How to Unload Groupon Vouchers

Forgive me if I seem a bit obsessed with discount sites lately. Earlier today I posted a story on the best websites for finding deals. And last week I wrote about SavingStar, a new service that takes the cutting, clipping and carrying out of using coupons. But before I move onto a new topic, I have one more money saving resource for my readers.

Enter Lifesta. It's an online marketplace for buying and selling daily deals from companies like Groupon, and LivingSocial. In other words, think of it as the Plastic Jungle for the discount voucher world.

How does it work? If you are selling a voucher you just list it online and name your own price. (Just make sure it isn't expired.) You're welcome to charge whatever you like. Keep in mind that the buyer will see the original deal and may not want to pay more than you did. On the other hand, however, you may want to pad the cost a bit since you have to pay an 8% and 99 cent listing fee. All payments are made through Amazon Purchases and you receive the money right away.

If you are buying a voucher, there are no additional fees. You just pay whatever the seller charges. Although many sellers want to recoup their entire investment, I noticed that quite a few people offer the deals for a bit less than they paid so that they don't lose all of their money. That, of course, means that you can save even more than you would if you had bought the original deal on Groupon or LivingSocial.

There's virtually no downside. (Trust me, I looked for the problems.) Lifesta and its competitor DealsGoRound (which charges a 10% listing fee) guarantee that the vouchers will be valid. If you find yours was already used, they will refund your money. CoupRecoup, another peer website, doesn't guarantee anything, but it's also free for the seller so buyers may find some better deals.

Will I stop reading my Groupon emails? Probably not. But if I have a few minutes to kill, I'll probably check out these marketplaces too. Right now I'm eyeballing a $10 voucher for a $100 egift card on Restaurant.com. This seems like it's too good of a deal to pass up.

Would you resell your daily deal vouchers?

Stacey Bradford is the author of The Wall Street Journal Financial Guidebook for New Parents.
Inaugural Groupon in Toronto image courtesy of Flickr, CC 2.0.
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