What You Should Know When Buying Used Children’s Items

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The second-hand market is enormous. In the United States alone, used item sales account for $36 billion worth of retail revenue. For various reasons, such as budgeting or personal beliefs about reusing things, you may want to get what you can second-hand when decorating your new baby room.

This can be easy or difficult, depending on what you need. For example, good quality used items tend to sell quickly, and charity shop stock is sporadic. Some things cannot be sold under the law because of health and safety reasons.

New Vs. Used

Buying new baby products from sites like For Your Little One is a joy when decorating your baby’s room. Online stores like this are excellent providers of all you will even need or wish for. They’re expertly designed and crafted and always keep up with trends. Yet, if you don’t care about trends and are under budget restriction, buying used items is nothing to be embarrassed about. And if you look around you can get what you need at reasonable prices.

Why You Should Buy Second Hand

The thought of purchasing second-hand goods doesn’t sit right with everyone. And in a lot of cases, used items are in poor condition. Yet when it comes to reputable dealers and online sites, most used products are in nearly new condition. And some of the best dealers are charities. So when you buy second-hand stuff from these outlets, your money goes to good causes. Additionally, reusing items is better for the environment and relieves landfills.

The Prices You Can Expect

When selling online through a private site like eBay, most people look for the best deal they can get. However, some just want to get rid of their old items. Therefore, you can expect low prices for items that are usually expensive. If you are lucky, you may find good quality items for almost free. Charity stores typically sell items at low prices. And you never know what someone will find for you if you ask friends and family.

Where to Check

Charity shops are some of the best places for sourcing quality second-hand children’s items. However, you might need to visit multiple stores and most are limited by what they stock. They are excellent for indoor and outdoor toys, decoration and games, though. Alternatively, second-hand stores can be found almost everywhere, and these are usually better as many won’t take damaged items. Then, of course, there are always online storefronts like eBay, Amazon and classified ad sites like Gumtree.

What Not to Buy

While you are out and about on a sourcing mission, you shouldn’t buy everything you see. There are some things you need to be aware of, as not everything can legally be sold second hand nearly new:

• Pushchairs (unless certified by standards)
• Baby bouncers
• Walkers
• Breast pumps
• Mains-powered electrical items
• Knitted toys
• Drawstring clothes
• Car seats
• Mattresses

The reasons vary but are mostly related to safety and hygiene. For example, mains-powered electrical items could be subject to dangerous failure, or mattresses could contain hazardous biological material. However, you can usually find excellent NCT goods for your children such as toy boxes, cribs, books, toys and games.