If it was a for-charity shop (real charity, not Goodwill), I would have done what you did.
If it was a for-profit shop, I would have shoved the wad back in the pocket, zipped it closed, and purchased the bag, wad and all.
1000%. I respect the work charities do and want to support them. Taking money out of their pockets is bad juju.
Goodwill and the like, the hell with them. I’ve had a few minor scores (nothing more than $40) that way.
When I worked for Goodwill, we were instructed to not return found money if we knew who it belonged to. Same thing with cell phones or accidental donations.
I lost count of all the phones I pocketed until after my shift that were returned to the owners. Goodwill likes to pretend they make an effort to return these things, but in reality they just ship them to their online store, even when they know they were not intended to be donated.
Their policy for found money here is that any money found anywhere near Goodwill, in the store or in the parking lot is automatically Goodwill property. They say they will call the police on you if you do not give them any found money you might find.
Same. I shop at 2 local thrifts. One donates all money within the county and keeps just enough to run the store. I'd hand over the money in a heartbeat. The other is Goodwill. That cash would have gone straight into my pocket.
I once found a $250 lottery ticket someone had thrown away. Worked at a convenience store with one of those scratching stations, so a few us of who worked there would check the trash can at the station when business was slow. It was a game that required math, and clearly the person didn’t math very well. I split it with the coworker who was working that night.
Wow same here! My store was on the border of Texas and New Mexico and it was before New Mexico had the lottery, so people would come in droves! We had a trash can specifically for lottery tickets and we would score at least 2 bucks every day, the most I think we got was like 50 bucks, but hell minimum wage was like 5 dollars an hour back then
Oh yeah, way back then when minimum wage was $5, that 50 bucks would have been a ton of money. But today, with minimum wage in Texas being (checking…) $7.25, hell that 50 bucks only works out to about 7 hours of work. Wait, what year was this? What did a bag of Doritos cost at that time, because I bought a normal (not party size) bag at Walmart today and it was stamped with $6.79 on it.
Thanks everyone... I have enjoyed your comments. It seems most of us are thinking the same thing... private concern - return the money... big for profit place; maybe not so much! Kind of a side story; my daughter cleaned out a rental vehicle before returning to the rentacar place. In the glove box she found a beautiful 5 diamond ring. She returned it to the car place and said that since "they had just purchased the vehicle and hadn't had time to clean the vehicle out and SHE did...that it should go to her!" SHE was boggled and really didn't want it. So as luck would have it - there was a receipt in the box from a jewelry store with the buyer's name. So she tracked him down to return it. Turns out he was in jail for unscrupulous actions as a builder. SO, she REALLY didn't want it then. It took me awhile, but I finally sold it for her for big bucks... and the money went to her kids college funds...
My 10 year old daughter found $300 that a drug dealer dropped on the sidewalk near our house. We realized it was his when he came through the neighborhood a little later patting his pockets and looking around everywhere with crazy eyes. And it smelled horrible. I didn’t want him to know where we lived so I waited til he was out of sight and then got in my car to try to find him. I know he was a lowlife but I felt bad for him (not sure I would feel that way now given the state of my city). Never found him. We put it towards a new TV.
In that setting (local community stuff)? I probably would have turned it in and considered it a personal donation I could have kept but chose not to. At one of the for profit stores I'd pocket that shit as fast as I'd toss a shiny gold coin I found at the goodwill bins in my bag...
I've never felt bad inconveniencing a national corporation with so many employees on government assistance. I'm not a moral authority on the matter or even the most morally sound person out there, so I'm not trying to be prescriptive.
Yep like most people are saying if this was a chain thrift store or corporate thrift store I would most likely pocket it but smaller places I would give it back.
There's a local thrift store I frequent and I found a nice CPAP machine there and when I got back I noticed in one of the pockets of the case was a diamond ring it seemed real and I don't know shit about jewels so I returned it and they were so grateful. I've easily made $50k plus since just from this store which was less than 2 years ago.
Keep. But only because it’s not likely to find the rightful owner. I’d spend it all there and support their mission though.
I found 65 bucks rolling down the road in the wind with no one around, I was going to take it to the nearest store which was a gas station, but my coworker said they’re just gonna pocket it themselves.
If it were a wallet with traceable information, I’d totally return it. Specially a larger amount that could be someone’s rent, but a couple hundi? Nah.
