Vintage Dishes

[schmec5]

I have a large collection of assorted vintage dishes that I would like to donate to a local non-profit thrift store.   Many of these are listed at $5 to $10 each on Ebay and/Etsy.      Am I able to use that value for the amount of each item?   I have printed supporting documentation for my personal records.  

Thank you for your help! 

[Kat]

Valuing non-cash charitable contributions can be a bit complicated.  The taxpayer must determine the fair market value (FMV) of the items based on comparable sales (not necessarily asking price).  You may want to research what these items are actually selling for.

The total of your donation amount also matters.  If you are donating dishes valuing over $5,000 (not likely), you'll need a certified appraisal of those items to support your donation amount.

Be sure you get a receipt for your items from the organization, and make sure the organization is a qualified charitable organization.  Only donations made to qualified charitable organizations are deductible.

For more information, please see the linked IRS Publication 561, which explains in detail.  

https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p561.pdf