In the marketplace, money serves as a utilitarian tool for economic exchange, but when it enters the home, it takes on different social and cultural meanings based on its source, earner, and allocation. In today’s digital world, online platforms enable the commodification of previously non-economic household items and activities, introducing new forms of money with distinct meanings. This study draws on Zelizer's "special monies" model to explore this process among Turkish housewives (THWs) using digital secondhand marketplaces (DSMs). Through thirteen in-depth interviews, the research examines how these women transform their culturally designated domain—the home—into a source of income and perceived empowerment, a phenomenon described as the "commodification of homes." The study introduces the concept of "upgrade money" for this income, which is used to enhance the social standing of their home, children, and themselves without directly challenging socio-cultural norms. Although often considered an undervalued domestic currency, upgrade money empowers THWs by shifting their roles from "cashless money managers" to "upgrade money owners." This paper provides qualitative evidence of culturally recognized paths to perceived empowerment for women in constrained contexts.