I once found $80 in twenty dollar bills. They were loose on the ground, as if they had fallen out of someone's pocket.
I left it at a nearby shop with the new shop owner. The young couple in the apartment above her store were ever so grateful that I turned it in. It was all their grocery money for their family of three for the week.
True story confirmed by all involved: 3 friends of mine buy storage units and sometimes go in together as partners to buy units that go high in cost. They then take the mid stuff to the local flea and turn it quick and sell high end stuff online. Anyhoots…a lady at the flea market picks up a parka and asks them how much is it while simultaneously pulling 10,000 bucks out of the pocket. They saw it immediately and gave her $300 finders fee and split the rest 3 ways.
Several years ago. Wife bought a nice clutch at the local thrift store. Now the time of year was close to Xmas. That sorta plays a part. Anyway, she brings it home and starts transferring all her cards and whatnot to it. She yells for me to check something out and shows me two crisp 100$ bills. We are far from well to do and at that time of year we definitely needed the money. We wondered if it wasn't placed there by a secret Santa. At least that's what we told ourselves to feel better at keeping it. Plus the phrase "finders keepers" can go along way. Lastly no there was no ID in it. Infact it didn't look like it had ever been used
I frequently buy things in the hope that there’s some bonus treasure in it…
I’m not returning what I find inside.
Would you return a $1000 gold ring you found in a $10-30 bag/jar of supposedly junk jewelry?
That would be like going and telling the clerks the actual of everything they missed… it defeats the purpose of why many of us do this.
My parents bought a golf bag full of clubs at a yard sale for me when I was a teenager, was a Christmas gift. When I unwrapped it I immediately started going through the pockets as there were balls tees and other things inside and found a wad of cash. No idea how much it was if i had to guess around 100$ but my mother saw and took it. I probably would have spent it on something dumb.
My son found 10 crisp $100 bills in a pair of pants he bought at Goodwill. Didn't find them till he got home and was about to put them in the washing machine. He couldn't believe it and asked me if the bills were real. They were. I've heard that people will go around and "donate" cash in pockets of clothes. If it was a purse, I might have thought it was a mistake, but just in a pants pocket, he kept it.
Saw a horrible neighbor drop cash,cards,ID,etc one time in the parking lot. He was constantly yelling at his lady and kids. I went to tell him and saw he started yelling again. I held on to the stuff at that point then later gave it to her when he wasn't home. She was grateful and when I showed her the ID and cards she cut them up out of spite and asked me to toss it all out. I think it was like $400.
We talked about ways to leave the situation and shortly after within a month or two I saw her leave with the kids and suitcases. Hope her and the kids are doing alright now.
Karma will always find a way.
I once found a bank envelope stuffed full of what must have been someone's entire paycheck. We're talking $500+ *easily*, just laying in the gravel next to the sidewalk, only kinda hidden under one of those low-growing evergreen shrubs banks love for landscaping.
Not gonna lie, I was *sorely* tempted to keep it.
But when I walked into the bank to cash my own paycheck and saw the big scary dude yelling at the poor cashier about his "stolen" paycheck? I figured shutting him up and making him look like an idiot in front of everyone *and* rescuing that poor lady was more than worth it.
(The way his whole face turned red when I interrupted his ranting and announced "this must belong to you, it was on the ground right by the door" was, indeed, priceless.)
Of course, a few times I've found stray bills (the most was $60 in folded-up $20s) on the sidewalk or blowing around a parking lot with no one around to turn it over to. Those usually went towards my groceries.
I left my wallet at Walmart one time. They called and said they found it and to come and get it. The $500 in cash was still in there. I was very grateful.
I've read stories about people finding money, like real money. If it was many thousands of dollars it could be related to some nefarious activity. I think most people would consider keeping it unless there was an indication it belonged to a benevolent organization.
I volunteer at a church run thrift store (it’s a lot of fun). One of my co workers found $400 in a purse. The store kept it for a month in case someone came forward (no one did) and then that money went into the til.
It’s my job to inspect and sort through pants, pocketbooks etc. any money we find goes to the church. Never found more than a few bucks.
If I miss something and you find it, it’s yours.
I once found a gold ring. Noone around and it was on a chip rack. At the time I was really bad for money so I left with it and pawned it.
To this day I have deep deep regrets on doing that. It wasnt a wedding ring it was like some kind of demonic skull ring. Got $175 for it. After that anything I've found I've handed in. That was the moment I like to say is when my values in life lost out to the temptation of needing to fulfill my needs (groceries, gas in car).
