon-music-logo-150x150.png\" class=\"attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/yardsalesearch.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/amazon-music-logo-150x150.png 150w, https:\/\/yardsalesearch.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/amazon-music-logo-300x300.png 300w, https:\/\/yardsalesearch.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/amazon-music-logo.png 512w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-25 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-654f5a6\" data-id=\"654f5a6\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-3fc3770b elementor-widget elementor-widget-image\" data-id=\"3fc3770b\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"image.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/podcasts.apple.com\/us\/podcast\/yard-sale-search-podcast\/id1659607133\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img width=\"1020\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/yardsalesearch.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/ITunes_logo.svg_-1020x1024.png\" class=\"attachment-large size-large\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/yardsalesearch.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/ITunes_logo.svg_-1020x1024.png 1020w, https:\/\/yardsalesearch.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/ITunes_logo.svg_-300x300.png 300w, https:\/\/yardsalesearch.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/ITunes_logo.svg_-150x150.png 150w, https:\/\/yardsalesearch.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/ITunes_logo.svg_-768x771.png 768w, https:\/\/yardsalesearch.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/ITunes_logo.svg_.png 1200w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1020px) 100vw, 1020px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-25 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-6de66161\" data-id=\"6de66161\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-29f000d0 elementor-widget elementor-widget-image\" data-id=\"29f000d0\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"image.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/podcasts.google.com\/feed\/aHR0cHM6Ly9hbmNob3IuZm0vcy9jNThhMGZmMC9wb2RjYXN0L3Jzcw?sa=X&#038;ved=0CAMQ9sEGahcKEwiYyYmRjvf7AhUAAAAAHQAAAAAQaQ\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/yardsalesearch.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/google-podcast-150x150.png\" class=\"attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/yardsalesearch.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/google-podcast-150x150.png 150w, https:\/\/yardsalesearch.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/google-podcast-300x300.png 300w, https:\/\/yardsalesearch.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/google-podcast.png 512w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-25 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-9408d3a\" data-id=\"9408d3a\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-5589bc6f elementor-widget elementor-widget-global elementor-global-1379 elementor-widget-image\" data-id=\"5589bc6f\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"image.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/show\/4uRL5ttKbyot79zfmBD7b5\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/yardsalesearch.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/spotify-150x150.png\" class=\"attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/yardsalesearch.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/spotify-150x150.png 150w, https:\/\/yardsalesearch.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/spotify.png 225w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>From getting rid of clutter to socializing with your community, we all love to hold and attend a good garage sale! There is another aspect to the sale, though: money. If we were strictly against receiving any money for our old stuff, we might call them garage donations\u2014but we certainly don\u2019t! Of course, nobody is &hellip;<\/p>\n<p class=\"read-more\"> <a class=\"\" href=\"https:\/\/yardsalesearch.com\/blog\/paying-taxes-on-garage-sales-navigating-the-legalities\/\"> <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Paying Taxes On Garage Sales \u2013 Navigating the Legalities<\/span> Read More &raquo;<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":287,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[35,9],"tags":[57,59,61,33,55,11],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/yardsalesearch.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/285"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/yardsalesearch.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/yardsalesearch.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/yardsalesearch.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/yardsalesearch.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=285"}],"version-history":[{"count":16,"href":"https:\/\/yardsalesearch.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/285\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1437,"href":"https:\/\/yardsalesearch.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/285\/revisions\/1437"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/yardsalesearch.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/287"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/yardsalesearch.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=285"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/yardsalesearch.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=285"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/yardsalesearch.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=285"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}