You will not sell a single one. I bought this whole collection for about $.60 per beanie thinking I could at least double or triple my money but holy shit what a mistake. Honestly I think I’m not even gonna touch stuffed animals again in general

Not only did I lose $170, I also lost my dignity, my life is ruined and now have to fucking find space for these pieces of shit

Edit: Guys i was joking about the $170 ruining my life lol.

......

Also, good news, i am in talks with u/tooFar_underHisEye. They offered to purchase the lot and they work with special needs kids and are willing to purchase it for a good cause!

(Reposted with recommended edits from mods)

TL;DR (the whole method):

I'm a seasonal flipper, so I'll flip patio furniture and other things during the summer, but patio furniture sucks to flip in the winter (there's no supply even though there's still a reasonable amount of demand), so this is what I do instead:

I buy portable AC units in the winter when demand is dead for ~$60 each, store them for a few months, and then sell them in summer for ~$240/each.

In winter, portable ACs are like snow shovels in July: people aren’t buying.

No demand = lower prices

In summer (especially after the first heat wave), buyers shop from the bottom up and the cheap units disappear fast.

High demand = higher prices

This is one of the few flips where the “value add” is basically timing + storage + organization.

It's just that easy

Full Post

Last summer, I made $7,200 selling ~40 portable AC units. This summer, my goal is to sell 100.  This is what I do and how I do it:

1) Timing (This is in Denver, where I am)

When temps drop and nobody needs AC anymore (usually October where I am), I wait ~1 month and then I hop on message place and I make $60 offers on every single portable AC that's listed, regardless of what it's listed for.

After messaging all of the existing listings, I just use the free version of the DealScout app to send me push notifications every time a new unit is listed since facebook's native alerts for new postings don't work, and it's search algorithm sucks.

2) What I buy (simple criteria)

I’m not picky about brand. I AM picky about completeness + condition.

My buy criteria:

- Works

- Looks decent (not trashed)

- Has all window vent parts (hose + window kit pieces. Remote not required)

My typical offer strategy:

Offer $60 for anything decent with parts.

Pay up to $80 for nicer/larger units (12k–14k BTU, clean, good brand, good condition).

I generally avoid paying over $100 in winter because… why? Demand is dead and you usually don’t need to.

I then follow up once a month (at the end of every month) with everyone that turned me down and resend my offer and let them know I'm still interested. I'll start upping the offer too as the warm months approach if I haven't been able to get them to come down all winter.

3) How I find them (both old + new listings)

1 month after the weather gets too cold for AC's (usually November around here) I manually go through all listed ACs and message every single one of them. I offer $60 on literally every active listing, regardless of listing price, and I buy the units from the sellers that accept and follow up later with the ones that haven't yet.

After that, I just set up my automatic search terms on DealScout and FreebieAlerts (both are free to download and use) and let those apps do literally 100% of the searching for me.

What I personally do:

Set up DealScout to watch for: Search term: “portable AC” Radius: "10 miles" Price Range: "$0 - $150"

Set up FreebieAlerts to watch for Search term: “portable AC” Radius: "15 miles" (I'll travel farther for a free one) Price Range: (no price filter on freebie, which is why I use both apps)

Don't pay for DS's instant alerts because you don't need them. You have absolutely no competition on the buying side for ACs in the winter, so just use the free account.

Both apps will constantly do the searching for you and will alert you when things are posted. These will alert you every single time a new listing is posted so you don't miss anything and so you see them first.

Every time I get a notification about a new portable AC listing, I message and either ask to come grab it (when I'm available), or I offer them $60, and follow up monthly like I mentioned in the previous section.

4) Storage (this is why I think anyone and everyone can do this)

Portable AC units take up almost no room

You can put them in a spare room, closet, basement, along garage walls, a storage unit (My photo is a shipping container with ~50 units), anywhere.

Once you’ve bought them and stored them, your “work” is basically done.

5) How to Sell Them (be patient)

I wait until after the first real heat wave to even list any of them. Basically after the first week with 90+ temps is when I'll list them.

I wait until then because that first heat wave will wipe out the $100-$180 listings, and from that point on, AC's will only go for $200+

6) How many I list at once

I only list 2–3 at a time, ideally different BTUs / slightly different looks.

It keeps your messages manageable, I don't flood the market, and I just restock listings as they sell

Also: in summer, buyers come to me. I don’t deliver. I don’t meet halfway. If they want it, they come to my place. Sometimes during the winter, I can even get people to deliver them to me if demand is low enough lol.

7) My pricing ranges (ballpark)

Assuming it works, looks decent, and has all parts:

8,000 BTU: $220–$240

10,000 BTU: $240–$260

12,000 BTU: $260–$300

14,000 BTU: $280–$340

The MAIN determinant of the price it will sell for is the BTU's. Brand matters less than you’d think.

8) My listing template

I pretty much always have a description like this:

“10,000 BTU portable AC. Blows ice cold. Cools ~350 sq ft (easy for a living room + kitchen area). Includes all of it's parts, including the hose + window vent kit.”

