For most of us, our basement is a place we don’t particularly enjoy visiting. It’s accumulated so much junk that you can’t be sure what’s even in there anymore.
If you’ve been putting off a basement cleanout for some time, don’t be so quick to throw everything away without a second glance. You might have held onto some household items that are worth their weight in gold nowadays.
Check out these basement finds that could make you much richer than you knew you were…
Remember when we all had a Gameboy? It was first introduced in 1989 and every kid seemed to want one. But it soon lost its popularity when technology advanced. However, nowadays, if you still have a Gameboy lying around, it could be worth between $450 and $2,000.
Just because you don’t have any real diamonds, emeralds or gold in your old jewelry, it might still be worth some money. Old costume jewelry is particularly popular. Get it checked out by a professional if you’re not sure.
Many of us had grandparents who had an antique cookie jar in their kitchens. If you happen to have kept hold of a cookie jar that has been passed down the generations, it might actually be worth some cash. You’re especially in with a chance if your cookie jar is in the style of a cartoon character – it could go for more than £3,o00.
Tiffany lamps might not be popular assets in modern homes, but they could still be worth a fortune. These lamps have beautiful colored glass designs and are now considered fine art. The lamps with the most vibrant colors and flower motifs sell for the highest price.
Got your hands on an old perfume bottle? At the beginning of the 19th century, before mass production, glass blowers were producing some truly beautiful bottles for storing perfume. Antique perfume bottles can sell for more than $4,000.
Most of us have some random sets of china sitting in a china cupboard in the dining room. Your old china might actually be worth a lot of money, especially if it was produced in the 18th century. Blue and white hand-painted china from the 1900s also sells for a lot.
Thanks to streaming and DVDs, VHS tapes have become unnecessary – but because they’re no longer released, they’re now worth some money. Old Disney home video tapes can be particularly sellable, especially if they’ve never been transferred to DVD. It’s worth checking out your old VHS tapes, for sure.
When’s the last time you ever saw a cuckoo clock in real life? These clocks became popular in Germany in the 1830s. Every hour, on the hour, a bird would pop out of the door to “cuckoo”. If you happen to come across an antique cuckoo clock, you might be in luck.
Some vintage t-shirts are more valuable than others. Look out especially for vintage tour tees for legendary bands or artists that no longer perform. Shirts can sell up to $20,000 – but they have to be from the original printing to be valuable.
Unfortunately, it’s highly unlikely that you’ll find a piece of rare art when you’re cleaning out the basement. But you might just find something that’s more valuable than you assumed. Don’t be so quick to sell it in a yard sale!
11. Antique sled ornaments
Most of us hang ornaments on our Christmas trees every year, but if you’ve got some antiques in your batch, you might want to hold onto them. Antique sled ornaments are particularly valuable, as are ornaments made from blown glass. Some ornaments can sell up to $18,000 – each.
Remember the good old days when people would take a trip to the beach and send their loved ones a postcard? Vintage postcards that are old, rare and in good condition sell for a lot of money nowadays. But if you’re holding onto a special memory, it might not be worth the cash.
Remember the lunch box you used to take with you to school when you were a kid? If only you’d kept hold of it, it might actually be worth something nowadays. Tin vintage lunch boxes with certain characters or rock bands can sell for thousands. If you’ve still got a 1956 Superman lunchbox lying around, that’s considered the most popular of them all.
14. Early-generation cell phones
If you hadn’t guessed by this point, pretty much anything early-generation is guaranteed to bring in some good money. Early-generation cell phones are especially valuable. Finally, a reason to bring out your old brick phone again!
Pokemon cards are relatively new, especially compared to most of the items on this list. But the super-rare cards can still sell for a lot of money. While you can buy a full pack of cards for just a few bucks, if you have a first-edition rare card from the 90s, it could sell for thousands.
If any of your old cowboy hats are from “Urban Cowboy” era or earlier, you could get more than $100 for it in an auction. It just needs to be in good condition and from an original brand. Yee-haw!
People collect some pretty random things, and you’d better hope that your grandparents were vintage sign collectors, as they’re worth some money nowadays. Branded signs like Coca-Cola do particularly well. Just make sure, if you’re on the hunt for vintage signs at yard sales and the like, that the signs you buy are legitimate and not mock-vintage.
It’s hardly surprising that people are paying so much for vintage cereal boxes – they must be rare as anything. Who would think to keep hold of a cereal box, after all? But if you have a family member who did, you could sell it on for thousands.
The earliest versions of the iPods that were built by Steve Jobs can bring in a pretty penny. As an example, a first-generation iPod sold in 2019 for $2,200. In mint condition, an iPod could sell for upwards of $10,000.
Watch a sci-fi movie from a few decades ago and you’ll see just how ridiculous the computers from back then look nowadays. But despite their comical appearance, they’re worth a whole lot of cash. Apple 1 or Apple II computers are worth thousands of dollars.
Just like VHS, streaming and downloading has meant that CDs are no longer needed. And because of this, they’re now a lot more valuable than they once were. Find yourself an original release CD, or even better, one that’s been signed by a legend, and you’re in for a winner.
We’ve all heard about that friend who claims to have given their first-edition Star Wars or Harry Potter books to a thrift store before they became valuable. In short, any bestselling first-edition book will probably be worth some money, so it pays to be a book nerd. Get yourself a signed first-edition copy and you’re sitting on thousands of dollars.
23. Vintage Boy Scout badges
Know a family member who was in the Boy Scouts? Nowadays, some vintage Boy Scout patches are worth a
lot of money. Generally, the older the patch, the more money it’s worth. If you’ve got a sash full of badges, even better!
Flip clocks – AKA those with numbers that “flip” with every passing minute, are a particularly hot collectible item. They
are pretty cool, and you don’t see them in stores anymore, which probably explains their popularity. French Bodet flip clocks are particularly valuable.
Not all old coins are worth a lot of money, but again, the older, the better. A stash of 200-year-old coins could be worth thousands, nowadays. But if you don’t have coins that old, you can still make some money from misprinted coins or limited-edition collectibles.
One look at a vintage Pyrex dish and you’re probably transported back in time to home-cooked dinners with your family. If you can bear to part with a dish that’s been passed down to you, it could be worth some money. Some vintage Pyrex dishes have sold for more than $1,000.
Nobody really needs weather vanes anymore. Once upon a time, farmers relied on them to know which way the wind was blowing. Now we can just look at a weather app. But don’t throw out your old weather vane, as weather vanes from the 19th century can be worth up to $7,000.
Who would have thought that your grandma’s old, unused vacuum could be worth some money? If she’s kept hold of an original Hoover, she might get upwards of $500 for it. The better the condition, the higher the price.
As once one of the most popular children’s toys on the market, Polly Pockets are now worth some money. If you still have your old Polly Pocket toys, you could be sitting on a gold mine! It may help to hold on to this one for even longer, though, as it’ll probably go up in price over the coming years.
And finally, if you have any vintage board games lying around, don’t toss them out. If you happen to have an original copy of Monopoly Atlantic City, you could earn upwards of $100,000. It pays to collect “junk”, people!
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For most of us, our basement is a place we don’t particularly enjoy visiting. It’s accumulated so much junk that you can’t be sure what’s even in there anymore.
If you’ve been putting off a basement cleanout for some time, don’t be so quick to throw everything away without a second glance. You might have held onto some household items that are worth their weight in gold nowadays.
Check out these basement finds that could make you much richer than you knew you were…
