I scored a designer purse at the thrift store for $4 – I carried it for nearly a year before making a valuable discovery
A THRIFT store find turned out to be worth way more than face — or price tag — value.
The savvy shopper owned the designer purse, purchased for just $4, for nearly a year before discovering its true riches.
Redditor RabidWeasels posed the question to other second-hand store fans regarding their priciest finds.
“What was your all time best thrift shop score?” they asked.
“Mine was an original 1978 crew shirt from Dawn of the Dead. I found it for $3 at a shop back in the late ’90s. I wore it for my wedding.”
Rabidweasels added that the shirt later went for a jaw-dropping $1,600 online.
GOLD MINE
Redditor Michelleinbal chimed in with an even pricier score.
“I bought a $4 black leather Longchamp purse,” she said.
“Carried it around for almost year. It has a front pocket with a weird, tight fold.
“One day I was digging around for cab fare and I felt something unfamiliar.
“Turned out to be two money orders totaling almost $3,000, issued 14 years previously by a defunct bank.”
Michelleinbal didn’t let the nonexistent financial institute deter her from scoring big time — launching her very own investigation.
“I tried to locate the name on the orders. No luck,” she said.
“It took me almost six months, but I discovered through the Department of Treasury that it was unclaimed money.
“They ended up cutting me two checks for them.
“I imagine the person who owned that purse thought she lost those money orders and gave up looking for them.
“[The money orders] were tucked tightly into that pocket fold all along.”
WHAT IS UNCLAIMED MONEY?
Unclaimed money is not an uncommon occurrence in the U.S.
The United States’ government official website states that money may be available by checking with unclaimed property offices by states lived in.
The government website recommends a third party database to locate lost earnings.
Michelleinbal also gave her own advice to other thrift store shoppers.
“I will forever keep that bag as a good luck token,” she said.
“It was well worth the effort to claim those money orders. Always check purse pockets.”