Today, there is a job as consignment reseller. This job is to accept items owned by others and offer them for resale at tag sales, at yard sales, and over the Internet, and also to receive a portion of the proceeds from the sale. Don’t accept an item if you don’t feel you have a reasonable chance of selling because of lack of demand or because the seller wants to put an unrealistic price on it. Maximize your profits by cherry-picking items that will sell quickly at a good price. Do not accept items that might subject you to unreasonable liability: very expensive things, fragile items, guns and other weapons, tools that are obviously broken, and the like. Take care to maintain a close inventory of items you have accepted for sale; each should be marked with a code that identifies the owner and refers to a listing of the minimum price. You will be responsible for paying the owner if an item is lost or stolen while in your possession.
Include in your agreement with the seller provisions for return of the item if it does not sell within a specified period of time. Many contracts specify that if the owner does not pick up an unsold item at the end of the for-sale period, the reseller can dispose of it at any price and pay the owner only the reduced yield. In dealing with your client’s property, seek to limit your liability for damage or loss to the actual replacement value of items in your possession. You should protect yourself against claims for sentimental value or loss of use.
