So, do you want to have the best garage sale and actually make some money off of the items that have been sitting in the garage for way too long? In order to do this, you must take the time to plan out your garage sale so that you have enough items to make a decent profit as well as getting considerable traffic to your yard. The following steps will help you plan the best garage sale that will guarantee some cash in your pocket by the end of the day.
The first thing you want to do before having a garage sale is to make sure you have enough items to sell. If your yard looks empty from the street, potential buyers may not stop to check out what you have. Make sure that you have plenty of items close to the road. This may mean you need to have a "driveway sale" or "yard sale" instead of having it in the garage.
If you do not have enough items to sell, consider inviting your neighbors and friends to sell their items with you. To be fair, you should label each contributor's item with a different colored tag so that you can keep track of each seller's earnings. You can also ask friends and neighbors for donations. They may have things in their home that they would like to get rid of without having to make a profit off of it.
Compile the items you want to sell and sort them out in an empty space in or by your home. While sorting, think of ways in which you will display your items so that they are organized appealing to potential buyers. You may want to have some tape or stickers with you so that you can also price your items while sorting.
When people go to garage sales, they expect everything to be labeled with the price. People may not bother to buy an item if they have to ask how much you are selling it for. Usually, you will want to price your items lower than a common thrift store would price them. Usually, you will sell things for 20% of the original buying price depending on the condition of the item.
You may also be holding a garage sale for charity in which case you can price your items a little higher than usual. Make sure to pass out materials that explain where the benefits go and how they will be used.
Below is a table of the general prices garage sale buyers would pay for specific items. You will want to price your items within the range listed below. You may price them higher if you don't mind participating in negotiations, but the high prices may turn away some prospective buyers.
How Much Should I Sell My Item for?
Before you plan your garage sale, you will need to check with your local government to see if there are any restrictions to posting signs or selling items. You may need to get a permit for your garage sale depending on where you live.
Make plenty of signs and put them around your area. Make these signs simple and easy to read. Do not put too much information about the sale on signs that you expect drivers to see. For these signs, I suggest simply writing "Big Garage Sale This Way" with an arrow pointing in the direction of your home. You will need to place others along the way so people can find you while driving. Use a dark, thick marker on light-colored paper in order to assure that people can see it from the road.
A week before your garage sale, go to your local coffee shops and ask to put a flyer on their bulletin board. You can put a flyer with pull tabs on the bottom that list your address and the date of the garage sale. This way, people will be able to plan for the sale and have your address at hand.
You will also want to post an ad on Craigslist. This generates a ton of customers. Other social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter are also a great way to get friends to come and see what you're selling.
Put a big sign in front of your house on the day of the sale. You may also want to list the items that you will be selling (i.e. "Furniture, Clothes, Electronics!"); keep it brief. Having a "FREE" box or $1 Table for all of your miscellaneous items will also bring traffic to your yard.
You will want to have a cashbox, calculator and bags to keep your sale clean and organized. Use old grocery bags to put smaller items in when selling and possibly get newspaper to wrap more delicate things.
You will also need some help from your friends or family to make sales easy. One person should be in charge of the cashbox and sales while another negotiates with buyers. You may also want someone strong to help customers carry large items like furniture.
Hopefully these tips will come in handy when you are planning the perfect garage sale. Good luck in your sales and comment below with any other helpful suggestions for holding a profitable garage sale!
How to Have a Successful Garage/Yard Sale: The Ultimate Guide!
Thanks, mrfishs. I usually take about an hour to set up, but it all depends on whether I have sorted the items first. If you have crazy weather, I suggest setting up a tent/tarp to lay the items under, or, you could hold the sale in your garage (if you have one). Another great way to do it is to ask your neighbors if they would like to join in. You could have a large sale at your community park or in one of their garages. Good luck!
Hello, Nice hub how long do you take for setup of a garage sale or yard sale and where do you live? Because I live in Ohio here the weather changes every five minutes and you spread your sale items all over the yard you be in a snow or rainstorm trying to pick up the items.
Thank you, kikalina. I agree.
The table is a great idea. I hate squatting at sales.
Thank you, Sunshine. The list was compiled after surveying 100 people. The price range is the general amount that they would pay for that item. If you throw a garage sale, don't price them too low.
Millionaire Tips, Thank you for the comments and for reading. Change is a very important part of having a garage sale.
These are great ideas, and the table is very useful. I also like to make sure I have enough change for my customers.
Wow awesome hub! I frequent yard sales almost every weekend and I agree with many of your tips. Your prices are a bit high for me, I probably would bargain with you at your sale! lol Voted UP!!
Britt: What a helpful, practical, useful hub on having success with garage sales! The organization is logical and supportive of reader questions, all of which you anticipate and answer. In particular, I like the way in which you pose challenges and offer explanations as well as solutions. For example, it is a great attention-getter to describe the garage sale as "big"!
Thank you for the multi-media presentation of video, textual, photographed and charted tips.
Thanks, HSB. It took a while, but I think it was worth it to make the table. Glad you liked it.
What a well thought out hub. I really liked the chart you provided. And I often wondered what was a good price for something and the 20% number took care of that question. You put a lot of work into your presentation. Great job!
Thank you, Caren. I held a garage sale for my parents in the past. It's well worth it.
This hub has so much information and it's so well organized. I've always wanted to hold a garage sale for my parents' stuff as they could use the money and they have so much stuff, but my mom would rather throw stuff out than deal with the hassle of a garage sale.
Thank you, Cheatlierepeat. I love garage sales because they are a great way to buy/sell things that people have no use for anymore. Thanks for commenting!
Awesome Info! I have never had or been to a garage sale but always wanted to. Great source of info, good job!