This whole month, Action News will show you how your family can survive the recession. One way is by bartering. Trading skills and services can be extremely useful in tough times. These days no one wants to part with a dollar. By using the bartering system, you don't have to.

When the economy slowed, finish carpenter Shawn Maldonado's income saw a drastic cut. That's when he decided to get creative.

Maldonado said, "I go on Craigslist every day, and the bartering part has gotten bigger and bigger and bigger."

A with more than 30 years experience, Maldonado decided he would put his skills to the test.

Maldonado said, "People don't have money. Work is slow. We don't have money. We need to get a car for our daughter."

Maldonado figured that a trade might be a good idea. Crown molding for a Crown Victoria, perhaps.

Maldonado said, "Somebody wants some crown molding and they can't afford it and they have a car sitting around that they're not using, it'd be a good trade."

Maldonado is not the only one who's jumped on the bartering bandwagon.

Electrician Scott Fitch has been trading his services on Craigslist ever since he lost his job about three months ago.

Fitch said, "I list for laptops, electronics, bikes, cars, trailers, boats, whatever, you know, and I usually list on my listing for them to proposition me you know, give me what you, show me what you got and tell me what you need and I'll come out and look at it and give you a free quote or you can show me what you've got to trade and we'll see about trading."

Fitch says he has never been busier. As spare cash becomes harder to come by, bartering is gaining in popularity.

Fitch said, "Times are harder for everybody right now. Things are tougher, so it's harder to let go of a dollar out of your pocket nowadays."

But it's easy to stash the cash and trade in something you no longer want or need for something you do. It's that line of thinking that may be the reason why bartering Web sites like Craigslist are becoming so popular these days.

Bartering has taken off all over the world, and it's not just individuals doing it. Businesses have also turned to the Internet so they can barter with their peers.

Comments (0)

Subscribe to this comment's feed

Show/hide comment form