Tips for Having a Garage Sale?

[Lady Brik]

I'm trying to organize a garage sale, and since this is our first one, I'm wondering if anyone has any input.

We're tentatively scheduling it for the 4th of July weekend, that Friday and Saturday. Is that a bad idea? Initially we wanted it the weekend before, but this way I'll already have Friday off from work because of the holiday.

Also, I've heard there are many different ways to go about pricing your stuff, from putting up signs on the tables with pricing or to literally stick every item with a price tag. I've heard of other people not pricing anything and letting the shoppers pay whatever they want.

I guess the goal here isn't necessarily to make bank, but mostly to get rid of the stuff. That being said, we have some pretty nice/once expensive items that we didn't want to just give to Goodwill.

Any comments/suggestions?

[Smilin]

When you advertise in the local paper...PRINT IN BOLD LETTERING


NO CUSTOMERS accepted before 8 A.M.

That way people will be showing up at around 6 in the morning versus the normal 4 A.M. crowd of people fighting to be the first to pick through all your "stuff"

You might want to post guard dogs outside your property to as a precautionary measure....

I wouldn't want to be in your shoes. Every time we've had a "yard-sale", "garage sale" whatever....

Well it's just as much work as actually moving which I've done entirely too much of in my 42 years on this Earth.

Good luck!

I don't envy you a bit!

[ITSOZAZ]

offer a 'happy ending' with every purchase.

[freemonkey]

Also, I've heard there are many different ways to go about pricing your stuff, from putting up signs on the tables with pricing or to literally stick every item with a price tag. I've heard of other people not pricing anything and letting the shoppers pay whatever they want.

I've heard that most people like to have you set the price. Maybe you could do a combination of the pricing strategies... price the big stuff, though. Many people will try to haggle with you, but want a starting price (you mark it $10, they will offer a dime).

TIP #2: Keep your money with you. Do not leave it in a box on the table. Keep it in a fanny pack or something.

TIP #3: Do not let anyone, or their kids, into your home to use your bathroom, try on clothes or make a phone call....

TIP #4: I'm sure you will, but it bears repeating: Clean the stuff you're selling. Within reason... old tools and antiques benefit from a coating of oil and/or dust, but clothing kitchen items and books, not so much. I stopped at a sale on my street yesterday and they were trying to sell an old backpack. It was covered in white mold. Disgusting!

The few times I've had garage sales, it was a lot of work, but it was fun, too. I packed up a few boxes to send to a friend's sale this weekend, I have opted not to join the fun this time.

[Lady Brik]

[quote=Lady Brik;549799]

TIP #3: Do not let anyone, or their kids, into your home to use your bathroom, try on clothes or make a phone call....

This never crossed my mind. Thanks for the tip.

[LadyShea]

I've had one garage sale and it sucked. I stood outside all day, and had creepy people on my property offering me a nickel for something worth 5.00 that I had marked at 1.00, and made less than the tax write off I would have had if I had donated it.

I am preparing to sell a bunch of shit currently, but am paying 12.00/day to do it at our local flea market. If you have a flea market or swap meet or something, with good traffic, I suggest you do the same.

[freemonkey]

offering me a nickel for something worth 5.00 that I had marked at 1.00,

that's because all those people think they'll sell all that stuff on eBay (or at their own sales) and make a fortune.

[LadyShea]

I recently tried selling stuff on ebay (my Disney kits I mentioned in another thread), and it ain't easy. The wholesalers and dropshippers have pretty much flooded the place with new, cheap merchandise...there's just so much stuff it's difficult to get your items even looked at.

I have mostly baby stuff, all in excellent condition, and I think I will do well at the flea market. Lots of people need discount baby stuff. Whatever doesn't sell is going to the mission, I think.

[freemonkey]

eBay is.... well, its not small seller friendly these days. The word among many sellers is that they suspect eBay wants to end the auction format and go to fixed price sales of cheap crap. There is a boycott going on since Feb. because of large-scale changes there, including sellers being unable to leave negative feedback on buyers, hidden bidder ID's, requiring PayPal (they tried to force PayPal-only in Australia). Its too bad, because my hubby has some stuff to sell and 1) So far, I've supported the boycott and 2) because I've been reading of a recent increase in buyer shenanigans, it doesn't feel safe.

Sorry for taking over your thread, Lady Brik!! :bag:

[Lady Brik]

Sorry for taking over your thread, Lady Brik!! :bag:

It's ok, it happens!

Anyone know how soon to advertise in the local newspaper?

[Dingfod]

eBay is.... well, its not small seller friendly these days. The word among many sellers is that they suspect eBay wants to end the auction format and go to fixed price sales of cheap crap. There is a boycott going on since Feb. because of large-scale changes there, including sellers being unable to leave negative feedback on buyers, hidden bidder ID's, requiring PayPal (they tried to force PayPal-only in Australia). Its too bad, because my hubby has some stuff to sell and 1) So far, I've supported the boycott and 2) because I've been reading of a recent increase in buyer shenanigans, it doesn't feel safe.

Sorry for taking over your thread, Lady Brik!! :bag:Feeling the pinch of craigslist, aren't they?

[freemonkey]

eBay is....

Feeling the pinch of craigslist, aren't they?

heh, who(m?) they tried, and failed, to bully. :sniggle:

[curses]

Also, check with the town/city council about sineage laws. I know that one city near me requires permits even for yard sale signs. Not doing so can result in fines.

[Smilin]

yep...got busted for that once meself.....

MAKE SURE to check and see if a permit is required...

sneaky bastards have people on there payroll who's only job is to visit all the garage/yard sales advertised in the paper checking that the "proper permits" have been obtained....

Bastards! Sucked up all of my $100.00 profit that year.....

[Caligulette]

Put the DATE on the signs, not just the day, or people will get confused/annoyed.

[Smilin]

DON'T nail the signs to telephone poles either.....

You'll also get fined for that stunt as well....(more personal experience)

[Plant Woman]

For easy pricing, you make one sign for a table that says 1 dollar items, then another table for 5.00 dollar items, etc. Then the bigger items you can price individually. We came up with that idea at our last garage sale and it saved a lot of time. They could haggle the price, but they knew where our starting price was.

[fragment]

The only time I had a garage sale it was great. People came and paid me for the privilege of taking away all the crap that was going to be real annoying for me to get rid of... including the horrifically heavy desk that had been such a pain to maneuver up the staircase. Because my main motivation was just discarding, I wasn't too concerned about how much I got for things. I priced stuff by what I'd be prepared to pay for it at a garage sale myself, and I let things go for about half that. Price stickers are good. If anything's going to go for hardly anything, consider just putting it in a free box instead. That gets people in the mood for accumulation. If you're advertising in a paper put in a list of the main sorts of things you have.

Man those signage laws sound horrible.

[Dingfod]

The first time we had a garage sale, carport actually, we made enough money to buy ourselves our first color TV, something we couldn't have afforded for another few years otherwise, about $600. We had another garage sale about six months later and didn't make $200, but we didn't have as many big ticket items, furniture and the like.

Instead of putting prices on things we found it easy to make a reference chart we put on display that stated the prices for the different colored stickers we put on the various items. Garage sale packets from the local paper contained them the one time, the other times, we got the stuff from Wally World or somewhere. Big ticket items got a piece of masking tape with the asking price. Most of the time nobody tried negotiating a lower price. Over the years we've sold some good stuff for a tiny amount of money, some of it a little less than willingly.

[freemonkey]

Instead of putting prices on things we found it easy to make a reference chart we put on display that stated the prices for the different colored stickers we put on the various items.

That's good idea.