10 tricks for swapping your way to free stuff: "Whatever it is you’re interested in bartering — from clothes to books to DVDs to home repairs — it’s relatively easy to find people who live near you and who share similar interests. Try these sites: Meetup.com; U-Exchange.com; the barter section of Craigslist for your area; BabysitterExchange.com, which can help you swap baby-sitting services with people in your area; and The Freecycle Network, which advocates gifting to help the environment and may be able to direct you to local trading or bartering organizations."
I wouldn't feel comfortable with the babysitting services, but the other exchanges look interesting. We've done a bit of bartering recently; my husband worked for some minor home repairs. We also know someone who owns a small farm. We'll be bartering our used children's clothing and homeschool materials for fresh eggs and other farm goodies.
Freecycle.com is not a bartering site, but if your Freecycle is anything like ours, you are expected to give as well as receive. So it becomes sort of a collective bartering experience. People get to know you there, and it's very easy to know who is reliable, and who is not. The ones who develop reputations for not picking up items tend to get glossed over. The same is true of the ones who constantly ask for items, but never offer them. Trading happens among the reliable givers and receivers.
Making no-cash deals with neighbors
When in doubt, barter(budget travel)
Short list of bartering sites and here.
About Me
- Alexandra
- A homeschooling mother of one teenager and a little. In 2001, I resigned from my 13 year position as a case manager to homeschool my oldest who was a preschooler at the time, and later a daughter who came along in 2005. This is by far the hardest job I've ever loved. My husband of nearly 20 years supports us as a fire fighter and EMT.
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