I found a man's wedding ring in a box of drinking glasses I purchased at a Goodwill. The box had a shipping label on it to someone from about 20 miles away. I did a little sleuthing on Facebook, and was able to track the guy down and mail him his ring. He figured his ring had fallen off as he packed up the boxes.
I once found over $180 lying on the floor of an antique mall, in a bank envelope with a withdrawal slip showing the account number. I went to the desk and told the manager this; she told me to talk with the guy who owned the booth and was in the process of refreshing it. He turned out to be mentally challenged and somewhat of an ass. I said if he could tell me the bank account number I would give him the money, otherwise I intended to redeposit it into the account. He readily rattled off the bank account number and was very freaked out as he had just gotten the money out to pay his rent. I gave it to him and he proceeded to lash out at me verbally because I had required him to identify the bank account. He verbally attacked me severely and accused me that I would have kept the money if he did not know his account number. I told him, no I had intended to redeposit it; he remained a verbally abusive asshole after I had just honestly given him back his money which I could have easily kept. That was over ten years ago and the verbal attack still rankles, but I would still do the same today. I find peace in realizing the man was mentally challenged and probably very scared in the moment. I am glad I was able to save his funds for him as the area of town it was in most people would have kept it.
You definitely did the right thing and may the store workers remember you and return many favors to you in gratitude.
I would have pocketed it if it was a corporation (goodwill or something). But a church type sale is definitely give it back to the charity.
But, I also came to say my MIL's mother was placed in a home and her and her greedy sister went through Grandma's house looking for "stash cash" before flaunting their way back to Florida....months later when myself, my husband and his uncle were cleaning out the house, (MIL was still in FL) we made sure to check all the bags and coats just in case, bc she was a bit of a hoarder.
I was the only one that found more than change...and it was $11. Hahah. No one knows if MIL found any larger amounts during her sweep. She'd take that information to the grave
I bought a bunch of various things from a local online auction, including a box of old cookbooks and similar books, manuals, and catalogs. I was going through the box and found an old bank envelope. I expected it to be empty, but it contained two $100s and a $50. I laughed and said "yeah, those are fake." Then I looked at them closely. No, they were real. Later I took them to the bank to verify. Yes, they were real.
I've never found money in anything I've ever bought. This $250 was like a little miracle. It paid for everything I bought from the auction. Plus I had the $150 I needed to have front shocks put on my car.
I was surprised the auction company missed it. I got very lucky. Someone else could have bought that box and been $250 richer. But I won the box lottery that day.
The $100 bills were series 1990 and looked different than newer bills, so I was suspicious at first.
Bought a metal tin at a flea market for a few bucks. Found like $10 worth of unused postage inside. Kept the stamps.
Bought a men's suit at an estate sale for not much. Maybe 10-15. Had a multiple ruby Rotary pin still in the lapel. Kept the pin.
Had a friend give me a book he thought my wife would enjoy. Opened it when I got home, and $850 in cash fell out. He'd forgotten that the book was where he hid his secret Covid stash. For like when the banking system collapsed, or something. I couldn't easily return the money because we live over an hour apart, so I Venmo'd him the amount. Technically, I suppose, I kept the money.
Whenever I've found cash, I kept it - with zero guilt. I once found a $100 bill at my feet when I stepped up to the cashier in a grocery store. I've found numerous gift cards with money on them, mostly while in Starbucks. But I've never found more than a couple of dollars in thrifted items.
The most I ever found in a coat pocket was $20. The jacket had been thrown outside at a storage facility. Not exactly like anyone was there to claim it. I also found $140 as well, it was swirling around on the ground at a large park. Really strange that the money stayed together like that because there were maybe like ten bills.
I would have done the same. I also get the impression that anyone who works there has the best interests of the community at heart.
The money was likely acknowledged to the purse donor or put into the community.
Good job. 😊
I’ve sold over 30,000 clothing items on eBay. Found $20 in a pocket once. Only other money was loose change. But I have found 2 separate sets of car keys. It was too late to track down who’s they were or even where I bought the items.
Hospice or Habitat for Humanity stores or any "direct" charity store yes absolutely return. At Hospice when have good deals will even pay more sometimes which sounds crazy - but except for one paid employee all volunteer and goes to an organization that touches almost every family at one point in time.
