Craigslist beware; there’s a new app in town for those that want turn their trash into cash, and it may just revolutionize the way mobile users search for goods. Rumgr (currently available on Apple products including the iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch) is a virtual yard sale application that is simple, user-friendly, and allows for random browsing akin to what you might encounter at an actual yard sale, only on your smartphone or tablet. And it seems as though some big names believe that this little app can go the distance, considering that the founders of Rumgr recently raised $500,000 in start up capital to take their business idea to the next level.

The concept for Rumgr originated with co-founder (and former Zappos employee) Dylan Bathurst. After trying to sell off some furniture during a move, Bathurst apparently decided that the platforms available for such transactions simply weren’t up to snuff. Many are too complicated, too bogged down with junk, or simply not focused on the garage sale experience. And most cover large and densely populated geographic areas, meaning that anyone seeking items for sale is immediately overloaded with options, reducing the chance that any one person will be able to sell their stuff in an efficient manner.

So Bathurst teamed up with two other Zappos alums (Ray Morgan and Alex Coleman) to create Rumgr, which mimics the experience of a yard sale in an interesting and unique way. If you go to Craigslist, for example, you can search for specific items in the “for sale” section. But you might end up traveling miles away to pick them up. With Rumgr, you just open the app and have instant access to all available items within your area, with those at the top of the list being offered in the closest proximity to your current location. It starts with a radius of 1 mile and fans out to 2 miles, 5 miles, and so on. Much like attending an actual garage sale, you have no idea what you might find when you open the app (although they have hinted that a search feature may be in their future). If you’re having a premonition that this location-based marketplace app could be extremely addictive, you’re not alone.

Zappos CEO Tony Hsieh and CTO Arun Rajan are just two of the investors to pitch in on a $500K start up fund for the company, Rumgr Inc., which has plans to expand outside of their native Las Vegas. While a basic version of the app was already available on iTunes, the update pushed on February 1 included add-ons like a map to plot area sales, tracking tabs to place on interesting items, and a separate screen for making offers (which would have occurred in the public chat section before). It may not be quite as exciting as sifting through the contents of a Manhattan loft or as quaint as grabbing the local paper to visit Bend garage sales, but it still looks like a lot of fun.

And according to the founders, the idea is to reinvent garage sales for a mobile medium in a way that is easy for both posters (who simply upload pics of their items and wait for responses) and buyers. That way sellers get the garage sale without the setup and buyers can browse without feeling like they have to commit. No doubt some will find the virtual experience less fulfilling than the real deal, but it’s likely that a lot more will enjoy the ease of use and many other benefits that stem from a virtual yard sale that results in real goods.

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