How to make money selling your old Lego – and it doesn’t have to be a complete set
You can make money by selling your old mismatched Lego by the kilo - and even minifigure body parts that are worth up to £106
YOU can make some extra cash this January by selling your old Lego bricks by the kilo and they don't even have to be a complete set.
Normally when you flog your old stuff online it has to be in mint condition but there are some places that will buy your Lego even if it's not perfect.
Buyers like and will fork out for your secondhand Lego or you might be able to get a better deal by selling it on eBay.
There are some serious Lego collectors out there who are in need of spare parts for their sets, and they might be in a bundle you've got stashed away at home.
Of course, if you do have complete sets then they will be worth more but as more than 400 billion LEGO bricks have been produced since 1949, it's hard to know which ones are worth a few bob.
So whether your kids have outgrown the blocks or your set is missing a brick or two, here's our guide to flogging your Lego.
Selling it by the kilo - Up to £23
There are a few places online that will buy your boxes of unmatched Lego bricks from you.
MusicMagpie.co.uk and Zapper.co.uk buy bags of miscellaneous Lego based on it's weight, starting at 5kg and going up in half a kilo increments until it reaches the maximum weight of 10kg.
MusicMagpie.co.uk pays £4 per kg whilst Zapper.co.uk will buy a kilo for £5.
While the bricks don't have to be brand new, they need to be in good condition and not worn, broken or dirty.
You'll need to pack it all in a sealed plastic bag before posting it to the traders for free.
What should you do if you have a valuable Lego set?
IF you think you’ve got a Lego set that’s worth a bit extra then you should start by doing your research.
Find out how much your toy is worth to a collector by checking the same or similar trolls under “sold listings” on eBay.
Compare your Lego sets to other higher selling auctions and ask yourself if it’s in a similar condition? Is your toy authentic? Does it still have the labels on? Is it still in it’s original packaging?
If it’s in mint condition then it might be worth selling it through an auction house or directly to a collectibles website. If it’s not, it’s probably worth sticking it on eBay for a moderate sum.
But first, make sure you've got genuine Lego blocks because they won't pay out if you send in other brands like Mega Blocks, Knex or Kre-O.
You may be able to get a better deal on eBay where a 1kg bag of miscellaneous Lego recently but remember you're not guaranteed a sale if you do opt for the auction site.
Selling bundles of Lego from specific ranges on eBay - £52
While bags of miscellaneous pieces do sell, bundles of bricks from the same set range will fetch you more.
A 2.1kg box of mismatched Lego Technic parts from the advance builder range recently after attracting 17 bidders.
A bundle of flexible Lego railway track back in October and miscellaneous pieces from the classic in the bidding war.
So if you've got a few sets from a specific range that are missing a few pieces, it may be worth putting them together and selling them as one.
Lego mini figurines and spare body parts - £106
According to a Lego funfact sheet, there are so many minifigures that they make up the "world's largest population of people" with over four billion of them produced in the last 30 years.
Even so, flogging them online could earn you some extra cash.
SELLERS BEWARE Why you need to read this before selling ANYTHING on eBay
A 1kg box of Lego mini figures and body parts recently sold for, while a box of accessories for the mini-men and women from 13 bidders.
So even if your minifigures look broken to you, don't bin them because they could be worth something to someone else.
Flogging complete sets - £3,800
Some rare Lego sets are selling for as much as £3,800 - over TEN times their original price online.
Star Wars-themed set are among the most popular with a replica of the Taj Mahal and a cafe from ten years ago also much sought after.
What you need to look out for when selling things on eBay
HERE'S what you need to know before you put your stuff on auction:
Always set a reserve price - Starting with a low price will attract bidders but you don't want to accidentally sell your item for less than it's worth.
Watch out for seller's fees - You can list up to 20 things for free every month but there is a 10 per cent charge if you sell - including postage and packaging.
Set the right amount for postage and packaging - The auction site offers set postage fees based on what sellers with similar products charged but these might not be the best option for you. Use the Royal Mail price finder to get an idea of what it will cost you.
Close your auction on Sunday - According to eBay, the website is at its busiest on Sunday evenings so try to end your auction then to get the best price.
Sell stuff for free on other sites - You can avoid eBay's fees altogether by selling your things on classified sites, like Gumtree, Preloved or Facebook Marketplace.
If you do have a complete set like these, you might want to look at selling to a specialised trader like Brick Picker or the Plasticbrick.com to get a better price.
You can also sell them yourself on eBay or Amazon. These are the sets to look out for:
1. £3,800 - Ultimate Collector’s Millennium Falcon (2007). Originally - £342.49
2. £2,148 - Cafe Corner (2007). Originally - £89.99
3. £1,917 - Death Star II (2005). Originally - £249.99
4. £1,898 - Imperial Star Destroyer (2002). Originally - £249.99
5. £1,278 - Taj Mahal (2008). Originally - £199.99
To many people, Lego is more than just a toy. We reported how a Lego-loving couple spent two months building an 8ft Victorian house using 450,000 bricks as part of their Christmas tradition.
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Mike Addis, 59, and Catherine Weightman, 54, previously built Daleks, polar bears and a cathedral, in all costing £45,000.
Their doll-house comes complete with servants' quarters, library, scullery, paintings, wreathes, took them two months to build.
This year they spent around £600 on new pieces - including specialist pieces to attach wall paintings in their dollhouse.
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