Casino Merchandise as Charitable Contributions?

Over the years I have accumulated almost a roomful of casino gifts. Some of it is actually decent quality, but of little interest to me (other than a few items that I actually do use). I have tried selling them to pawn shops with no success, and I am not much for garage or yard sales.

So my latest idea is to try Goodwill. If I can unload some merchandise and get a receipt for the value, maybe I can at least claim them as charitable contributions in my itemized deductions. The first question I have though is that I never declared them as income when I received them; so can I claim them as deductions when I contribute them?

TIA for any advice.

When one takes item(s) to Goodwill, a receipt is issued, no value listed on the receipt. They don't even look at the items if they are brought in bags, boxes, etc.

For tax purposes it is up to the donor to declare a value if the donation is included in "charitable giving".
I believe there is a maximum dollar amount, maybe $400, that can be declared without actual proof, i.e. receipts of your cost of the items donated, etc.

Whether or not Goodwill puts casino items on the shelf to sell, I don't know. I doubt your trinkets would be of much interest to buyers, but that isn't your problem. Box the stuff up, take it to a collection station, and get the receipt. At least you can declare the minimum as a deduction. If you have to be more specific, say "miscellaneous decorative items."

Claiming income has nothing to do with charitable contributions. You can donate old clothes, cars, boats, and yes, your casino bric-a-brac.

When we donate clothes, we list on the tax form- "eight bags of clothing" Value: $500.

When I donate to my local charity,Value Village,they hand me a punch card.
Each punch on the card is worth 10% off any merchandise that I buy up to 30%.
Doesn't matter the value of the donations.Each donation gets a punch to the next level.
Good bargains there. I can also claim a non-cash donation each time.
I have donated printers,clothing,working electronics and toys and casino ashtrays.

What kind of stuff do you have? Baseball caps, tshirts, mugs? Or something more substantial? There are apps now that allow you to basically take phone photos and instantly list items for sale in your locality....it's like a much easier version of craigslist....and way easier than a garage sale.

You'd be surprised what people will pay money for.

If you are in Vegas, contact McManus Auctions. He holds a weekly auction and casino swag seems to do pretty well. Drop it off and He will mail you a check in ten days or so.
Last weeks auction a lot of about a dozen ashtrays and a few giveaways went for about $60.

I have purchased casino souvenirs for re-sale on eBAY, although I have not done so for about 9-10 years now. Found some ash trays at Goodwill or Salvation Army, among other stuff, for 5-10 cents, which I sold on eBAY of something like $20.00+ per. (Green glass, defunct casino)

I've also found casino chips, tokens, etc which have re-sale value. I've seen lots of ball caps, etc. All at the Goodwill type stores. I used to visit literally weekly, and some purchases produced enormous profits when auctioned.

I recall paying $3.00 for a porcelain piece I sold for $750+, some stamp collection for 18 cents per lot (125 lots in glassine envelopes) that averaged more than $15 per, and a $.50 pewter pitcher & teapot, I sent to Massachusetts to auction, that was made by Paul Revere and fetched $1700+ among other very profitable finds.

Of course, those days are long gone, but I still visit Goodwill periodically in case I get lucky. A good eye and ability to research, etc was necessary.

I attended an auction last week where they sold off a ragged looking old gun for $75. At yesterdays auction, the auctioneer announced that the buyer took it to a gunsmith where it was discovered that instead of being a .410 shotgun as thought, it was a single shot .40 caliber that was worth about $3,000 as is.

The difference I am concerned about is that the money you used to purchase the clothes in the first place was earned and claimed as income on your 1040. I never reported these items, even though some of them have a fair amount of value. A few of them combined into one prize would probably require the casino to report them to the IRS as miscellaneous income. (When this happens, I do of course report it on my 1040 as miscellaneous income.)

A lot of it is trinkets, but also some good quality stuff. My most recent haul was a roaster oven and a slow cooker (crock pot). Lots of cookware and glassware, including an ice cream/yogurt maker and pizza oven. The most elaborate items that I have no use for is a dvd player and a mini refrigerator like they use in dorm (or hotel) rooms. Some items I actually use are a modest set of luggage, a mini dvd player with its own screen, and a leaf blower (which I wasn't thrilled about until I found out it could be used as a leaf mulcher).

Don't have a smart phone and am not tech savvy. Posting here is a major accomplishment for me.