Here we have a ladder that’s a decent brand name and in good condition, but is that something that a pawn shop will take? Well, that’s largely depends on the pawn shop.
Pawn shops deal with all sorts of things, but among the most popular are tools.
People pawn all sorts of tools. Everything from saws, to drills, to welders.
One thing that I get asked about pretty often are ladders.
Are ladders something a pawn shop would take?
Do pawn shops make loans on ladders and if not, would they be willing to just buy them outright? It’s not an easy question for me to answer on a nation wide level unfortunately because there is just such a large variety of pawnbrokers out there.
You have to keep in mind that pawn shops aren’t like Walmart of Target. They don’t all operate the same way. Pawn shops are often owned by individual small business owners, and each one has their own ideas about the kinds of items that they want to take in at their shops or buy.
When it even just comes to tools in general, you will have all sorts of opinions about there about what people should be buying or loaning on.
Some pawnbrokers think that tools are a waste of time, while other pawnbrokers just can’t get enough of them because of the high demand for them in their area.
One of the big problems pawn shops face when it comes to taking ladders is storing them safely.
Ladders Aren’t Your Normal Tool When It Comes To Pawn Shops
Now, forgive me if I’ve put you under the impression that pawn shops don’t like to work with tools. That’s not at all the case.
Most pawn shops do loan on and buy tools when they are brought in assuming that the tool is in good condition, a good brand name, and works properly.
That having been said, most tools are rather compact. A drill for instance doesn’t take up much space and might be a $10-$200 loan!
Ladders are a completely different animal though. They are not like most tools because they take up a ton of space and that puts pawn shops in a tough situation sometimes.
You have to keep in mind that as a pawn shop, the biggest thing that they want to do more often than not is to make loans on items, or buy them to resell them quickly.
However, when a pawn shop makes a loan on an item, whatever it is may stay in the pawn shop for 3 days or 3 years. A pawnbroker never really knows how long something will be on loan for.
So when you bring a ladder in, what the pawnbroker is often considering is if they will have the space to store you item while it is in on loan.
Keep ing mind that ladders, being large, are a bit of a pain to move around a pawn shop and not damage other inventory, but beyond that, they take up a lot of valuable space that could be used to store much more profitable property for loan.
Don’t Be Deterred However, There Are Pawn Shops That Love Ladders
Just because a ladder is big, awkward, and sometimes heavy doesn’t mean every pawn shop out there will turn it down.
In fact, there are pawn shops in areas with a lot of construction workers, or blue collar types that love having ladders come in.
The trick for you however might be finding one of these pawn shops in your area, but luckily, it’s not that hard to do.
How To Find Pawn Shops That Will Accept Ladders
It’s really as easy as Google “Pawn Shops In My Area” and Google will return a list of pawn shops that you can call one-by-one to see how will take your ladder.
Now, keep in mind that it is always best to find more than just one shop that takes ladders before you head out there door. The last thing you want to do is be in the position of feeling like you have to accept an offer because you don’t know where else to take your ladder.
By knowing a few shops that might in interested before hand, if you aren’t happy with the first offer you receive for your ladder, you can head to another shop down the street and see what they might be able to give you for it.
How To Get The Most For Your Ladder At A Pawn Shop
Last but not least is the topic of how to get the most money possible for your ladder at a pawn shop.
It seems like it should be easy enough, but you would be shocked at home many people don’t do these basic things before leaving their houses when trying to pawn a ladder.
– Inspect The Ladder For Damage
If you are someone that has several ladders, you may not remember which one has the foot with the missing rubber stop. Or, in another scenario, if you are someone who rarely uses your ladder, you might not remember that one step isn’t quite right on it.
Keep in mind that ladders have a strong “Safety Component” in them when pawn shops are evaluating them for a loan.
They are looking at your ladder as if they may be in the position of having to sell it some day, and the last thing they want to try to do is sell something to someone that will get them hurt.
So be sure to fully inspect your ladder before you leave the house with it, and repair whatever may be wrong with it, or choose to take another ladder if the one you initially grabbed has issues.
– Clean Your Ladder Up A Bit Before Walking Into A Pawn Shop With It
Next on my list would be to be sure that you ladder looks as good as possible.
Now, a ladder being a tool is going to look like it has had some use of course, but if it’s really dirty, take some time to clean it up.
I’m not saying that you have to spend hours chipping off dried paint, but do give it a dust-ff or a wipe-down at very least.
