It’s not uncommon for people to wonder if pawn shops will take items like vacuum cleaners, but there has never really been an answer that you could find online… until now!
Okay, now here is one that isn’t the most common question that I get, but it is important one the less.
What I’ve been asked is pretty straight forward – Do pawn shops take vacuums, meaning vacuum cleaners to the best I can determine.
Now, if you’ve been read this site (or have even come across it before), then you know that I always have a pretty general boilerplate for these types of “Do pawn shops take, buy, accept ‘X’”.
In the event that you haven’t come across it before, I’ll make this pretty straight forward.
Pawn shops aren’t major brand stores in most cases, and therefore don’t operate as such.
Every pawn shop is typically owned by a small, independent operator, otherwise known as a pawn broker.
Now, what you have to understand about this business is that each pawn broker has their own ideas on what types of items are good to make loans on or buy outright. In the case of home goods like vacuum cleaners, those opinion can vary drastically. You see, vacuum cleaners are in a class of items that tend to be specific to the home owner.
They suck up all of the pet dander, dust, and whatever else you may have in your home. Not everyone wants products that are commonly associated with other people’s dirt and what not, so by in large, most pawn brokers tend not to accept vacuum cleaners.
That having been said, many pawnshops will absolutely take in something like a vacuum cleaner, so you are going to have to do some homework if you would like to pawn one.
Thinking about pawning or selling your vacuum to a pawn shop? There’s a lot of things that you can do to put the odds in your favor, but one of the most important is to be sure that you bring as many of the attachments and accessories with you when you go!
How to find pawn shops that accept vacuum cleaners
The best way to find pawn shops in your area is to simply use Google and search the phrase “Pawn shops near me.” Google will spit out a list of pawn shops near you that you can then call, one by one, and try to find a pawnbroker in your area that wants to work with something like a vacuum cleaner.
It’s easy enough to do. Just call every pawn shop on the list until you find a shop that will take yours.
You should of course also ask them other questions such as what else you need to bring in.
Things like your ID or Social Security card for instance may be required depending on the pawn shop that you are working with.
Like we said above however, not all pawn shops are open to dealing with things like vacuum cleaners, so don’t be discouraged if the first few that you talk to say no. Keep working your way down the list that Google gives you until you find a pawn shop that is ready to work with what you have.
How to get the most money for a vacuum at a pawn shop
Moving right along, assuming that you are able to find a pawn shop in your area that will take a vacuum cleaner in, there are some things that you need to do if you want to try to get the most for yours.
The first of these should be pretty obvious – clean out the dust bin, or dust bag. In the event of it being an individual bag, throw it away and replace it with a new one.
As discussed above, not everyone is going to really want to deal with your old food crumbs, pet dander, or whatever else you have used you vacuum to clean.
So, before you take it in, empty it out.
The second thing that you should do is make sure it works perfectly and have all of the attachments with you before you arrive.
It doesn’t do much for you if you show up to a pawn shop without the hose or nozzle should your vacuum have that feature.
Additionally, if your vacuum’s belt is bad, doesn’t properly move the brush, or makes a noise, that’s really going to hurt your odds of getting the most possible, or even being able to pawn the vacuum at all.
Last but not least, make sure you take a moment and clean up the vacuum a little bit before you arrive.
You don’t have to go crazy here, but make it looks as new as possible.
Dust it off, maybe wipe down any hard surfaces and make them shine a little bit if you can even.
If the cord has any damage, you will want to do your best to repair it before you arrive.
Typically this just means a little electrical tape, but depending on the damage, you may have to replace the cord as well.
Give yourself a little reality check before stepping through the door
With all of this in mind, if you can find a pawn shop in your area that buys vacuum cleaners, please be realistic about what you are going to be offered for yours to minimize any potential disappointment.
Vacuum cleaners aren’t big movers for most pawn shops, meaning that if you default he loan (which is how pawn shops typically look at the items they take in), it may sit on their showroom floor for some time before they can resell it.
As they say, time is money, and that is very true in this industry.
If what you pawn is something that the pawn shop can sell immediately, you will almost always get more money for it than something like a vacuum.
Then you have all of the other considerations as well. Things like the brand name, model, etc. will play a factor in how much you may be offered for your vacuum cleaner from a pawn shop.
The nerd’s suggestion
If I may for just a moment, I would suggest that you take some backup items into the pawn shop with you when you go to make a loan on your vacuum.
I know that vacuums typically don’t sell well, so you may get a pretty low offer on one, so taking a higher demand items (like a Xbox, Playstation, or TV) in with you can provide you a little cushion should you need to borrow more than the pawn shop is willing to lend you on the vacuum cleaner alone.
Mandy Dormain started working for Pawn Nerd in 2020. Mandy grew up in a small town in northern Tennessee. But moved to New York for university. Before joining Pawn Nerd, Mandy briefly worked as a freelance journalist for several radio stations. She covers politics and economy stories.
