CDs offer quick cash for students

By BETH LUCAS
Collegian Staff Writer

For Jason Megill, graduating from Penn State meant more than just the opportunity to go to graduate school to study political science. It meant he could afford to keep his compact discs.

"I had to sell my CDs in the past when I was a broke student," he said yesterday as he browsed through Blue Train Compact Disc, 432 E. College Ave. "And I liked the CDs I sold."

Dan Ralston, manager of Disc Go Round, 228 W. College Ave., said the majority of CDs sold to the store are from students who "are in dire need of some cash." The store buys between 1,200 and 1,500 CDs a week for between $1 and $5 each and sells them used for between $1.99 and $7.99.

City Lights Records, 316 E. College Ave., also buys back CDs, mostly from students, for between $3 and $6, manager Ken Kubala said.

The store usually expects a rush of students selling CDs at the end of the semester when money is needed the most, he added.

Some students do not sell music they like, but instead use the stores to get rid of extra CDs.

Danny Spear (junior-management science and information systems) said he sold 10 CDs he never listened to and was only offered about $10 to $20 in return.

"I think if I was offered $2 for a CD I would listen to two or three more times, I would probably not sell it," he said.

Spear is among the Penn State students who buy the sold-back CDs because they are cheaper. Even though the cases are sometimes slightly damaged, he said the CDs are still in good condition.

City Lights guarantees used CDs just as it does new ones, Kubala said. Used CDs can be returned for a full refund, unlike new CDs that have been opened. However, new CDs that have been opened usually end up on the shelves of used CD stores and their previous owners end up losing much of what they spent.

However, it is impossible in most cases to know what CDs will be found at a used store, or when they will be available.

"It's funny -- sometimes you'll see a new CD (in a used store) from a radio station before it has even been released, " Kubala said. "But it usually takes a few months."

Kubala said the profits from used CDs are double those from the sale of new CDs. Used CDs can mean a $3 to $4 profit for used CD stores, Ralston said, in comparison to a $1 or $2 profit for new CDs.

Penn State students interested in selling used CDs can take them to a local store where they will be looked over. Each store has its own guidelines for buying back the CDs.