Bartering is an option for folks short on cash

YAKIMA, Wash. — In the past few years, Deonna Uribe of Moxee has bartered everything from a karaoke machine to a china hutch. With a 1-year-old in the house, she's now trying to find a new owner for her English bulldog, Rosie.

She's received about 30 offers in the past few months. Some wanted to trade her their boats and cars. One person offered her a PlayStation 3.

But after paying $3,000 for the animal, Uribe is a bit picky on the exchange. Not only does she want something of equal value, she wants her dog to go to a loving owner.

"I had to save for a year to buy Rosie," said the 33-year-old stay-at-home mom. "I'd be willing to trade somebody that had something of value and could give her a good home. It's a win-win situation."

Bartering has grown in popularity in recent years -- if online traffic is any indication. At U-Exchange.com, page views have increased from 471,727 in May 2008 to 936,467 last month. Membership has also increased in the same period from 35,761 to 63,205, said founder John C. Moore of Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

To Moore, the growth is directly linked to the recession.

"The economy is the number one reason bartering is up," he said. "People are now looking to fill their time with barter deals until things pick up."

Similar statistics are found with the bartering section on Craigslist, said spokesperson Susan MacTavish Best. In the past 12 months alone, bartering postings are up 80 percent, she said.

"We've seen a dramatic spike in bartering postings as the economy has soured over the last couple of years," she said.

The items most commonly bartered are vehicles, such as cars, trucks, motorcycles and boats, Moore said. Services are also popular to barter, and include baby-sitting, housekeeping and dental work.

Jack McEntire of Selah is one person searching for a dentist. He needs a tooth implant, and he doesn't have insurance to pay the $4,000 cost. As an artist, he's hoping he can trade wood or stone sculptures for the work, but he has yet to receive an offer on
U-Exchange.

"I thought there might very well be a dentist out there who would like a piece of my art," he said, adding that his pieces sell for a few hundred dollars up to $12,000. "When you're trying to barter what I'm looking for, it takes some patience."

McEntire said he's bartered his goods for tools and an old computer. He tries not to make bartering a habit, but he likes to keep an open mind, he said.

"I've been pretty fortunate with the economy, but I'd rather keep my cash close at hand," the 48-year-old said. "This is the heaviest recession I've gone through in my life."

Lewis Mandell, a finance and business professor at the University of Washington, said bartering is a creative way for people to manage their finances. But if used to avoid taxation, it's illegal.

If a plumber and electrician exchanged services without documentation, he said they're effectively cheating the government. To keep the dealing legitimate, Mandell said both parties must sign a contract, put a value on the work and report the earnings on their tax returns.

That way, not only are the two acting lawfully, they're protecting themselves in case the deal goes bad.

"Bartering is handy. It's useful," Mandell said. "But one of the things you are doing is taking money away from the government. The government is becoming very much attuned to what they're losing."

The Internal Revenue Service may start cracking down on Web sites that promote bartering of big-ticket items, Mandell said, but he doesn't see that happening until the economy rights itself.

"I don't think the government will do anything as long as the unemployment rate is 91/2 to 10 percent," he said. "For unemployed people, you have to do what you have to do to survive. The IRS won't come after you."

Looking to barter?

These Web sites enable people to barter goods and services. Registration is free:

* U-exchange.com offers every type of trade in more than 80 countries.

* whatsmineisyours.com is a swapping site based in Britain. It focuses on fashion, and has more than 22,000 users worldwide.

* swapthing.com lists more than 3.4 million items for barter or swap, from computers and antiques to comic books and posters. The company is based in California.

* swapaskill.com is headquartered in Britain. On the site,people barter cooking, tutoring, massage services and more.

* homeexchange.com enables people to swap their homes for vacations.

* craigslist.com has a bartering section where people can swap virtually anything. There are now ads posted in Yakima for ordained marriage services, phones and tools.

Bartering tips:

Be very descriptive with details of goods you're offering and what you want in return.

Take clear photos of your items and post them.

To avoid being scammed, take cash over cashier's checks or money orders.

Never give out financial or personal information, such as bank account numbers or your Social Security number.

Both parties should draw up a contract to protect themselves. Be as specific as possible. For example, for someone wanting a resumé, explain how many drafts a resumé writer will write, when it's due and if the resumé can be proofread and edited by the recipient for possible changes.

If you barter products or services through a barter exchange, you should receive a Form 1099-B. Your proceeds are generally reportable as income and must be included on your federal income tax return.

* Erin Snelgrove can be reached at 509-577-7684 or esnelgrove@yakimaherald.com.

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