All parents experience the bittersweet moment when you realize the crib you purchased is no longer needed. On one hand there’s a sense of victory that you’ve survived bringing a baby, or multiple babies, into the world. On the other hand there’s some sense of sadness because you wont re-experience all the joys that come with bringing a new life into the world. Regardless of your emotions time moves forward and new adventures in child rearing will present themselves. In any event that still leaves you with an unused crib sitting in your house collecting dust and taking up space. What’s a parent to do?

Let’s take a look at some of the options you have for parting with your crib. Some of the options are less obvious than others. What’s best for you will entirely depend on your own personal situation. Just make sure that you read our post regarding selling cribs which will help you determine your crib is still considered safe. The last thing you want to do is give or sell someone a dangerous crib.

• Talk to your family and friends.
• Sell your crib in a yard/garage sale.
• Sell your crib online.
• Sell your crib to a local reseller.
• Repurpose your crib.
• Donate your crib.
• Throw out your crib.

Talk to your family and friends.

Possibly the quickest and easiest option you have is to ask your family and friends that are expecting their first baby or gearing up to start a family. The benefit to going this route is that you already have a trusted relationship with the persons that would be getting your crib. That removes some of the uncertainty and hassle that can sometimes come with selling your crib to a complete stranger. Whether you gift the crib, trade for it or sell it for some cash it’s entirely up to you and the persons you’re dealing with. One benefit to gifting is you can usually get the other party to come pick it up. That eliminates the trouble of having to load it into a vehicle and deliver it yourself. Family and friends are also more inclined to reuse the mattress, which means one less thing for you to deal with. If you’re selling your crib to a stranger they might be somewhat less inclined to want your mattress which means you’ll have to discard it on your own.

Sell your crib in a yard/garage sale.

You’re either the yard sale type of person or your not. We get that, because we generally aren’t the type that would run a yard/garage sale. For one it can be somewhat of hassle to setup everything outside only to move most of it back inside at the end of the day. On top of that you have to deal with a lot of people offering you pennies on the dollar for what you’re asking. Everyone is looking for a bargain.

You might have another option to selling stuff in your own yard. Some towns have community-wide garage sale days. In some cases there’s a public venue (i.e. library/high school) where they take place and that generally will attract a much larger crowd, which means concentrated buyers. Trying to unload a couple of items, like a crib, at an event like this might be a better option if you’re not into running your own sale. Our experience is that most of the stuff being sold at these types of events is clothes and small toys. If you show up with a crib there probably wont be a whole lot of competition for that kind of item.

Sell your crib online.

Another option you have is to sell your crib online. There are a couple downsides to this but we think the positives far outweigh the negatives. For one you can reach a much larger audience. On top of that the audience is comprised of people that are actively seeking out what you have. Another nice thing about selling online is you don’t have the hassle of moving the crib around until it’s sold. The only thing you have to provide perspective buyers are some pictures and the crib details (i.e. make, model, condition etc).

The first step to selling online is deciding what marketplace you’re going to list on. You have a number of options and varying costs to consider. How much you can get for your crib is probably going to factor into what online marketplace you use too. Some sites charge both listing fees and commissions. In some cases those commissions can get kind of hefty (e.g. 20%) so make sure you understand the total cost upfront. If you’re selling an expensive crib large commission fees are going to seem pretty pricey. While there are some free options out there they generally don’t focus on a niche like baby items, they’re generally all inclusive from tennis rackets to tablets. The Bebe Beehive marketplace stands out from the larger and more corporate marketplaces. We offer commission FREE and listing FREE options. That’s right, you can keep 100% of the sale of your crib and there’s no upfront cost to list an item. We do have some premium listing offerings but those are entirely optional. If that sounds appealing then signup for a FREE account and list that crib or any other baby toddler item you no longer need.

Once you’ve decided on what marketplace fits your needs you should search it to see if anyone else is selling the same crib or one that’s very close to it. Ultimately the marketplace will find a balance between supply and demand and that will dictate the resale value of an item. If you can’t find your crib on the marketplace your listing look around at a couple other marketplaces to see if you can find your crib there. If you’re still not able to find it anywhere list the crib for what you think is a fair used crib price. If after three weeks you don’t get any interest that could be a sign that your asking price is a little high.

When it comes time to list your item make sure the information you provide about your crib, including its condition, is as accurate and complete as possible. We also have several other seller tips that you should check out to help you make your sale as quickly as possible. You may find yourself selling other baby and toddler items down the road (strollers, walkers, bouncers, swings, rockers, etc.) so work on making your seller profile reputable. That will make selling other items a whole lot easier. If you provide incomplete or inaccurate information about your crib this will definitely hurt your profile’s reputation.

Sell your crib to a local reseller.

There are some brick and mortar locations that deal with the buying and selling of used items. If you check around in your area there may even be a location in a neighboring town that’s willing to purchase your crib. Keep in mind that stores have a lot of overhead costs (employees, rent, utilities, etc.) to account for and their customers are looking for really great deals. That generally means you’re going to get a low dollar amount for your item. If the store is small they might not even want your crib simply because of the amount of floor space it would occupy. We have some experience selling small toys and clothes at local stores like this and what you end up with doesn’t amount to much but it’s certainly better than getting nothing. The condition of the items you bring is probably the most important criteria to them. Any obvious damage or distress to the crib and they’ll probably turn you away.

Repurpose your crib.

Just because you bought a crib it doesn’t mean it has to stay a crib. Let your imagination run wild! If you're a creative individual and are good with your hands you could repurpose your old crib into a toy box, bench, or a toddler bed. That will give your old crib a second life and let it stick around a few more years perhaps even. There are lots of How To examples online of people doing just that. If you started with a well-made crib it probably has a pretty good chance of being repurposed.

Donate your crib.

It’s easy to take things for granted but the reality is there’s always someone less fortunate then you. One option you have for your old crib is to donate it to help out a stranger in need. You can check out your local area to see if there are any charity organizations that accept cribs. If there are no local organizations another alternative option is The Salvation Army. In some locations they’ll even offer free pick-up, which saves you from having to move the crib yourself. They might even be willing/able to take the crib as is without the need to disassemble it, another plus. If the charity you donate to is filed with the IRS as a non-profit entity your donation is even tax deductible. They should be able to tell you what the donation value of your crib is. Just make sure you write it down so you don’t forget about it when you file your taxes.

Throw out your crib.

If you’ve considered all the options above and none of them really appeal to you it might seems as though your only option is to throw out your crib. This option doesn’t have to be as fatalistic as it sounds. If you live on a road that has any kind of traffic on it realize that there are pickers driving by every day. If you neatly place all of the crib parts near the curb along with a sign saying “FREE CRIB” there’s a decent chance that someone will stop, load it up and take it home. We’ve gotten rid of some leftover roof shingles this way and they were worth a whole lot less than a crib. Just make sure you place it outside on a day when you know road traffic is up and the sky is clear. The chances of someone stopping in the pouring rain are pretty low and the water damage that could result will likely turn your crib into something that nobody wants.