There is a big question you must answer when considering how to find bargain priced merchandise: Which sources deliver the least amount of hassle for the most profit?

Let's consider the 9 most creative local sources but, first, you need to know that eBay has banned sales of downloadable ebooks and software. Everything sold on eBay today must be a physical product that can be shipped to the buyer.

This means that hundreds of sellers of downloadable products were put out of business. The upside is, that created more customers for folks selling physical products. This also means that there are still old programs being sold to teach you how to sell "digital products" on eBay. The best advice is do not buy any such programs that do not offer a Money Back Guarantee! You will be ripped off.

While the following list of 9 suggestions focuses on your hometown, do not forget to search online for suppliers of products you can buy at wholesale and sell at retail. There are countless such websites offering deals so you need to be very cautious and do your research.

At the end of this article is a link to a wholesale product membership site that is rated #1 for member statisfaction, guarantee, and quality of products. Check them out after you exhaust the local sources. They even have a member forum where members help each other succeed.

One more factor to consider is Shipping, Handling, and Sales Tax. Many wholesale product sources will dropship products to your customers so you never actually handle the products. Sales Taxes are another matter. You should check your state for rules on this.

Now, here are the top 9 methods to find bargain priced products locally that you can sell on eBay:

1. Household sales.

Chances are you have gone most of your life seeing ads for these and ignoring them. I still do ignore them because I hate getting up early to beat the crowd for the bargains. That said, you should start going to as many of these sales as you can. You will not always find good bargains at every one, but, when you find one seller with lot's of saleable stuff, make them an offer for the lot! They will be glad to give you a real bargain price. Just toss the junk and sell the good items on eBay for a nice profit.

2. Flea Markets.

If your area has flea markets, then go to them regularly and look around for anything with profit potential and buy it. Again, see if you can make a package deal. Sellers love to make a quick sale so they can pack up early.

3. Pawn shops.

Pawn shops are getting harder to find but they can be a lucrative source. Pawn shops operators don’t usually know about how much the stuff is worth if they sell it on eBay so some real bargains are to be had. The exception is gold and precious stones. They know the value of those but, generally, they put the rest of their stock out on the shelves unorganized, knowing that eventually someone with a little money will come in and buy something. Again, the buy-in-bulk rule applies. Get them to offer you a discount for a bunch of stuff you think might sell well on eBay. And, never tell them you are selling on eBay!

The same holds true for second hand or next-to-new stores. Grab some bargains!

4. Auction houses.

It's a good bet that you can resell things for more than you pay for them at an auction. After all, they only have a few people at the auction so competition is not as tough as you might think. Remember, you have a few million prospects to sell to on eBay so go that little bit extra on your bids on items you know are in demand on eBay.

5. Local newspapers.

This is great way to control the marketplace. Place an ad in the local paper that reads: "I pay cash for your (name item)" with your phone number included. If you can afford it, make it a big display ad to stand out. Families will call you first rather than go through the hassle of running their own ad and having to deal with phone calls and curious people.

6. Bulletin boards.

Put one of your ads on the grocery store or laundromat community board, saying "I Pay cash for your (name item)." Here again, folks will call you to avoid the hassle of advertising and people calling them at all hours or not showing up.

7. Friends, neighbors, and relatives.

Ask your relatives, friends, and neighbors if they have anything they would like to sell and ask them to spread the word to everyone they know that you are buying. Or, ask them to let you sell their stuff for them and split the profits. We have one store in our town that advertises for stuff to sell on eBay and splits the profits with the owners of the items sold.

8. Build your reputation.

Give out business cards and, every chance you get, mention to people what you do. Chances are you will come across someone who will say: "Oh, really? I’ve got a load of (name item) I would love to get rid of."

9. WalMart and other retail outlets.

This might be a little surprising, but some retailers, like WalMart, sell things more cheaply than the same items sell for on eBay. Take a look around your local deep discounter, like WalMart, and also pay special attention to any store that takes trade-ins or returns from customers. Chances are they take a loss on trade-ins as a promotional gimmick and are dying to get rid of that stock. This also true of returned merchandise.

WalMart is especially good because they have hundreds of items in their clearance aisles that you can buy cheaply and sell in areas of the country that do not have a big discount store like WalMart. WalMart's return policy makes this a steal because many of the products were not really used at all, while others are simply discontinued models or end of season sale items.

For example, my daughter bought a set of eight glasses for $3 and sold them for $6 a pair on eBay. Nice profit, indeed!