Ebay resellers - tell me your story...

I'm always amused when people say something like this. Oh, you mean this income I'm making is subject to INCOME TAX?! What the hell?!

Um, of course it is. I make income at my job and they report it on a W2 and I have to pay taxes on it. Why are people who make money on ebay different? Why should they make tax-free income?

I guess it depends on how you look at it.

If I buy a diamond ring new for $2000 and I pay tax on it in the store, then turn around and sell it a few years later for $800, why should I pay tax on the resale?

And if I bought that ring for $800 on CL from someone that bought it new for $2000, (and they already paid tax on it), and I turn around and sell it on Ebay for $500, again ... why should I pay tax on it???

The government already got their money once, why should we keep paying over and over and over.....?????

Kind of like death taxes. You pay taxes when you make it, spend it, invest it, or save it. Then they want even MORE taxes when you die? Fark them!!!!

I do NOT condone those who sit on their asses, rake in welfare, milk the system, come here illegally, work only under-the-table cash jobs, and never pay taxes. But I have no problem with those that make some money on the side through re-selling and don't pay taxes on that income. My dad is almost 70 years old and has worked his butt off since he was 16 years old and paid taxes his entire life. He retired 2 years ago, lives on SS and a pension. He makes anywhere from $300-$1500 a month selling on CL and doesn't report the income. Good for him!!!!

Well, first of all, what you're describing with the wedding ring isn't necessarily taxable. Selling something at a loss doesn't generally incur a tax on the seller's end, it's more about buying and selling for a profit. There're exceptions to this of course, notably with sales tax on used cars, but that typically is paid by the buyer. If your wedding right was purchased and then the price of gold skyrocketed though, are you saying you shouldn't have to pay taxes on the capital gains? If yes, are you saying that ALL capital gains should go untaxed? Where is that revenue stream compensated for? All of our income taxes going up? So the people who have a ton of money and make their income on money they already have go untaxed, while those of us earning it from working rather than investing have to bear the brunt of it?

Whomever said money is only taxed once? You pretty much made that up. Money is taxed when it changes hands. If you make money at your job and pay taxes on it, does that mean that paying your maid with that money means she doesn't have to pay taxes? Most PEOPLE don't get taxed twice on the same dollar, but the dollar is taxed everytime it changes hands. So YOU don't have to pay taxes when you sell a ring that you already paid taxes on, but the buyer sure does. If you ran a store instead of selling on ebay or CL, you'd have to collect and remit those sales taxes.

I'm not saying money is only taxed once or should only be taxed once. I agree that if someone has a job/gets paid for a job, they should pay taxes on that income. I live in a county where it's estimated that less than half of the population pays any income taxes and I can't tell you how much that burns my ass.

I'm specifically talking about reselling previously owned items. My aforementioned comments were made simply to establish my feelings that the government gets enough of our money and I don't think they deserve a dime on tangible resales. Not even homes.

I'm not saying money is only taxed once or should only be taxed once.

The government already got their money once, why should we keep paying over and over and over.....?????

Kind of like death taxes. You pay taxes when you make it, spend it, invest it, or save it. Then they want even MORE taxes when you die? Fark them!!!!

not to pick a fight with you but that is exactly what you said....



(death tax should be higher and it only effects high value estates)

I was speaking specifically about resale items, not employment earnings. I agree with Shaggy's example; you get paid, you are taxed, you pay your maid, she's taxed, she pays her sitter, they are taxed ... and so on.

Are you saying the death tax itself should be higher or the value of the estate being taxed should be higher?

In 1998 my husband's grandmother passed away. Her estate was valued at about $700,000. The state of Florida took roughly 50%. She lived in the same house for more than 75 years and always paid her property taxes. She worked more than 50 years of her life and always paid her taxes. She died and they took 50%. Why? Because they could, that's why. It certainly wasn't because they deserved one more dime.

I realize estate taxes have changed over the years and only the really large estates are taxed now (and at a lesser percent), but I still don't understand where the government gets off thinking they are "entitled" to anything after you die.

Years ago my husband and I read a book by Stephen Pollan called "Die Broke". That's our plan.

Florida isn't magically able to pay it's bills better than all the other states without getting tax revenue, they're simply charging it in different places.

Yeah...its called Disney/tourism. You should look it up. Its kind of a big deal.

BTW: I don't doubt that you're telling the truth about FL, though my guess is there's some nuance as to why it was that high in this individual case. Keep this in mind, though, when people tout FL as being awesome because of no state income tax. Revenue has to come from somewhere. Florida isn't magically able to pay it's bills better than all the other states without getting tax revenue, they're simply charging it in different places.

Years ago my husband and I read a book by Stephen Pollan called "Die Broke". That's our plan.

My husband's parents handled everything and they are kind of push-overs when it comes to stuff like that. If the tax man says they owe it, they pay it. If the lawyer says "sign here", they sign it. If the plumber says "that will be $800 for 30 minutes of work", they don't question it. Drives us CRAZY!!!!!

We kept questioning the tax bill and in the end, his dad said it was the result of poor estate planning. Okay, maybe some of that factored into it but the bottom line is that the state of FL (in my opinion) should not have gotten a dime.