business bartering

[dave58]

I barter with regular clients and do retail exchange.....lawn care/snow plowing....painting.....occasional repairs etc.

The idea of a collective or group puts up red flags for me....someone will get hosed...and it aint gonna be me

[3Deep]

We did a barter on some radio spots once or twice and I 'll say no the next time, ain't worth the hassle.

Darryl

[Gilligan]

I agree, that group seems like a good idea, but I bet it doesn't work out to be a good idea.  I do like the concept, shame.


Now, as far as individual bartering, I do it all the time and love it.  I basically have a running balance with a chiropractor that I do computer work for and we rarely exchange money.  Every now and then the balance gets a bit heavy on his end so I'll have him cut me a check, we don't go as often as we should.  But with my recent shoulder injury I just show up and get some royal treatment work done and it made a HUGE difference.  I get there struggling to do anything with my left hand and I leave driving home with my left arm.

I'd be willing to bet I have the strangest bartering deal of them all.  I traded for my vasectomy.

[Gilligan]

Don't do it.

I was in one for a few years and its not worth it. Most of them you have to pay 5% cash and 5% barter for each transaction. That means even when you sell your services you are paying 5% cash to them. Then at the end of the year they report the amount you did in sales to the Gov for tax purposes. The first year I did about $5,000 (paid income tax on that) in sales and then it took me 3 years to use it all because no one in the group was active that I wanted. Its mostly girl stuff. Stay at home mom business. They also charge a monthly fee like $5 cash and $5 in barter.

Oh, FYI, technically you are supposed to still pay income tax on bartering.

[ZooCity]

No to a group.

Yes for business to business.

Yep, it must be treated as cash per irs.

Yes, we do a large amount of in kind donation work. In fact, we do either that our donations of product, no cash, as policy.

A group called "we trade" approached us on this once. They were basically making up their own currency, taking a percent and, get this, brokering screen printing work.  Yeah, they left the list of printers in the group hidden and controlled where the jobs went when a member asked for printing services. 

Avoid these groups, they offer nothing you cannot arrange business to business.