has anyone been in semi retirement?
Summary: keziak discusses transitioning towards retirement by selling inventory backlog, noting decreased expenses and a desire to continue working at a slower pace. jerseyboymusic and others share their semi-retirement experiences, engaging in eBay sales more as hobbies while focusing on other passions like writing or raising pets. Some, like wstoler, find ways to simplify their work-life by eliminating employees, while caldreamer faces challenges with inventory management and spousal dynamics over space usage. Participants generally reflect on balancing work and personal life, retirement goals, and the satisfaction of engaging in meaningful hobbies.
I am working pretty much as usual but without buying inventory except for a few things my expenses have cratered and my bank account now very high. Anyone else slide into retirement by only selling off a back log? I am nowhere near running out. I am now wondering if I will be done by the end of the year and then be retired
sreu3058
·3 weeks agoI pretend it’s full time so my husband thinks I’m busy at work.
Although, I sure put a lot of time and effort into this low paying, ‘side gig’
He (spouse) works from home so I need some space/ created my own desk, biz center, room.
lakefor94
·3 weeks agoThere is a lot to be said for having your own space.
stephenmorgan
·3 weeks agoSemi Retired except for this eBay hobby. I collected diecast vehicles for 20 years, stored collection for 20 years and have been selling the collection for the past 5 years. Not dependent on the eBay income at all and have not spent any of it. I do not make enough that it would ever be a livable income. All of the income just goes into savings. Not looking to acquire anything else to sell.
Everything is well organized into near 400 storage boxes neatly stacked on easily accessible shelfs and not cluttered. With a three car garage one parking spot is for this collection while the other two spots is for two vehicles.
lakefor94
·3 weeks agoOrganization is paramount.
keziak
OP3 weeks agothat sure is a lot of diecase vehicles. Do they sell well here?
stephenmorgan
·3 weeks agoThey sell ok, but not very fast. In the last five years I've only sold about 1200. This is ok as it is only a hobby that keeps my mind active and I don't depend on the income.
lakefor94
·3 weeks ago · EditedI moved on from my last real job in Dallas in the summer of 2016 and into ecommerce to start 2017. Wish I had done it 10 years earlier. I only work fulltime when I have a ton of stuff to list, otherwise just part time doing the shipping.
Just does not make sense to me to retire. I could probably not list anything and keep worthwhile sales going for at least a couple years. Though, I picked up a car load of stuff today from one of my consignment clients while there paying them their take of sales. This will take several days to get listed and inventoried.
Between eBay/AMZ and taking care of this place where we live, I work 7 days a week, never really differentiating the days of the week as they are all the same to me. Thankful for the opportunity to stay busy.
At some point I suspect I will work at just selling out what I have though I have no idea when that may be while turning 69 years old this month.
ten_o_nine
·3 weeks agoWorking 7 days a week from home? If you had a nagging spouse, you’d be begging to go back to that Dallas job.
lakefor94
·3 weeks agoYes @ten_o_nine , what you mention would be quite intolerable. Can’t even imagine having a nag for a wife. Just another thing I am thankful for…..
keziak
OP3 weeks agoworking 24/7 was me until about 2 years ago when I resolved to not wait to retire to do things that matter me. So while I say working as much it's not nearly the same. I give priority to other things as much as I can. Like now I spend two hours in the pooh in 2 shifts. That eats up time. Plus reading is important so i do that in the evening rather than working and I used to work until 8:30 or 9 pm.
Having said that no longer working at all is almost beyond my immagination. Even hubby the lawyer who's been drying to retire for years now says he wants to keep some clients. How that differs from my situation is unclear since it wants me to retire full stop and not have any ebay inventory left.
chapeau-noir
·3 weeks agoeCommerce is a 'real' job.
Why is it so hard for people to get this?
lakefor94
·3 weeks agoOur definitions of “real job” are simply different, @chapeau-noir . Driving into Dallas to work for someone else was my last real job. First 40 hour a week real job was when I was a HS senior. 4:00pm – 12:30am painting plant displays for a company that had a contract with Rubbermaid. Did a real job for 40 years. Played the hand that was dealt and thankful for it.
