# Taxing eBay sales pending legislation



## Nickinator (May 7, 2018)

FYI- Legislators are (again) working on changing the laws so that ALL your hobby sales on ebay and other online sites like Etsy etc will be taxed. 

Don't want to start any political rants here, this is not the breakroom, but if you care to sign the petition to oppose it, here is the link (you may also get this link emailed to you if you have an ebay account.)

https://www.ebaymainstreet.com/peti...ource=marketing-email-seller&utm_medium=email

Darcie


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## sm2501 (May 7, 2018)

I am not sure how I feel about this. As an ebay seller, this could become a real hassle unless ebay has to handle the distribution of sales tax. As a buyer, I really don't mind paying sales tax knowing it will help out our local communities. Online sales are killing our local brick and mortar retail locations and legislation like this may just help our local communities. The lack of sales tax paid in any given municipality effects everybody as there is less money for local infrastructure. Drive around and look at the empty retail spaces in your community. A lot of these are empty because of online shopping. Quite often the reason people are buying online is because they are not paying sales tax, which becomes another 5-9% savings from buying online. 

Yes, this comes from me selling retail bikes for 35 years. I know how this effects my bottom line, but also know when I collect less sales tax, it directly effects how much that I am sending to the local tax man that makes sure I have good streets to drive on, good police and fire protection, etc.

Food for thought. 

Scott


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## SirMike1983 (May 7, 2018)

How the Supreme Court decides South Dakota v. Wayfair will be important at the state sales tax level. They heard argument earlier this term. It is big case for online retail, but is being overshadowed in the press by other cases and the usual political junk stories.


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## JOEL (May 7, 2018)

Used items should be exempt. They have already been taxed.


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## catfish (May 7, 2018)

Another reason to not sell on ebay....


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## Nickinator (May 7, 2018)

Paying sales tax on an item online isn’t the biggest issue for me, I agree with Scott that its killing our mom and pop, brick and mortar shops- but that you would also be required to count the sale, and may have to pay income tax on it. We’ll see if the amounts of the income change, before you get a 1099. 
Darcie


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## halfatruck (May 7, 2018)

possibly the key is as Joel stated, used versus new..


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## rustjunkie (May 7, 2018)

In CA sellers are required to collect and pay sales tax for items shipped or delivered in the state.


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## Nickinator (May 7, 2018)

Yes there are half a dozen states already doing it, but thought Texas was one of them....
Darcie


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## halfatruck (May 7, 2018)

not yet in Texas...


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## ivrjhnsn (May 7, 2018)

Accepting paypal, any amount over $600, I have to pay tax on it in Taxachusetts,,sorry . typo, Massachusetts .Ebay or not.


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## catfish (May 7, 2018)

ivrjhnsn said:


> Accepting paypal, any amount over $600, I have to pay tax on it in Taxachusetts,,sorry . typo, Massachusetts .Ebay or not.




That blows!


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## Freqman1 (May 8, 2018)

If you make your living selling on Ebay then I can see the tax thing. I am a hobbyist. I buy way more than I ever sell and when I sell its to buy more stuff--not feed my family. So unless the tax man is going to let me write off hobby expenses don't tax me for hobby sales. V/r Shawn


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## jkent (May 8, 2018)

I just wonder how far this is going to go. Are they going to make people start taxing yard sales and flea markets? What about people that offer things like grass cutting and yard clean up? Both of my boy's got out and raked leaves and cut grass to make extra money, what about services like that?
I personally feel like we are all being taxed to death. Yes, I am a smoker and cigarettes in Alabama just went up $ .40 a pack on taxes.
I remember a few years ago Alabama said it was going to increase sales tax on cigarettes by $ .82 a pack to help with infrastructure like bridges and roads they said it would increase state revenue by $541 million dollars a year. Where is that money at now? It D***N sure didn't go to roads. It sure seems like all these taxes are just making politicians pockets fatter.


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## alecburns (May 8, 2018)

I'm not as pissed off about the taxes that may happen on eBay but the incessant and outrageous fees that eBay currently charges the sellers. When you get done you end up losing 10%-15% to this company. I sold a clock on eBay for $275 and got a $54 Valuation Charge after the sale, a fee they never previously mentioned. That's why I use Etsy. They take an appropriate amount of the commission and let you have the option of additional advertising, etc. If that ever changes, sianarah Etsy, Hello [insert new online store here]!

