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Economy gives bartering new life

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By Jill Kelley, Staff Writer Updated 3:50 PM Friday, April 24, 2009

This recession has forced many people to go back to the ways their parents and grandparents used money, with more focus on saving, avoiding debt, not taking finances for granted, etc.

And some folks are even borrowing a few cues on spending (or lack of) that are even further removed.

Bartering, a practice that is assumed to have been born around the time that our most distant ancestor created a tool worth coveting, appears to have made its way back into the mainstream.

With the help of the ubiquitous Internet, there are currently multiple outlets for people to put out a public request for what they need, while advertising their skills or services as possible exchange.

UExchange.com, a free swap site, reported that its traffic jumped nearly 150 percent in January and February as compared to the same time last year.

There are sites that offer everything, such as TradeAway.com and SwapVillage.com in which users post what they are trying to “sell or trade” and list what they will take in exchange.

There also are sites that serve specific interests. Etsy.com, a site for buying and selling all things handmade, has a blog called Etsy Trade-a-Holics (etsytradeaholics.com) that provides a forum for users to trade their creations.

But modern bartering is not limited to the Web.

Deborah Wallis, a hairdresser who lives in Dayton and works in Oakwood, has been able to use her vocation to get more than just a traditional paycheck.

“I met an artist at a showing who I barter with,” Wallis said. “I cut his hair in exchange for art.”

Wallis also has employed the Internet to trade services, and found a woman on CraigsList.com who cleans her apartment in exchange for doing her hair. But she advises anyone working with strangers online to proceed with caution.

“On CraigsList, you could have some real creepos, so if you take that route you should e-mail back and forth and talk on the phone before you meet them. And you should meet them in a public place,” she said.

Judy Wick of Dayton barters her baby-sitting services for massages.

“Massages were something I didn’t think I could afford after I retired, but this way I can,” she said.

Something to remember about bartering is that it is taxable and is treated like any other business transaction.

Keep track of what you buy and sell and report your trades on your income tax.

Contact this reporter at (937) 225-

7325

jikelley

@Dayton DailyNews.com.

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Great article! I would like to point out though, that Etsy's official blog is called The Storque, and can be found at http://www.etsy.com/storque/

The Etsy Trade-a-Holics blog is run by a team of Etsy members, and can be found at http://www.etsytradeaholics.blogspo...

Adam
10:43 AM, 4/24/2009

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