What I do now is a joke as compared to my real jobs. Not even in the same ballpark as my definition of a real job. Anyways, thankful for the opportunity to stay as busy as I care to be.
chapeau-noir
·3 weeks agoA 'real' job to me is earning money for labour. The IRS is convinced - convinced I tell ya - that what I do is a real job! :-o
chapeau-noir
·3 weeks agoI'm only part-time here now, though not retired. I've moved on to other projects. I like the spare money from online sales (I sell on three sites) for race fees, gym membership, pub visits, etc. The DH said when he retired he was going to work for me lol. He's handling the sourcing/testing for some of the things I sell - he enjoys it as a hobby (he actually 'officially' retired at 70 but I'm too young to retire). I'm not sure I know what 'retirement' even means - my dad said it means you go out and get a job you like lol (he retired at 83 only because he had to take care of stepmom).
turtles-trading-post
·3 weeks agoI retired from real work 3 years ago. Now I play store on the internet to keep my sanity. I sell in the collectibles market. I strategize and try new ideas, it keeps me engaged.
I was an eBay seller from 1998 and stopped 15 years ago. I started again during Covid with thoughts of selling off my collections. Since then I've purchased (and moved) more inventory than I started with. I'm in for the long haul!
One thought for the people who want to quit.... what is the most valuable thing in your store? No it's not the inventory! It's the hours you invested in creating your store and inventory listings! The minute you trash the account, you have tossed away all that value!
keziak
OP3 weeks agoI can't say I look at it that way. It sounds to me like considering college a waste of time and money if you do not end up in work that has to do with your major. Work and experience are great in their ways but not the totality of a life. My main concern in retirement is keeping busy. I think I can manage though I may for years miss the kaching and buyers and the fun parts of this work.
1786davycrockett
·3 weeks agoThis past month I've been concentrating more on writing a long-delayed novel, rather than bothering with eBay.
If sales come in, I'll definitely pack up items and run to the post office; but sales have been so discouraging the past 1-1/2 years, it hardly seems worthwhile.
As a warm-up exercise before diving back into my writing, I may create a new listing from my piles of previously unlisted merchandise -- or not. Hardly seems worth the effort lately.
But the manuscript is coming along very nicely -- nearly 20,000 words already.
I'm hoping to finish writing my novel by late Spring/early Summer 2027 -- just in time to celebrate birthday number 80 -- and, depending upon USPS price increases and eBay fees, I might just finally throw in the eBay towel in April.
keziak
OP3 weeks agoWhat is your novel about? For long periods of time I was a poet and a couple of years ago I found a few new themes that I wrote about then that dried up again. I once tried a novel but the writing is different. Most poems are short and concentrated, a good novel creates a whole world.
1786davycrockett
·3 weeks ago@keziak It's a fictionalized version of an incident from my 14th year, so it may be considered a teenage fantasy, as reflected upon by a man in his late 70s/early 80s.
Sounds confusing; but think about examples like Tennessee Williams' play "The Glass Menagerie," or Herman Racher's novel "Summer Of '42." -- youthful experiences filtered through a haze of fact and fiction. So what I'm doing is extrapolating upon an innocent true experience from my youth, and extending the possibilities across several months, resulting in a slightly edgy "coming of age" novel -- minus the "wrapping it all up with a neat bow" conclusion.
In simple terms -- it's an exercise in "what if?" writing.
keziak
OP3 weeks agoThat sounds interesting. When you say as reflected by a man in his 70s is it all his private thoughts on the episode or does he tell someone else and why? Or is his writing a book about it? That would be pretty meta!
1786davycrockett
·3 weeks ago@keziak The book is narrated by the 80-ish man, attempting to recall an incident which may have happened about 65 years earlier, while wading through the "smoke and mirrors" of what was real and what was not, and whether a crime had been committed, or whether the incident had all been just a fantasy, and attempting to justify his actions while confronting his inactions. He comes to realize that while offering his confession, he is both victim and perpetrator, and finds himself seeking absolution, while uncomfortably unsure that he may have simply been a featured character in someone else's dream fantasy. If it sounds confusing, you're right -- that's the intention -- to keep the reader unbalanced, particularly since everything seems relatively normal throughout the first 3/4s of the book. What follows thereafter many readers may find unsettling and definitely disturbing.
Only a couple chapters finished so far; but lots of rabbit-holes to plunge into along the way!
keziak
OP3 weeks agoThat is definitely way more complex than straightforward narratives. Enjoy the process!
