Year-End Tax Checklist for Resellers and Booth Vendors

A year-end tax checklist for resellers comes down to five things: count your inventory at cost, gather every purchase and expense receipt, finish your mileage log, reconcile your sales across every platform and booth, and check your sales tax and estimated tax deadlines. Do these in December and your tax appointment in February is short and cheap. This is general information, not tax advice. Tax rules change and depend on your situation, so confirm the specifics with a tax professional.

1. Count Your Inventory

Your ending inventory on December 31 is a key part of figuring your cost of goods sold. Count everything you own for resale, in the booth, in storage, and listed online, and record each item at what you paid. Our year-end inventory count guide walks through it step by step.

2. Gather Purchase Records

Every item you bought for resale is part of your cost of goods. Collect:

• Estate sale, garage sale, and thrift receipts (or your notes if no receipt was given)
• Auction invoices, including buyer's premium
• Online purchases for resale
• Wholesale or lot purchases

For cash buys with no receipt, a note with the date, place, items, and amount, made at the time, is much better than a guess in April. Photos of the items and the sale sign help too.

3. Total Your Business Expenses

Expenses are separate from cost of goods. Common ones for resellers include:

• Booth rent, commissions, and market fees
• Platform selling fees and payment processing fees
• Shipping, packing supplies, boxes, and labels
• Display supplies, tags, lights, and signage
• Cleaning and repair supplies
• Apps, software, and subscriptions used for the business
• Phone and internet, for the business-use portion
• Storage unit rent
• Education, such as reference books and price guides

Our reseller tax deductions guide covers each category in more detail, and the expense tracking guide shows a simple system for next year.

4. Finish Your Mileage Log

Driving to estate sales, thrift stores, the post office, your booth, and markets can add up to one of your larger deductions. The IRS expects a written record made at or near the time: date, destination, business purpose, and miles. If your log has gaps, fill them now from your calendar, receipts, and phone location history while you can still remember. The standard mileage rate is set each year by the IRS, so check the current rate rather than using last year's. Our mileage deduction guide explains what counts.

5. Reconcile Your Sales

Pull year-end sales reports from every place you sold:

• Antique mall dealer statements (monthly)
• eBay, Etsy, Poshmark, Mercari, Facebook Marketplace (if you took payments through it), and any other platform
• Card reader reports (Square, PayPal Zettle, Clover, or similar)
• Cash sales at markets and pop-ups, from your notebook or app

Compare those totals with your bank deposits. Payment platforms and marketplaces may send you a Form 1099-K reporting your gross payments if you meet the federal or state reporting threshold. Those thresholds have changed several times in recent years and some states set their own, so do not assume you will or will not get one. Either way, all of your business income is reportable, whether or not a form arrives. The 1099-K shows gross amounts before fees and refunds, so keep your own records to show the difference.

6. Check Sales Tax Filings

Sales tax is separate from income tax. Most marketplaces collect and remit sales tax on online orders in states with marketplace facilitator laws, but in-person sales at markets, shows, and some booths may be your responsibility. Many antique malls collect sales tax for dealers; confirm whether yours does. If you hold a seller's permit, check your state's filing schedule for the final period of the year, and file a return even if you owe nothing when your state requires it.

7. Look at Estimated Taxes

If you have a profitable reselling business and no withholding covering it, you may need to make quarterly estimated tax payments. The fourth-quarter payment for a calendar year is typically due in mid-January. A tax professional can tell you whether you need to pay and how much, and whether your state has a separate estimated payment.

8. December Decisions to Discuss With Your Tax Pro

• Buying inventory in December. Unsold inventory generally is not deducted when you buy it, so a big December buying trip usually does not lower this year's taxes the way people expect. Buy because it will sell, not for a deduction.
• Equipment purchases. Shelving, a new camera, or a vehicle may be deductible in different ways. Ask how and when.
• Home office. If you use part of your home regularly and exclusively for the business, you may qualify. The rules are specific.
• Retirement contributions. Self-employed retirement accounts have deadlines and limits worth asking about.
• Business structure. If your reselling has grown, ask whether your current setup still makes sense.

9. Organize and Keep Your Records

Put everything for the year in one place: a folder on your computer or a labeled box, with sub-folders for sales reports, inventory purchases, expenses, mileage, and tax forms. Scan or photograph paper receipts, since thermal receipts fade. The IRS generally expects you to keep records that support your return for at least three years, and longer in some situations, so ask your tax professional how long to hold yours. Keep inventory records until every item on them has sold and been reported.

10. Set Up Next Year Now

• Open a separate bank account and card for the business if you have not already.
• Pick one place to log purchases, sales, mileage, and expenses as they happen.
• Photograph receipts the day you get them.
• Calendar your sales tax and estimated tax deadlines for 2027.

PocketPrice keeps your inventory (with item costs and sales) and your expenses in the same app you use to price, which makes next December's checklist much shorter.

The Printable Checklist

• Ending inventory counted at cost and saved
• All inventory purchase records gathered, including cash notes
• Business expenses totaled by category
• Mileage log complete for the year
• Sales totals pulled from every platform, booth, and market
• Sales totals reconciled with bank deposits
• Any 1099-K or other tax forms saved when they arrive
• Final sales tax return for the year filed or scheduled
• Estimated tax question asked
• Appointment booked with a tax professional

Common Mistakes

• Deducting inventory when you buy it instead of when it sells.
• Reporting only what a 1099-K shows. Cash and booth sales count too.
• Mixing personal and business purchases on one card with no notes.
• Rebuilding the mileage log in April from memory.
• Assuming last year's thresholds and rates still apply. Check current figures each year.

Want to know what your unsold stock is worth while you count it? Price it with PocketPrice for a number calibrated to where you sell. And when you sit down with your tax pro, bring the COGS vs. expenses breakdown so the conversation goes quickly.