Pawn Shops Offer Alternative When Spring Cleaning

 Moris Adato says his pawn shop is a perfect place for people doing Spring cleaning around the house.

"We get it all the time," said Adato the owner of CashCo Pawn Shop. "We have people come in with carts of merchandise that they just want out of the house."

While pawn shops are know for short term loans, where people bring in a valuable item and use it as collateral, they also buy items directly from customers.

"The people selling are cleaning up," said Palace Pawn Shop owner Jeff Bernard. He says sometimes it's about downsizing, other times it's about clearing things out of the garage or bedroom.

 The most popular items to sell are things like jewelry, power tools, high end electronics and musical instruments. But there's another reasons pawn shops are popular: both owners say they often benefit when there is a break up.

"Old boyfriend, husband stuff, wife stuff, they just want to get rid of and move on," said Moris Adato.

Jeff Bernard agrees: "The more personal jewelry, a wedding ring, a wedding band, a watch, something that has a significant tie to the other individual."

About 20 percent of the items coming into a pawn shop are from people looking to sell. Bernard says they could sell on eBay or Craigslist, but sometimes, that's too personal. This way, they can walk in with their items and walk out with the money.

Moris Adato says while 80 percent of their items are pawned, he says more than 90 percent of the loans are paid off and people get their item back.

"People are on such a tight edge financially," said Jeff Bernard. "that it doesn't take much to rock the boat and when the boat rocks we are there to help balance it."

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