Barbies for $5,000, rare New York Rangers collectibles for $30,000 – hard-up Americans are selling their treasure hoards to get by

• Some cash-strapped Americans are selling treasured collectibles including Barbies and sports memorabilia at eye-popping prices, per the WSJ. 
• High inflation, rising interest rates, and mounting debt are just some of the challenges US consumers are grappling with today. 
• Luckily, the collectibles industry is a lucrative one, with global sales projected to hit $1 trillion by 2033. 

Hard-up Americans have turned to selling their treasured hoards of collectibles to get by in an economy that’s grappling with elevated living costs and historically high interest rates. 

Mitch Beck is selling his cache of New York Rangers memorabilia that took him 23 years to collect for as much as $30,000, while 29-year-old Anurita Loubier has been trading her trove of 300 Barbie dolls to pay off her rent and electricity bills, according to the Wall Street Journal.