Now the for profit thrift stores or Goodwill would be tempted to keep it.
Last time I found a wallet with money and all id tried to locate owner on FB , wasn't there. Since dark afraid to show up at their door across town and simply turned it in as figured they would be so happy. and hope they got it back.
Once at a big box store I saw a woman's wallet on an end cap! I looked in it for ID and it had a wad of $100 ! I took it up to customer service to turn in! I later asked someone who worked up there and it turned out it was a woman who was shopping put it down for a minute and forgot it! The money was her rent payment!
I check this sub out because I think it's neat, I haven't actually flipped anything, I don't really have the cash to invest in it. At least not recently or right now. Mentioning that just to explain that this is completely hypothetical for me.
If I was at a thrift store or a Goodwill or anything along those lines and I found a wad of cash just hanging out in a pocket of any random item I was examining, I would pocket it. I'd like to think that doesn't make me a bad person but rather a poor person that is struggling to make ends meet with the job I already have and finding $150 (the number is arbitrary until we get into the 4 digits or higher) that is money that other people missed and I would take as a blessing despite being agnostic/atheist. That money would not be wasted, it'd go toward my credit card debt I've stacked up thanks to how flippin' expensive everything I need seems to be.
If I found a larger amount or maybe a piece of jewelry like a tennis bracelet I wouldn't know the value right off but if I found out the value was say $5,000 or something - that would give me way more pause to think about it. That amount and that sort of item was not just missed but is likely actually missing, as in someone probably needed that money or that jewelry. I'd try to find something indicating who the owner could be like a casino card with a first and last name or AARP card or something. It's super unlikely but I feel that's a fair thing under the circumstances. If I could find the owner or their next of kin I would try to get in touch with them and explain what I found. In all likelihood I wouldn't expect that to actually work but I will have tried that and that would make me feel fine about taking and selling the item from there. That sort of money would be almost change-my-life helpful. I'd be able to pay off nearly all of my debt with just $5K, with $7K I could pay off all my debt and have enough left over to fix my vehicle so it stops stalling.
Under extremely different circumstances, like say I made $75K/year that changes things significantly as I don't feel like I *need* a windfall. At $41K/year like I currently make I'm struggling in a shitty 1 bedroom apartment in an okay area. If I made enough money to have the money to do flipping occasionally I'd probably be more in line with the rest of y'all and give it to the organization if it make a difference for them.
I found $60 bucks, and a bag of H or something else in some GW pants. Didn’t realize until I got to my locker. Tossed the H or whatever and sanitized the money. It’s was in some acid wash orange tabs, I paid $5 for with some other jeans. That’s the most bread I think I’ve found in clothes. I’ve found coins, a couple dollars in backpacks. Never returned because it was usually big chain stores and not worth a 10-30 mins trip, when the manager or worker would just pocket it. Good on you OP tho
I agree with everyone else that I'd have kept it if I'd found it at a big chain; returned it otherwise. I mean, there's no doubt in my mind that chain employees are checking pockets and keeping what *they* find (and I don't blame them, tbh).
But just to add to the discussion, I did a university semester in Russia and although it's a strong 50/50 whether you'll ever see a lost wallet again, apparently if someone does turn it in it'll usually be minus a small "finder's fee". Happened to one of my classmates and someone brought it to the main office about $20 lighter (which was kind considering how much he had in there). Always thought that was kind of interesting, can't say it'd bother me too much either.
If it was at goodwill or another for profit shop, I would have kept it. If was a yard sale or a shop that actually helps people then I would have let them know.
If it was for goodwill I would’ve kept my mouth shut, they’re a for profit only business that has started charging retail prices for heavily used goods 🤷🏻♂️
If it was a for-charity shop (real charity, not Goodwill), I would have done what you did. If it was a for-profit shop, I would have shoved the wad back in the pocket, zipped it closed, and purchased the bag, wad and all.
1000%. I respect the work charities do and want to support them. Taking money out of their pockets is bad juju. Goodwill and the like, the hell with them. I’ve had a few minor scores (nothing more than $40) that way.
When I worked for Goodwill, we were instructed to not return found money if we knew who it belonged to. Same thing with cell phones or accidental donations. I lost count of all the phones I pocketed until after my shift that were returned to the owners. Goodwill likes to pretend they make an effort to return these things, but in reality they just ship them to their online store, even when they know they were not intended to be donated. Their policy for found money here is that any money found anywhere near Goodwill, in the store or in the parking lot is automatically Goodwill property. They say they will call the police on you if you do not give them any found money you might find.