1786davycrockett
·3 weeks ago@keziak The realization came to me last night, while preparing for bed, that I had been influenced by recent readings of novels by the Swiss author Friedrich Durrenmatt, particularly THE EXECUTION OF JUSTICE, which is heavily layered with symbolism and misdirection. So my intent is not to write an "easy" novel, but rather a piece of writing which I can feel proud bears my name on the cover.
My writing style has changed so dramatically over the past 50 years, and I'm actually quite satisfied in the progress I am making -- sometimes only a few paragraphs at a time, sometimes a deluge of pages, burning the late night oil, until I can barely keep my eyes open.
But I am determined to make THIS novel happen, rather than just giving up after a few hundred pages, as I have in the past.
slippinjimmy
·3 weeks agoSemi-retired since the Spring of 2001.
At my current rate of activity (and sales) I estimate my inventory will be all gone by about 2150.
keziak
OP3 weeks agodo you have frustrated spouse or whatever? My husband wants the ebay house gone. The other day I pointed out how hard I've been working to remove boxes from the Persian rug in the family room. He said "thanks" but I do not think he understands the work it meant.
slippinjimmy
·3 weeks agoI'm the frustrated "whatever"!
I live in a hoarder house, my hoarding is of stuff that mostly has some sort of resale value and I haven't added to the pile for at least 20 years. My partner on the other hand hoards stuff that is probably unsaleable at any price and adds to her hoard on an almost daily pace.
sin-n-dex
·3 weeks agoBefore I bought my new house, I lived in a hoarder house with two people. One was collecting junk of no value, the other was doing projects that created junk of no value.
I made the motion that we sell the house, and that's how we got rid of most of the hoard. We spent 4 months clearing out before listing the house, and then another 4 months cleaning up after it sold so I could move with just what I wanted into my new house.
One of the hoarders came with me, but he has to keep his hoard in his storage locker. He has encroached in the garage. It's OK for him to have boxes of receipts that are 20 years old in my garage, but he got upset that we had two plungers and a spare toilet brush in the garage. He's planning to move overseas next year and told me he'll move when he gets rid of his hoard (so like, never then?) His storage locker is full of old newspapers, his various projects that failed (old calendars, coin holders that no one wanted to buy, and puzzles), plus a bunch of furniture that he inherited that he paid $300 a month to store for the past 7 years. It's the kind of furniture no one wants (an old dirty couch, a china buffet that is a dime a dozen in thrift stores, and a dining room table that's too big for a smallish house like what I have).
He complains about my eBay inventory that's "in process" sitting on the livingroom floor. I told him I don't complain about the accumulation of receipts and papers in his rec room, so leave my eBay inventory alone. I own the house, and I don't have a storage locker (nor will I get home). If I need more space for my stuff he needs to reduce. I gave him one spot on my shelf of shipping materials and he's collecting old pill bottles (for the past 7 years) and got upset that I wanted to throw them away so I could store more bubble mailers in the basement.
BTW, it entertains me to tell this story...
keziak
OP3 weeks agoI'm glad you see the humor in what sounds to me like a very frustrating situation. he should be the first person to respect your ebay work if he himself has a hoarding problem.
keziak
OP3 weeks agoI'm a hoarder myself. Just way too much scouting and piling up inventory like there was no tomorrow. Well a while ago it was tomorrow, no more sourcing. I like seeing the piles and boxes going away either through selling or donating.
adamcartwright
·3 weeks agoI get that you're working hard, but if your eBay stuff is spilling out into common areas, that would drive some people insane.
At some point, is your husband's mental health worth more than the money you'll make off these remaining books?
sin-n-dex
·3 weeks agoI'm visiting a hoarder house in a couple of months where I get to look through the hoards for treasure I can sell (I'm limited to one suitcase of 50 lbs, so that's all I can bring home on the flight). I will find out how his wife of 50 years copes with his inventory being anywhere and everywhere. He said he will have to clear some space at the dining room table so I can sit down and look at stuff instead of sitting on other boxes to go through what's there. I have a sneaking suspicion I will be completely overwhelmed when I get there.
In my house I've designated rooms for each person's own use, I don't complain about their hoarding so long as I have a place to put my inventory (the stuff that's not being stored at the shop).
adamcartwright
·3 weeks agoI've never been in a hoarder house. Do you think you should take gloves and a good quality mask?
lakefor94
·3 weeks agoThe dust can be hard on the sinuses.
pickapaper
·3 weeks ago@adamcartwright Probably not. There are hoarders and then there are hoarders.
