That free shed from Facebook Marketplace cost me $600 in the end

I found this shed listed as free on Marketplace out near Albany, drove an hour with my truck to pick it up. The guy said it just needed a new roof, real simple fix. Got it home and started taking the old shingles off, turns out the plywood underneath was completely rotted in three different spots. Then I noticed the floor was soft too, stepped right through a board near the corner. By the time I replaced the roof deck, put down new flooring, and bought proper hardware for the doors, I was into it for over $600. The stupid part is I could have bought a decent kit from a big box store for around $800 new. Has anyone else learned the hard way that free stuff is rarely actually free?

3 comments

3 Comments

stella_scott9611d ago

Yep, that math checks out. Free is just a down payment.

lucast8111d agoMost Upvoted

What worked for me was budgeting for the hidden costs upfront, @stella_scott96.

jenny19811d ago

That "free is just a down payment" line really hits home. Reminds me of when my cousin got a "free" puppy from someone on Facebook. By the time she got her shots, vet check, and that first bag of puppy food, she had spent like 200 bucks. And that's not even counting the chewed up shoes and carpet cleaning. So yeah, free stuff does have a way of charging you later, just in a sneaky way.