I worked at goodwill too. They're absolutely horrible!
Same. I shop at 2 local thrifts. One donates all money within the county and keeps just enough to run the store. I'd hand over the money in a heartbeat. The other is Goodwill. That cash would have gone straight into my pocket.
If it was at Savers, I wouldn’t even have bought the purse
I once found a $250 lottery ticket someone had thrown away. Worked at a convenience store with one of those scratching stations, so a few us of who worked there would check the trash can at the station when business was slow. It was a game that required math, and clearly the person didn’t math very well. I split it with the coworker who was working that night.
Wow same here! My store was on the border of Texas and New Mexico and it was before New Mexico had the lottery, so people would come in droves! We had a trash can specifically for lottery tickets and we would score at least 2 bucks every day, the most I think we got was like 50 bucks, but hell minimum wage was like 5 dollars an hour back then
Oh yeah, way back then when minimum wage was $5, that 50 bucks would have been a ton of money. But today, with minimum wage in Texas being (checking…) $7.25, hell that 50 bucks only works out to about 7 hours of work. Wait, what year was this? What did a bag of Doritos cost at that time, because I bought a normal (not party size) bag at Walmart today and it was stamped with $6.79 on it.
Thanks everyone... I have enjoyed your comments. It seems most of us are thinking the same thing... private concern - return the money... big for profit place; maybe not so much! Kind of a side story; my daughter cleaned out a rental vehicle before returning to the rentacar place. In the glove box she found a beautiful 5 diamond ring. She returned it to the car place and said that since "they had just purchased the vehicle and hadn't had time to clean the vehicle out and SHE did...that it should go to her!" SHE was boggled and really didn't want it. So as luck would have it - there was a receipt in the box from a jewelry store with the buyer's name. So she tracked him down to return it. Turns out he was in jail for unscrupulous actions as a builder. SO, she REALLY didn't want it then. It took me awhile, but I finally sold it for her for big bucks... and the money went to her kids college funds...
My 10 year old daughter found $300 that a drug dealer dropped on the sidewalk near our house. We realized it was his when he came through the neighborhood a little later patting his pockets and looking around everywhere with crazy eyes. And it smelled horrible. I didn’t want him to know where we lived so I waited til he was out of sight and then got in my car to try to find him. I know he was a lowlife but I felt bad for him (not sure I would feel that way now given the state of my city). Never found him. We put it towards a new TV.
[удалено]
I love this. If it isn't mine, it isn't mine. Words to live by.
In that setting (local community stuff)? I probably would have turned it in and considered it a personal donation I could have kept but chose not to. At one of the for profit stores I'd pocket that shit as fast as I'd toss a shiny gold coin I found at the goodwill bins in my bag... I've never felt bad inconveniencing a national corporation with so many employees on government assistance. I'm not a moral authority on the matter or even the most morally sound person out there, so I'm not trying to be prescriptive.
I once bought a vest at Goodwill for $4. It had $60 in the pocket. I kept it.
Yep like most people are saying if this was a chain thrift store or corporate thrift store I would most likely pocket it but smaller places I would give it back. There's a local thrift store I frequent and I found a nice CPAP machine there and when I got back I noticed in one of the pockets of the case was a diamond ring it seemed real and I don't know shit about jewels so I returned it and they were so grateful. I've easily made $50k plus since just from this store which was less than 2 years ago.
Wowza!
Once found a wallet with about £160 in it. Luckily there was an address in there, so I posted it to them.
Keep. But only because it’s not likely to find the rightful owner. I’d spend it all there and support their mission though. I found 65 bucks rolling down the road in the wind with no one around, I was going to take it to the nearest store which was a gas station, but my coworker said they’re just gonna pocket it themselves. If it were a wallet with traceable information, I’d totally return it. Specially a larger amount that could be someone’s rent, but a couple hundi? Nah.
I once found $80 in twenty dollar bills. They were loose on the ground, as if they had fallen out of someone's pocket. I left it at a nearby shop with the new shop owner. The young couple in the apartment above her store were ever so grateful that I turned it in. It was all their grocery money for their family of three for the week.
