10 Items Recent College Grads Can Sell to Incoming Freshmen

Textbooks

Unless you're heading to graduate school, you probably don't need your art history textbook from senior year. But current or incoming college art history majors will jump at the chance to buy your old books for a discount. Head over to eBay or craigslist to sell the pile of textbooks under your bed that you don't use. If no one buys your books, consider selling them at Amazon.com's textbook buyback program, which will buy your books for up to 70% of the book's value.

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Printer

When you were printing your paper an hour before you had to hand it in, you were glad you had your own printer, rather than printing at the campus library. But now that you're out of school, it may be time to sell the printer.

"The number-one item I feel a graduate can sell to an incoming freshman is his or her printer. In the 'real world' most everything can be accomplished electronically, and for business materials that need to be in hard copy form, offices will surely have printers for employee use. I know I will be selling mine," says 2012 Wake Forest University graduate Ann Bauer.

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Refrigerator

Bauer also mentions the possibility of selling the mini-fridge you may have had in your dorm room. "Most apartments I have seen come equipped with a standard refrigerator," she says. And some schools don't provide mini-refrigerators in the dorms, which means incoming students will have to buy one on their own for around $100, making this a quick and easy sell.

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Furniture

If you're lucky enough to secure a job post-graduation, you'll need furniture for an apartment close to your job. Your furniture from your college apartment would come in handy, but chances are you're new job is far away from college, so it could cost hundreds of dollars to ship your old furniture to your new apartment. The cheapest option is to sell your college furniture and buy an inexpensive desk and dresser, either from IKEA or a local thrift shop.

And if you're living at home after college, you probably already have bedroom furniture -- yet another reason to sell your college desk and bed.

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Noise Canceling Headphones

Noise canceling headphones may have been a savoir in college, but post-college you might find these expensive headphones sitting on your dresser at home gathering dust. "Sure, these were great when you needed peace and quiet for studying, but now might be the time to sell them," says Andrew Schrage of MoneyCrashers.And with the prices of some noise-canceling headphones easily exceeding $100, you'll be providing an instant deal for students hoping to pick up a pair of these high-end headphones.

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Gaming System

Your video games were a cheap form of entertainment back in college. But if you're about to start a new job, you might have to reconsider holding onto your Xbox. "Think about whether you’ll even have the spare time to enjoy your video games now that you're out of school. If not, dump it and take whatever cash you can get," Schrage advises.Aside from just the video game counsel itself, you can sell the controllers, games and memory cards, too.

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Bikes/Scooters

Your bike was a cheap and fast way to travel around campus. But if you're moving to a big metropolitan city like New York or Los Angeles, storing and riding a bike will be a challenge. The solution? Sell your bike to another student.

Wendy Joan Biddlecombe, social media guru for Big Tim's Pawn, offers the following tips for selling a bike:

Craigslist is ideal for selling bikes because you don't have to worry about packaging and shipping the bike

Do a bit of research first so you list the bike for a realistic price (if you bought the bike new three years ago for $100, don't expect to get much more than $30).

You'll want to take some quality pictures and accurately describe the condition (do the brakes work? is there any rust?)

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Laptop Lock

When living in dorms or with roommates, theft is typically a concern. To protect your laptop, you may have used a laptop lock throughout college. Moving out on your own after college? If so, you'll probably do without the lock. For incoming students, however, purchasing a new laptop lock isn't cheap and can cost as much as $60. Selling your used lock at a discount will earn you some extra cash and provide a sweet discount for new students.

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Bulletin Boards

Remember the bulletin and dry erase boards that you would hang on your front door or on the walls in your dorm? As long as it's intact, there's no reason why a current or incoming student wouldn't want to buy it -- just price it right. After all, you're a college grad now!

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Clip-on Lamps and Fans

Dorm rooms and campus housing rooms are full of clip-on fans to keep you cool in the non-air conditioned room and even clip-on lights for your desk. You generally don't see these items in a college grad's apartment. These items won't be worth much, but an incoming college student would appreciate the discount -- so take some pictures and post these items on eBay or Craigslist for a bargain.

 

Scott Gamm is the founder of the personal finance website HelpSaveMyDollars.com. He has appeared on NBC’s TODAY, MSNBC and CNN.  Follow Scott on Facebook and his Twitter.

 

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