Bartering Makes a Comeback

Here's a piece from the Baltimore Sun that says bartering is making a comeback. The highlights:

Bartering -- the trading of goods or services without using cash -- is making a comeback in a troubled economy. It can be as simple as trading baby-sitting with another family, or as complex as an exchange with strangers facilitated by one of the several Web sites that have sprung up to connect barterers.

Bartering ads on Craigslist have increased about 100 percent since last year, said Susan MacTavish Best, a spokeswoman for the online classified advertising service. Traffic is also up at local organizations like the Midwest Barter Exchange, a Kalamazoo, Mich.-based outfit that acts as a go-between for about 1,000 business clients.

We've always done the "trade baby-sitting nights" thing with others, so that's not new to us. I'm totally open to other options of bartering, but in many cases the time it would cost me to do my end of the barter simply isn't worth it -- it's just a better deal for me to pay for the service outright.

How about you? Anyone out there bartering for goods or services? What are some of the things you've traded and how did you go about setting up the exchange?

Comments

[Henry]

Right now we're in a place where everything is looked at through the lens of the financial crisis, and some of bartering may very well be a result of the recession, but I think some of this is due to the rise of the internet. Other sites like Oodle.com make it easier to trade. And maybe even the web itself - with concepts like link trades - makes this type of bartering seem more legitimate.

[Rendell @ BrandlessBlog]

I will only do it, if it is necessary or more value-add. Else, I am too lazy to search and wait someone who wants to do the barter.

[Shaun Connell]

My brother and I used baseball cards as a currency, so I'm not sure if it was considered bartering. However, we'd often exchange 30 or so cards in a day. Trading cards for chores, coins to get a pop, deciding who would clean the bathroom -- baseball cards were a big part of my time growing up. :)

[Betsy Bargain]

I've traded shampoo, deodorant, etc. that I get for free by doing rebates, for fruit and vegetables from people's gardens. I find my trading partners on Craigslist.

[Melanie Esqueda]

I babysit for my friend who's a massage therapist..in exchange for massage. We have also exchanged babysitting for food items. Bartered with a neighbor this week for food as well. I haven't bartered with strangers yet.

[bg]

watch out for the IRS. The rule is clear, bartered services have a value and if tax would normally be due on the type of service, it still is due.

I'm sure people are rushing to fill out a 1099-B for the babysitting.

[SAHM]

I have my own business, and I have traded my goods (that I purchase at wholesale) for other items like clothes for my daughter and interior decorating expertise. It is a win-win because I end up paying less in the long run and they get what they had been wanting without having to find the money. Now, I haven't done this with people I don't know, just friends and acquaintances.

[Cheap Like Me]

We are brewing our own beer and needed bottles. Retail and new, they cost $0.25 to $0.50 each. Ouch! And I would rather recycle. I posted on Craigslist that we would like free bottles or could pay a little something. The result: We got 200+ bottles from a former-would-be homebrewer. We are paying her back in beer. We're paying less than retail, and the advantage to us is, we're giving away part of our first batch, so we have a good excuse to make another right away. We were remarking last night that it's like having an old-school debt: Instead of owing the bank or the credit card like modern debtors often do, we will have paid off our debt once we bottle the rest of our beer this weekend and deliver it to our barter partner (who happens to live just a few blocks away). It's a nice community feeling, and a good way to save money and recycle.

[Jessica]

I'm trading my web services/Adobe CS3 skills for acupuncture. I make my acupuncturist brochures, fliers, etc, I get free acupuncture. Computer skills are ALWAYS barterable.

[Slinky]

I've always done some bartering, mostly with friends or acquaintances. I knit, crochet, sew, quilt, play harp, and piano. My fiance does a lot of building and fixing computers, graphic art and design, photography, web site design and maintenance as well as making chain mail and blacksmithing.

Things we've gotten in return (off the top of my head) - beer (of course), dinner (once from a professional chef), gift cards, jade antique chinese wall hanging (very cool), tickets to shows, cds, crafting supplies, massage, flowers, 18"x24" framed photograph, etc. Really, you name it.

[Rhea]

I was spending too much on haircuts and color. It could be cost me up to $150 every six to eight weeks. So I put an ad on Craig's List and found a hair stylist/colorist. She is licensed and very experienced but works out of her home for friends and, now, me! I barter my decluttering skills (this is a business I do on the side of my regular job), so I have not spent one penny in hair care for months! I LOVE IT.

[Nicki at Domestic Cents]

I sell homemade bread. One of my customers just asked me a couple days ago if I'd be willing to barter my bread for their fresh eggs. I said yes. I've also bartered for fresh produce. I think it's great!