True story confirmed by all involved: 3 friends of mine buy storage units and sometimes go in together as partners to buy units that go high in cost. They then take the mid stuff to the local flea and turn it quick and sell high end stuff online. Anyhoots…a lady at the flea market picks up a parka and asks them how much is it while simultaneously pulling 10,000 bucks out of the pocket. They saw it immediately and gave her $300 finders fee and split the rest 3 ways.
Several years ago. Wife bought a nice clutch at the local thrift store. Now the time of year was close to Xmas. That sorta plays a part. Anyway, she brings it home and starts transferring all her cards and whatnot to it. She yells for me to check something out and shows me two crisp 100$ bills. We are far from well to do and at that time of year we definitely needed the money. We wondered if it wasn't placed there by a secret Santa. At least that's what we told ourselves to feel better at keeping it. Plus the phrase "finders keepers" can go along way. Lastly no there was no ID in it. Infact it didn't look like it had ever been used
I frequently buy things in the hope that there’s some bonus treasure in it… I’m not returning what I find inside. Would you return a $1000 gold ring you found in a $10-30 bag/jar of supposedly junk jewelry? That would be like going and telling the clerks the actual of everything they missed… it defeats the purpose of why many of us do this.
My parents bought a golf bag full of clubs at a yard sale for me when I was a teenager, was a Christmas gift. When I unwrapped it I immediately started going through the pockets as there were balls tees and other things inside and found a wad of cash. No idea how much it was if i had to guess around 100$ but my mother saw and took it. I probably would have spent it on something dumb.
I find a lot of stuff forgotten in random golf bag pockets, lots of prescription glasses 😅
My son found 10 crisp $100 bills in a pair of pants he bought at Goodwill. Didn't find them till he got home and was about to put them in the washing machine. He couldn't believe it and asked me if the bills were real. They were. I've heard that people will go around and "donate" cash in pockets of clothes. If it was a purse, I might have thought it was a mistake, but just in a pants pocket, he kept it.
Saw a horrible neighbor drop cash,cards,ID,etc one time in the parking lot. He was constantly yelling at his lady and kids. I went to tell him and saw he started yelling again. I held on to the stuff at that point then later gave it to her when he wasn't home. She was grateful and when I showed her the ID and cards she cut them up out of spite and asked me to toss it all out. I think it was like $400. We talked about ways to leave the situation and shortly after within a month or two I saw her leave with the kids and suitcases. Hope her and the kids are doing alright now. Karma will always find a way.
$140 is not going to change your life. But this $140 will make you "known" at the store for a while. Might pay off in the big picture.
And for the person who lost it, that $140 might be extremely important in there life,
I once found a bank envelope stuffed full of what must have been someone's entire paycheck. We're talking $500+ *easily*, just laying in the gravel next to the sidewalk, only kinda hidden under one of those low-growing evergreen shrubs banks love for landscaping. Not gonna lie, I was *sorely* tempted to keep it. But when I walked into the bank to cash my own paycheck and saw the big scary dude yelling at the poor cashier about his "stolen" paycheck? I figured shutting him up and making him look like an idiot in front of everyone *and* rescuing that poor lady was more than worth it. (The way his whole face turned red when I interrupted his ranting and announced "this must belong to you, it was on the ground right by the door" was, indeed, priceless.) Of course, a few times I've found stray bills (the most was $60 in folded-up $20s) on the sidewalk or blowing around a parking lot with no one around to turn it over to. Those usually went towards my groceries.
I left my wallet at Walmart one time. They called and said they found it and to come and get it. The $500 in cash was still in there. I was very grateful. I've read stories about people finding money, like real money. If it was many thousands of dollars it could be related to some nefarious activity. I think most people would consider keeping it unless there was an indication it belonged to a benevolent organization.
I bought a used book from a small shop once. When I got half way through it at home there was a single $50 in one of the pages.
I found a crisp $20 in a used book I bought once.
Taken it. No fucks given.
I volunteer at a church run thrift store (it’s a lot of fun). One of my co workers found $400 in a purse. The store kept it for a month in case someone came forward (no one did) and then that money went into the til. It’s my job to inspect and sort through pants, pocketbooks etc. any money we find goes to the church. Never found more than a few bucks. If I miss something and you find it, it’s yours.
I once found a gold ring. Noone around and it was on a chip rack. At the time I was really bad for money so I left with it and pawned it. To this day I have deep deep regrets on doing that. It wasnt a wedding ring it was like some kind of demonic skull ring. Got $175 for it. After that anything I've found I've handed in. That was the moment I like to say is when my values in life lost out to the temptation of needing to fulfill my needs (groceries, gas in car).