One kind is like you see on TV with the trash, dead insects and animals, nasty stuff. And then there are "hoarders" like many of us dealers, who just collect and save way more than we should, i.e. we buy faster than we can sell and it accumulates. But it's not disgusting, dirty or nasty.
sin-n-dex
·3 weeks agoOur house isn't that bad because I don't let boxes and bins of stuff pile up in various corners, the roommate needs to use his storage locker to collect old newspapers and various other junk (he collects papers, he had pay stubs that were 30 years old and he found his tax return from 1992 among the papers he was sorting through).
I pay someone to come and clean every couple of months which forces me to tidy up my areas. In my former hoarder house there was a room in the basement that was filled with plastic storage totes containing all sorts of collectible toys, comic books (of no value) and other stuff. We just had lots and lots of stuff, no garbage, I would never tolerate living among a trash heap.
keziak
OP3 weeks agoWhat are you hoping to find in that house? Do you think he has coins?
keziak
OP3 weeks agoI wouldn't say it was a mental health problem for him but at this point his desire to not have an ebay house is dovetailing better with my own goals and objectives. I would love it if he ever said something like "thanks f or working so hard to clear out space" like I did when I had 13 bookcases hauled away (and all the books on them).
adamcartwright
·3 weeks agoI hear you. I t hurts not to be appreciated for your hard work. Sorry about that.
keziak
OP3 weeks agoHe is a hard worker too though like me has cut back hours. I make more remarks to him about how hard he works. he sees me being busy with my boxes and on the computer and carrying around mail. I could use an attagirl from time to time.
chapeau-noir
·3 weeks agoYou have a more patience with spousal units than I would have.
toomuchstuffagain35
·3 weeks ago"At my current rate of activity (and sales) I estimate my inventory will be all gone by about 2150."
I should live that long lol
redlinear
·3 weeks agoI'm trying...
Not buying anything new, just working through what all is here, trying to quit.
The issue is....I'm now just paying for labor.
Cheap labor too.
caldreamer
·3 weeks agoI only started selling on EBAY in 2011 after my hubby lost his job as an architect. Selling was great back then and we made $400,000 and paid off our home mortgage.
Now we are both retired and sales are practically non-existent. My hubby just wants to trash all our EBAY inventory, but I refuse because I want to sell my items to recover my costs. I figure I will be about 200 years old before everything is sold.
keziak
OP3 weeks agoIS your mechanize possible eligible for lotting up ? With few exceptions my listings are lots. The per-item prices for auctions are low but it's a way to move inventory and also maybe attracting different b uyers from single listings. I am in books and media.
wstoler
·3 weeks agoRetiring? Hah!
I just retired in May from my mailing and shipping business that I ran for 46 years. I started selling on eBay in 1997 so I'm about 29 years into eBay as a part-time seller. It was always just extra money that paid for vacations, stuff we wanted, mortgages, etc.
Now that I am fully retired from my regular business, I've moved into a smaller office I set up a few years ago for my won to help sell on eBay, abebooks.com, facebook marketplace, etc.
I'm still working and keeping busy, but I have removed one major part of my work-a-day routine. NO EMPLOYEES! And I don't have to spend most of my day finding things for my employees to do.
Plus, my wife has made it clear that I'm not allowed in the house from 9 to 5. She has her routines as well and doesn't want me in the way.
adamcartwright
·3 weeks agoPlus, my wife has made it clear that I'm not allowed in the house from 9 to 5. She has her routines as well and doesn't want me in the way.
Is she for real?
jerseyboymusic
·3 weeks agoI've been semi-retired from Ebay for a while now... my wife and I turned to breeding and raising puppies, we relocated back to NorCal and have been so busy renovating our current home. Even before our move, Ebay had slowed way down for me that we figured semi-retirement is a good thing and still sell some stuff on here just more as a hobby
keziak
OP3 weeks agoThis thread has been helpful to me for example your final sentence. I have asked myself "what is the big hurry?" Why am I trying to keep 90 or more auctions up all the time? Is there a point? I might have more fun to slow way down but last longer so there is a reason to get on the computer every day.
I solved the "boxes on the carpet" problem and while hubby wants my ebay room upstairs for a guest room we seem to have reached a detante in which we have a bed in there. We actually had a guest, my child, and they h ad a place to sleep instead of an air mattress or the sofa. In a room with a door. I still have enough in there plus some stacks elsewhere to keep me busy for a long time.