On Your Side: Make Money On Used Books
Selling Books Online Can Make You Money
POSTED: 3:57 pm CST March 25, 2004
UPDATED: 4:21 pm CST March 25, 2004
MADISON, Wis. -- If your office looks like a used bookstore, you can make good use of your old books. Consumer Reports says now anyone can sell books on-line for fast cash. But you need to know the basics before you try to turn your books into bucks.
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On Your Side: Turn Your Used Books Into Bucks
"The first thing you need to know is which types of books are worth your time, because you will not be able to resell every title," said Laura Washington, of Consumer Reports.
A mass-market paperback will not fetch much money. Neither will hardcover titles that have since come out in paperback.
Consumer Reports' Money Adviser says your best bests are books, such as "The Da Vinci Code," that have been on recent bestseller lists. Literary fiction, found in Oprah's Book Club, is also worth selling.
Consumer Reports also suggest sticking with EBay and Amazon.com because these sites have the most customer traffic.
"Another benefit is that these sites have a third-party payment system. And that takes the hassle out of collecting you money from the buyer," Washington said.
There are some differences between the sites. It costs less to list your books on Ebay, but its auctions only run 10 days. Amazon costs a little more, but lists books for 60 days that give you a better chance to find a buyer.
In addition with selling books online, you will have to open a seller's account. To set up an account on Ebay and Amazon, you will need to give personal information to the Web sites. If you are worried about security, you may want to stick with Amazon. Its policies are ranked much higher in Consumer Reports' security assessments.
Then you decide on a price and check around to see what others are charging.
You will be notified by e-mail when there is a buyer. Finally, you wrap the book in a bubble wrap envelope and mail it. It does take a bit of work, but if you are a real bookworm, it can pay off.
All Consumer Reports material copyright 2005 Consumers Union of U.S. Inc. All rights reserved.