Most people would gladly work just a few hours on a weeknight or weekend to take home a few extra hundred dollars each month. Luckily, there’s a way to do just that and even earn up to $1,000 or more in a single day: a furniture flipping business.
Furniture flipping is one of the most popular and lucrative side hustles out there today. Everyone needs furniture, and homeowners are constantly replacing their pieces for one reason or another, which means there will always be demand. Plus, you don’t need to learn very many new skills to become successful in the furniture flipping business.
You may be wondering, who is the target demographic for flipped furniture? The answer is everyone, but most notably millennials who are celebrating the “up-cycled” aesthetic in their home décor trends as well as clothing and accessories. Younger homeowners and renters are more interested in rescuing older pieces with character than buying new ones for style and sustainability.
Ready to learn more about how you could make thousands of dollars extra each year flipping furniture? Let’s dive into the ins and outs of a furniture flipping business and how you could turn this practice into a lucrative side hustle or even a full-time income for yourself.
How to Start a Furniture Flipping Business
Before you can begin flipping furniture, there are a few key factors to consider. Different types of furniture tend to do better than others in a furniture flipping business. Where you purchase your furniture to refurbish it can make a big difference in your success. Plus, you’ll need a few different tools and materials to get started.
Best Types of Furniture to Flip
When you’re on the hunt for used furniture to flip, it’s important to keep your eye out for high-quality pieces. No specific piece of furniture is off the table when it comes to flipping; you could be successful with anything from a sofa to an end table to an armoire. It all depends on the furniture’s condition and the skills and time it will take to make the piece sellable.
However, the original piece’s material quality is another essential factor to consider. Furniture customers that come to a furniture flipping business are looking for well-made pieces that have been expertly refurbished and will last for a long time.
If they wanted cheap furniture, they would have gone to a discount furniture warehouse and saved themselves the time. People come to furniture flippers not expecting perfection or a brand-new piece but seeking quality and charm. The best way to maintain repeat customers and draw in new ones is to deliver on that level of quality every time.
Where to Find Flippable Furniture
There are many places to browse for high-quality furniture that might make an excellent refurbished piece for a good price. Some of the most obvious are establishments like thrift stores, antique stores, and even flea markets. Flea market flippers will often visit these events toward the end of the day, while most sellers will be more willing to part with good pieces for cheap.
Additionally, the online marketplace continues to grow each year, and the furniture market is no exception. Furniture flippers can find viable options on platforms like Facebook Marketplace and Craigslist, where many sellers are simply trying to get rid of items and offer them for extremely cheap or even free.
Make sure to check out your neighborhood garage sales, too. Garage sales are some of the best spots to find well-made pieces that might have a bit of wear and tear but were charming and functional enough to stay in a family’s rotation for years. Plus, if the garage sale is being run by a family member who didn’t buy the items originally, they may not know what a piece is worth and may undervalue it.
How Much Can You Earn Flipping Furniture?
Like any side hustle, your income flipping furniture will depend on how much time you have to dedicate to it, your skill level and access to materials, and even where you’re located. Often, the most time-consuming part of the job is searching for the next good piece of furniture to fix up. Therefore, if you have more time to dedicate to it, you’re more likely to find good finds that could make you a significant profit.
Your skill level also makes a big difference. If all you feel comfortable doing is repainting old pieces, your margin of profit may not be big, as you’ll have to start with pieces that are already in pretty good condition. If you learn to repair heavily damaged items that you can buy for almost nothing and resell for much more, you’re more likely to see success in your furniture flipping business.
Read More: Tips to Up Your Game Selling Furniture Online
All in all, most furniture flippers who treat the business as supplemental to their primary income will make between $50 and $500 extra per month. However, if you dedicate the time to making your furniture flipping business your main job, you could be making upwards of $10,000 per month.
Learn More About Making Money as a Sharetown Rep
Becoming a Sharetown Rep is one of the best ways to make money in the furniture flipping business. Are you good at selling furniture or hauling furniture, or simply looking for a way to make money with your pickup truck? Then a partnership with Sharetown might be right for you.
Sharetown is a logistics company focused on making big items easy and quick to move using community members. We offer last-mile delivery as well as setup services to ensure that your items are delivered safely and securely, and setup in your home or business is quick and effortless.
Interested in working with us? Our simple, streamlined procedures and opportunities for growth make us stand out from the rest. Plus, you can boost your own furniture flipping business and reach new clientele by moving items with Sharetown. Apply today to get started.
Furniture Flipping FAQs
What Materials Do I Need?
The materials necessary for a furniture flipping business will depend on what types of pieces you’re planning to flip, how skilled you are at it, and your mode of transportation.
Make sure you have a reliable vehicle and space to work, whether that’s your backyard, basement, garage, or spare room. To repaint old furniture pieces, you’ll need standard painting gear. That includes things like paint, brushes, painter’s tape, and a paint stripper. Plus, you may want to have items like wood glue and a sander on hand to fix broken pieces or buff out old scratches.
Most part-time furniture flippers will stick to repainting and lightly repairing items with slight wear and tear. However, if you want to make really good money flipping furniture, you could learn to fully restore wooden pieces to their former glory or even learn to reupholster couches and chairs.
How Much Should I Pay for Pieces?
When you’re negotiating with a seller, do your best to make the first offer so you can set the reference price low and keep negotiations close to your reference price. Generally, you shouldn’t pay more than $100 for a piece to keep your profit margin as high as possible. However, if you find an item that could sell for a lot once it’s refurbished, it may be worth a few hundred dollars in overhead costs.
Storage items and end tables aren’t usually worth much ($25 and under). The more expensive pieces like dressers and buffets may be worth $150-$250 if you think you can flip and sell them for hundreds more. Come across a dresser that’s really falling apart? Odds are it’s not worth the money since you won’t be able to refurbish it economically.
Avoid buying broken items you don’t know how to fix. Also, steer clear of cheap furniture and wobbly pieces.
How Much Should I Flip Pieces For?
There are a few different figures that should affect the prices you set when selling your items. Take note of how much you paid for the piece initially, the cost of materials, transportation expenses, and how much time you spent on the refurbishing process.
Once you have this information, develop a selling price you feel is reasonable given those details. Generally, this means you could be marking up your selling price by between 200% and 400% from the original buying price. If you’re still unsure about pricing, browse pieces similar to yours on online marketplaces to get a feel for the market environment.
Where Should I Sell?
Generally, the easiest places to sell your furniture are online shops like Craigslist, Facebook Marketplace, and even eBay. These options come with no additional fees for use, and you can access thousands of people in your area to sell locally. However, you’ll have to figure out whether you’ll be providing transportation or if buyers will have to take care of it themselves.
Some antique stores will allow local furniture sellers to rent floor space, though they’ll typically ask for a small percentage of sales. You could also have a good old-fashioned garage sale, which keeps your sales local, establishes your presence in the community, and generally puts transportation responsibility on the buyer.
Learn how you can become a Sharetown rep and start earning extra income.