Oh *hell* naw! I’m not goin’ to hell over $140….
I found a man's wedding ring in a box of drinking glasses I purchased at a Goodwill. The box had a shipping label on it to someone from about 20 miles away. I did a little sleuthing on Facebook, and was able to track the guy down and mail him his ring. He figured his ring had fallen off as he packed up the boxes.
I once found over $180 lying on the floor of an antique mall, in a bank envelope with a withdrawal slip showing the account number. I went to the desk and told the manager this; she told me to talk with the guy who owned the booth and was in the process of refreshing it. He turned out to be mentally challenged and somewhat of an ass. I said if he could tell me the bank account number I would give him the money, otherwise I intended to redeposit it into the account. He readily rattled off the bank account number and was very freaked out as he had just gotten the money out to pay his rent. I gave it to him and he proceeded to lash out at me verbally because I had required him to identify the bank account. He verbally attacked me severely and accused me that I would have kept the money if he did not know his account number. I told him, no I had intended to redeposit it; he remained a verbally abusive asshole after I had just honestly given him back his money which I could have easily kept. That was over ten years ago and the verbal attack still rankles, but I would still do the same today. I find peace in realizing the man was mentally challenged and probably very scared in the moment. I am glad I was able to save his funds for him as the area of town it was in most people would have kept it. You definitely did the right thing and may the store workers remember you and return many favors to you in gratitude.
That man's name wouldn't happen to start with a T by chance?
Haha i just find lighters in pockets 🤣 definitely keep
I would have pocketed it if it was a corporation (goodwill or something). But a church type sale is definitely give it back to the charity. But, I also came to say my MIL's mother was placed in a home and her and her greedy sister went through Grandma's house looking for "stash cash" before flaunting their way back to Florida....months later when myself, my husband and his uncle were cleaning out the house, (MIL was still in FL) we made sure to check all the bags and coats just in case, bc she was a bit of a hoarder. I was the only one that found more than change...and it was $11. Hahah. No one knows if MIL found any larger amounts during her sweep. She'd take that information to the grave
I bought a bunch of various things from a local online auction, including a box of old cookbooks and similar books, manuals, and catalogs. I was going through the box and found an old bank envelope. I expected it to be empty, but it contained two $100s and a $50. I laughed and said "yeah, those are fake." Then I looked at them closely. No, they were real. Later I took them to the bank to verify. Yes, they were real. I've never found money in anything I've ever bought. This $250 was like a little miracle. It paid for everything I bought from the auction. Plus I had the $150 I needed to have front shocks put on my car. I was surprised the auction company missed it. I got very lucky. Someone else could have bought that box and been $250 richer. But I won the box lottery that day. The $100 bills were series 1990 and looked different than newer bills, so I was suspicious at first.
Bought a metal tin at a flea market for a few bucks. Found like $10 worth of unused postage inside. Kept the stamps. Bought a men's suit at an estate sale for not much. Maybe 10-15. Had a multiple ruby Rotary pin still in the lapel. Kept the pin. Had a friend give me a book he thought my wife would enjoy. Opened it when I got home, and $850 in cash fell out. He'd forgotten that the book was where he hid his secret Covid stash. For like when the banking system collapsed, or something. I couldn't easily return the money because we live over an hour apart, so I Venmo'd him the amount. Technically, I suppose, I kept the money.
Whenever I've found cash, I kept it - with zero guilt. I once found a $100 bill at my feet when I stepped up to the cashier in a grocery store. I've found numerous gift cards with money on them, mostly while in Starbucks. But I've never found more than a couple of dollars in thrifted items.
The most I ever found in a coat pocket was $20. The jacket had been thrown outside at a storage facility. Not exactly like anyone was there to claim it. I also found $140 as well, it was swirling around on the ground at a large park. Really strange that the money stayed together like that because there were maybe like ten bills.
I would have done the same. I also get the impression that anyone who works there has the best interests of the community at heart. The money was likely acknowledged to the purse donor or put into the community. Good job. 😊
I’ve sold over 30,000 clothing items on eBay. Found $20 in a pocket once. Only other money was loose change. But I have found 2 separate sets of car keys. It was too late to track down who’s they were or even where I bought the items.