There are already tax laws in most states meant to compel you to pay taxes when you make a certain amount of revenue online. There's no point kicking a dead horse, a.k.a. the commoner, while they get the highest tax cuts in the country.


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## halfatruck (May 8, 2018)

the Ebay change that stopped me from selling was when they added the shipping amount into the final amount total, I pay shipping and Ebay gets a fee???


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## ivrjhnsn (May 8, 2018)

It's not all just about ebay...paypal too. They are required by some states to report any $$ over a certain amount. Then after that certain amount you get a 1099 that you have to report and pay taxes on.  Just for selling anything and accepting paypal .


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## 5760rj (May 12, 2018)

ivrjhnsn said:


> It's not all just about ebay...paypal too. They are required by some states to report any $$ over a certain amount. Then after that certain amount you get a 1099 that you have to report and pay taxes on.  Just for selling anything and accepting paypal .




I remember helping my mom set up at the drive inn on the week end mornings selling garage sale junk with others as well, by midmorning the police staff in pairs would walk around taking note of what you were selling and how much you sold and based on that would collect the city's tax right then, I know this has nothing to do with ebay just a memory I have of city politics of taxing a item many times over and collecting it before you left in cash.......


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## catfish (May 12, 2018)

5760rj said:


> I remember helping my mom set up at the drive inn on the week end mornings selling garage sale junk with others as well, by midmorning the police staff in pairs would walk around taking note of what you were selling and how much you sold and based on that would collect the city's tax right then, I know this has nothing to do with ebay just a memory I have of city politics of taxing a item many times over and collecting it before you left in cash.......




Something happened in Massachusetts about 20 years ago. It killed off a bunch of long time flea markets. I remember getting a tax form from the flea market when paying for a spot. And at a car swap I did for years, they had tax people stop at every both and get your info....


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## ivrjhnsn (May 12, 2018)

Should be NO tax on used items period ! How many times do  you have to pay tax on the same dam item ?


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## 5760rj (May 12, 2018)

catfish said:


> Something happened in Massachusetts about 20 years ago. It killed off a bunch of long time flea markets. I remember getting a tax form from the flea market when paying for a spot. And at a car swap I did for years, they had tax people stop at every both and get your info....




funny now that I think back about it, people that were buying left with bags, carts or arms full of everybody's else's junk and sellers had little to nothing left always denied or lied about how much they sold to the city's tax collector's as they came back around throughout the day, ideally you sold things cheap enough got your money and disappeared before there next round started , it wasn't long before this was stopped, as you left in your car from the drive inn they had other officials at the exiting to look and ask what you sold and made,  eventually everyone became a trader of goods not a seller.......


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## catfish (May 12, 2018)

5760rj said:


> funny now that I think back about it, people that were buying left with bags, carts or arms full of everybody's else's junk and sellers had little to nothing left always denied or lied about how much they sold to the city's tax collector's as they came back around throughout the day, ideally you sold things cheap enough got your money and disappeared before there next round started , it wasn't long before this was stopped, as you left in your car from the drive inn they had other officials at the exiting to look and ask what you sold and made,  eventually everyone became a trader of goods not a seller.......




In Massachusetts you get taxed for bartering.... AKA trading...


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## Nickinator (May 12, 2018)

5760rj said:


> I remember helping my mom set up at the drive inn on the week end mornings selling garage sale junk with others as well, by midmorning the police staff in pairs would walk around taking note of what you were selling and how much you sold and based on that would collect the city's tax right then, I know this has nothing to do with ebay just a memory I have of city politics of taxing a item many times over and collecting it before you left in cash.......




Wow, can you imagine?
You have to fill out a tax form to get a vendor spot at the Chief Blackhawk motorcycle swap in Davenport Iowa, but you're on the honor system on that one lol, that would be a tough crowd to try that on 

Darcie


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## catfish (May 12, 2018)

Nickinator said:


> Wow, can you imagine?
> You have to fill out a tax form to get a vendor spot at the Chief Blackhawk motorcycle swap in Davenport Iowa, but you're on the honor system on that one lol, that would be a tough crowd to try that on
> 
> Darcie




But it is driving vendors away from a lot of big swap meets.


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