When you face the cost of moving house, you may feel its impossible to actually make some money out of the process. But it is possible. With the price of a house move having risen by some 70% in a decade, now standing at an average of £9,000, any money you can actually make as opposed to spend is a real bonus. Here are three things you can do to make some cash during your house move.

1. Ebay. These tips are all about decluttering. Not only cathartic, its actually money saving as you have less volume to move, can help sell your house and can generate cash too. Many of us will remember the House Doctor encouraging people to remove as much of the ‘stuff’ we accumulate, and neutralise colours and personality in order to sell our houses. Truth is, it works. So, the minute you decide to sell up, it’s worth starting to cleanse your home of clutter. Consider what you no longer need, wear, like or want … and sell it. Because there is always a market out there. Ebay has revolutionised the way we sell privately. It’s simple and fun too to get rid of those trinkets, things you inherited from Uncle Peter but hate, old toys and the attic full of things you haven’t looked at in years. You can offload lots of belongings, clearing out space and realising real money. There are other auction sites too, specialist online retailers for collectibles including china, records and books, plus Craigslist. Investigate them all.

2. Car boot sales. Ebay isn’t for everyone, and auctions can take time. There are fees, and you need to write good sales copy and take a decent photo or seven. You will spend money on packaging and postage and there can be disputes with buyers. Some items don’t sell. However, car boot sales give you immediate cash and disposals of all those no-longer-needed things. A good tip is to make a vow to return with an empty car. Get yourself organised, get packed up early and be prepared to negotiate. When doing a major house clearance, look out for those buyers who come round early. They can often be professionals who are looking to stock their own vans not just for car booting, but for Ebay too. You can even find your own possessions, once sold, on their stalls at a higher price. Don’t be offended by this: see it as a business opportunity. Towards the end of the boot sale, approach them with a good deal to take the rest of your stock. OK, you wont get full value for it, but it’s a win-win for everyone. You get to return home empty handed; they get more stuff to sell. And don’t get tempted to start buying when at a car boot. The idea is to offload, not accumulate more.

3. House or garage sale. At car boots and on Ebay, you have a lot of competition from other sellers. But doing your own garage sale, well publicised, makes you the only seller with a captive market. Give yourselves a couple of week’s notice to prepare, and others a couple of weeks do they are free. Make it on a weekend to maximise your audience. Print off some cheap flyers and posters, and get them up in all the local shops and even post them door to door. Then get organised, price things up in advance and throw open your doors. People just love a bargain, and if you’ve spread the word widely enough you may have all that unwanted clutter flying out of the doors.