I always say "Ice cold" and always give the sqft it can cool

My #1 mistake (and its fix)

Mistake: mixing vent parts across units all winter.
Fix: number everything.

The first winter I bought 40+ of these, I didn't label anything, I just shoved all of the units in my basement. That ended up hurting me a lot at the end of the summer because not only did I waste tons of time trying to figure out what parts went with what unit, but I didn't do it with 100% accuracy and ended up having like 6 units at the end with no matching parts, and my profit took a hit because of that.

What I recommend:

Masking tape + marker: put a big number on each unit

Put that unit’s vent kit pieces in a trash bag

Label the bag with the same number

Attach/tape the bag to the unit

If you don’t do this, you’ll end the season with a pile of “almost complete” units and it hits your profit.

Try it yourself

You don’t need to go huge.

If you buy 5 units in winter at ~$50–$60 each (say $250–$300 total) and sell them in summer for ~$220–$260 each, you can realistically clear ~$1,000 before minor costs — mostly for being patient and organized.

It's simple, very foolproof, and easy to make money. All you have to do is be patient and you can make as much as you want.

Feel free to ask any questions you have and I'll answer them the best I can!

Edited to add:

I do not test them at the time of buying. That may not be the wisest practice, but I have only ever had 1 dud out of the 200+ I've sold, and I discovered it before selling.

I DO test every single one before selling, and have 100% of them running and blowing "ice cold" when the buyer comes to check it out. It helps secure the sale, but also keeps sleazy people from returning it after using it for 2 days while their central AC gets repaired (I've had that happen once, and now I test 100% of them so it will never happen again)

Buyer got mad I got his negative review removed and got my phone number and has been sending me threatening messages

For many years, I have flipped large items locally on Craigslist and Facebook marketplace.

I found an amazing deal on Facebook marketplace for an Ingersoll Rand diesel compressor posted for $1500. Models in good working condition were listed for $14,000. I almost thought it was a scam, but there were none of the usual red flags of a scam ad. The ad stated it ran rough and would need some work. I decided to take the risk and check it out.

I drove an hour and 45 minutes to meet the seller, and it was a young woman who was selling for her husband who was out of town. The compressor would not start up but the engine would turn over. Still an amazing deal and I am mechanically inclined, so paid asking price in cash and towed it home.

The compressor had bad fuel and 2 bad injectors. Went through and drained the fuel, replaced fuel filter, injectors, and changed the oil. Ran like a dream after. I sold it 6 days later for $12,500 which is one of my best flips.

Several days later I get a message from the seller stating that her husband told her the wrong price, and meant to post it for $15,000, not $1,500. She demanded I return the compressor and she would refund my money, and is getting very irate. I told her I already fixed and sold it, and she threatened to sue, stating I took advantage of her. The thing is, it didn’t run so figured it had significant mechanical issues reflected in the price, I would not have bothered if the price was $15,000. I now have at least 10 hrs invested and some cost of my own.

A side note - I use a separate Facebook profile for marketplace transactions and a google voice number on Craigslist, so I don’t think she has my actual identity. Should I simply block her? Is there any legal action she could take? I did screenshot the ad. Part of me understands it sucks to be in her position, but I held up my end of the deal and have time and money invested in this.

EDIT: She only became irate and threatened legal action after I told her it was sold, stating that I took advantage of her and should have known it would not actually be for sale for $1500. However if the engine was not functional, it would be worth less.

Sounds like I am in the clear, and have since messaged her that since she has threatened legal action, I will only respond to her legal counsel if they reach out, and to cease all contact with me. Then I blocked her. I have saved all conversations and the original posting before it was deleted.

USPS thinks I’m playing, I got a pile of bricks in my yard that I’ve been trying to rid of.

I run a business picking up unwanted clothing and selling it overseas. Last week someone gave us about 650lb of clothes in a series of bags. In one of the bags inside a coat was 37 savings bonds in a grocery bag. The last names on the bond matched the donors last name so I called and asked him if he knew either person listed on the bonds. He told me it was his mother and grandmother. I proceeded to tell him I had a stack of their savings bonds I would like to return to him. He and his mother picked them up and were super happy.

I'm writing with his wife since two days. They finally say they will come in tomorrow. They ask if they can do 300$ instead of 380$ and we agree on 350$.(See picture)

Fast forward I meet this guy and he keeps talking to me about his job for 15 minutes. He then says "I only have 300" I said we agreed on 350$ and I won't go lower and he leaves after I don't sell him the ruck for 300$.

What a waste of time wtf. What did they expect? Oh cool you basically lied to me before and you're such a nice guy here take it for free?!

This has got to be a world record for when a buyer finally decides to resoond. THIS is why I don't give out my address until the person is ready to stop by because some feel like they can just show up whenever after. The gall to, assume it's still available, assume I'm still living in the same place, and to just start heading over without giving the provided phone number a call first...

Switched up real quick after I caught him in a lie. He said he’ll let me know when he “receives” the ornament yet it has already been marked delivered a few days before. Been quiet ever since and never started a refund/return.