Did you know that the average American buys about 10 pounds of used clothing every year in the U.S.? There are a lot of reasons to buy used clothes. Not least among them, it helps reduce waste and improve recycling efforts. About 90% of clothing thrown out every year could be recycled instead! Considering the many issues the world is running into when it comes to keeping things clean — buying used just makes sense.
What else should you keep in mind about buying donated clothes, and donating them yourself? Here are a few facts.
Where Does the Money Go?
Many people mistakenly believe that it?s a bad thing to buy from a thrift store, ?because the clothes are meant for the homeless.? In actuality, it?s a two part process. To begin with, no, buying clothes yourself won?t disadvantage the homeless — sometimes these places get so many donations they have to ship the extra clothing someplace else! Also importantly, the revenue generated by selling these clothes, once overhead is accounted for, typically goes to a wide variety of charities. After all, these companies don?t need to pay for anything associated with production — they?re given the clothing!
There are Charities That Will Pick Up Donations
If you just don?t have time to visit a charity site, yes — there are places that will pick up your donations instead! The key here is to make sure you have enough to make it worth their time. These organizations, in addition to clothing, often get a lot of traction out of furniture, since many people living in or close to poverty may have trouble, for example, affording a $100 bookcase when they make $8 an hour and still need to pay rent along with everything else. This can allow you to update your home, without having to pay to haul everything to the dump, or have to just hope someone picks it up from the curb.
Clothing Donations Can be a Tax Writeoff
Make sure you get it in writing, but yes, clothing donations can be written off in your taxes! Just make sure not to overestimate how much things are actually worth. The IRS might end up side eyeing your claim of giving away a $300 toaster, for example. At any rate, a clothing donation can be a great thing once tax season rolls around — make no mistake about it.
Charitable Donations are Key to Lifting Local Communities
Many inner city areas are struggling. Charity donations of clothing can help to bring resources to the areas that need them the most. By donating, you can be a part of making this happen. You get to get rid of your old clothing — AND help out in an important way at the same time. What’s not to like?
Well there you have it — donating clothing to charity organizations makes sense. Not only will you feel good about it, and benefit tax wise, but you’re going to be helping out a community in need. Will you be donating soon? Let us know!