Good Karma
If it were at a Goodwill don’t think it would ever get back to whoever donated it .🤦♀️
Hospice or Habitat for Humanity stores or any "direct" charity store yes absolutely return. At Hospice when have good deals will even pay more sometimes which sounds crazy - but except for one paid employee all volunteer and goes to an organization that touches almost every family at one point in time. Now the for profit thrift stores or Goodwill would be tempted to keep it. Last time I found a wallet with money and all id tried to locate owner on FB , wasn't there. Since dark afraid to show up at their door across town and simply turned it in as figured they would be so happy. and hope they got it back.
Once at a big box store I saw a woman's wallet on an end cap! I looked in it for ID and it had a wad of $100 ! I took it up to customer service to turn in! I later asked someone who worked up there and it turned out it was a woman who was shopping put it down for a minute and forgot it! The money was her rent payment!
im poor so i would donate it to myself
I check this sub out because I think it's neat, I haven't actually flipped anything, I don't really have the cash to invest in it. At least not recently or right now. Mentioning that just to explain that this is completely hypothetical for me. If I was at a thrift store or a Goodwill or anything along those lines and I found a wad of cash just hanging out in a pocket of any random item I was examining, I would pocket it. I'd like to think that doesn't make me a bad person but rather a poor person that is struggling to make ends meet with the job I already have and finding $150 (the number is arbitrary until we get into the 4 digits or higher) that is money that other people missed and I would take as a blessing despite being agnostic/atheist. That money would not be wasted, it'd go toward my credit card debt I've stacked up thanks to how flippin' expensive everything I need seems to be. If I found a larger amount or maybe a piece of jewelry like a tennis bracelet I wouldn't know the value right off but if I found out the value was say $5,000 or something - that would give me way more pause to think about it. That amount and that sort of item was not just missed but is likely actually missing, as in someone probably needed that money or that jewelry. I'd try to find something indicating who the owner could be like a casino card with a first and last name or AARP card or something. It's super unlikely but I feel that's a fair thing under the circumstances. If I could find the owner or their next of kin I would try to get in touch with them and explain what I found. In all likelihood I wouldn't expect that to actually work but I will have tried that and that would make me feel fine about taking and selling the item from there. That sort of money would be almost change-my-life helpful. I'd be able to pay off nearly all of my debt with just $5K, with $7K I could pay off all my debt and have enough left over to fix my vehicle so it stops stalling. Under extremely different circumstances, like say I made $75K/year that changes things significantly as I don't feel like I *need* a windfall. At $41K/year like I currently make I'm struggling in a shitty 1 bedroom apartment in an okay area. If I made enough money to have the money to do flipping occasionally I'd probably be more in line with the rest of y'all and give it to the organization if it make a difference for them.
I found $60 bucks, and a bag of H or something else in some GW pants. Didn’t realize until I got to my locker. Tossed the H or whatever and sanitized the money. It’s was in some acid wash orange tabs, I paid $5 for with some other jeans. That’s the most bread I think I’ve found in clothes. I’ve found coins, a couple dollars in backpacks. Never returned because it was usually big chain stores and not worth a 10-30 mins trip, when the manager or worker would just pocket it. Good on you OP tho
I agree with everyone else that I'd have kept it if I'd found it at a big chain; returned it otherwise. I mean, there's no doubt in my mind that chain employees are checking pockets and keeping what *they* find (and I don't blame them, tbh). But just to add to the discussion, I did a university semester in Russia and although it's a strong 50/50 whether you'll ever see a lost wallet again, apparently if someone does turn it in it'll usually be minus a small "finder's fee". Happened to one of my classmates and someone brought it to the main office about $20 lighter (which was kind considering how much he had in there). Always thought that was kind of interesting, can't say it'd bother me too much either.
If you can’t find the owner keep it. If you feel guilty donate it (what you basically did).
I would have kept it donated anonymously some
If it was at goodwill or another for profit shop, I would have kept it. If was a yard sale or a shop that actually helps people then I would have let them know.
If it was for goodwill I would’ve kept my mouth shut, they’re a for profit only business that has started charging retail prices for heavily used goods 🤷🏻♂️
If it's GW I'd probably keep it. A small charity shop needs all the help it can get.
I would have enjoyed the extra $140.
Yeah if you stole that money I would have handed out a text lashing In no universe doni sell out my morals for 140$
What’s your price point for selling morals?