Selling a camera... on the streets!
September 28, 2011 7:41 PM   Subscribe

Dear Chicagoans, I need to sell a nice camera tomorrow somewhere in the area. I'm a minor, so if I need to be 18+ to sell then my question is moot, but either way- if I theoretically wanted to bring in a camera and sell it on the spot, where and how do I do such a thing?
posted by Askiba to Work & Money (7 answers total)
 
I am not a Chicagoan, but the two that I can think of are pawn brokers and Cash Converters (you have them?). Try googling for secondhand dealers. Some camera stores handle secondhand gear, but mostly on consignment (no sale, no money).

Nice = expensive? You are going to drop a lot of money - if you 'need' to sell it tomorrow, you are in a very poor negotiating position.

Bring ID, and preferably proof of purchase (by you).
posted by GeeEmm at 8:03 PM on September 28, 2011


Put it on Craigslist right now. If you price it right it'll probably be gone in a few hours and you'll get more than you would at a pawn brokers.
posted by fshgrl at 8:22 PM on September 28, 2011 [1 favorite]


Response by poster: I tried with the craigslist thing, I really did. Listed it twice even. But no one seems to want it. It's a canon point and shoot that goes for around $300 so maybe I'm just not hitting the right niche. I was going to send it to KEH but their quote was only around $140.
posted by Askiba at 8:53 PM on September 28, 2011


Best answer: A used $300 point-and-shoot is not a "nice camera". I don't say this to be a dick, but this sort of equipment hasn't really got much resale value, it's like trying to sell a previous generation iPod -- no one really wants them cause new ones are fairly cheap. If it was a Canon 5D Mk II, someone would want it, because exit's still current and they're expensive, but why get last year's model point-and-shoot when there's a newer one out? If anyone buys it, it's going to be for cheap. I'd take the $140.
posted by tylerkaraszewski at 9:18 PM on September 28, 2011


Is $300 the MSRP? The price it sold for three years ago? If you have an eBay account then you can search completed auctions and get a good sense of what the model actually sells for. Whatever they go for on eBay, figure you can get maybe 1/2 to 2/3 as much locally. Regardless, GeeEmm is right; 'need to sell tomorrow' is a bad position to be in.
posted by jon1270 at 9:36 PM on September 28, 2011


Take the $140.
posted by box at 4:49 AM on September 29, 2011


KEH is a pretty good barometer of what stores would pay for it. If they're offering you $140, then if you sell it directly to another person I'd expect to get $160-170 at most.

Mind telling us what the make and model of the camera is?
posted by Mercaptan at 6:27 AM on September 29, 2011


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