Ready to declutter and earn some extra cash? Let me show you exactly how to have a successful garage sale that is guaranteed to earn! With these easy tips on pricing, organizing, attracting buyers, and boosting profits, you’re sure to clear your clutter, and make your next garage sale your best yet!
I have always loved yard and garage sales. Whether I’m shopping at someone else’s sale or holding my own, they have both been incredibly useful in my life. In my opinion, having a garage sale is one of the best ways ways to get rid of all the unwanted clutter in your home, and earn some extra cash, but simply tossing your things out into the driveway just doesn’t work.
I’ve been having yard and garage sales since I was 16 years old. So, over the years, I’ve learned quite a few garage-sale tips and trucks about how to have a successful garage sale.
And by successful, I mean profitable enough to justify the early mornings and the time and effort required to hold one. That’s exactly what these yard sale tips
Start Planning Early
Before you can even hold your garage sale, you’ll need to plan and as much as you may not want to do so, planning is crucial. It allows you to have the time to plan not only the date, but to get your items together, price things and so on.
Without proper planning, you simply won’t see the kind of success you’re looking for with your garage sale.
Choose the Perfect Date
The date you choose for your garage sale is one of the most important things you will choose. Obviously, weekends are best since most people have at least one of those days off from work. Friday, Saturday and Sundays all work well; yes, Sunday. Trust me; the after church crowd loves to shop when they see a garage sale in their neighborhood.
The first weekend of the month is always a great choice for your date too. People who budget their spending money or receive a month check such as social security receive their spending money around this time making it a prime time for you to have a successful yard sale.
Check weather forecasts at least a week before and keep an eye on them right up until the morning of your sale. Create a back up plan for rain. If your forecast shows rain or high winds on the day of the sale, consider moving to your back up plan.
The time of year matters as well. Choose a date in late spring/early summer or early fall. Garage sale shoppers don’t really like sales when the weather is really hot. Try to keep the dates to when the temperature will be around 75° outdoors.
Collect and Organize Your Items
Once you’ve got your date planned, it’s time to start collecting and organizing the items you’ll be selling at your garage sale. The easiest way to do this is to start with your closets, then go room by room. Once that’s done, if you still feel like you want to add more, go for the basement, attic or garage.
As you start to go through things; be honest with yourself. If you haven’t used it in a year or it’s not in good condition, throw it away or donate it to your local thrift store.
Clean Everything Up
You don’t want to buy other people’s junk at yard sales and they don’t want to buy yours.
This is why cleaning things up before you sell them is important. Wash and dry clothes so they’re clean. Dust or clean up other items. Just like you wouldn’t buy a dirty product in the store, no one will buy a dirty product at your yard sale.
This is especially true for baby/kid gear and toys. Make sure these things are clean.
What Sells Best at a Garage Sale?
Yard sale shoppers can be split into two types of people; the one who is looking for something specific and the one who is simply seeing what sort of bargain you have to offer. Both will jump for certain items when they are showcased in a garage sale.
First, appliances always draw a crowd. This includes big appliances and small kitchen appliances. Electronics and DVDs also tend to sell pretty well. Adult clothes and children’s clothes can do well if your sale is held at the beginning of summer or near back to school. Finally, kids’ toys and dishes are always a great addition. For dishes, whole sets sell best but sometimes single pieces do just as well.
What Not To Sell in a Garage Sale?
On the flip side, there are things that don’t usually sell well in a yard sale. Things such as books, outdated decor items and other similar items are best donated with one caveat; if the items are vintage or antique, it’s best to sell them on Ebay or other online sites.
You’ll get a much better price for them overall than you would at a yard sale.
Pricing Your Items Effectively
Pricing is one of the things I have struggled most with when it comes to having a successful yard sale. Price things too high and they don’t sell. Price them too low and you don’t make any money. For my own sales, I tend to lean toward a simple formula: 70% of what I paid for it while also taking into account the age of the item.
The easiest way to price your items it to use pre-printed yard sale price stickers like THESE. I’ve used them in every sale I’ve had for the past and they work amazingly.
If you don’t want to price items individually, group similar items with similar items. Place them together on a table, shelf or neatly in a box and place one price label on the entire shebang. This is best done with a larger sign or written directly on the surface if you can so it is easier to see.
Arrange Your Sale for Maximum Appeal
Layout at a garage sale matters more than you might think. Not only does the proper layout make things easier for shoppers to find, but it also helps to keep your sale looking neat and organized.
I find what works best for my own sale is a “U” shaped sale. This means that larger, more eye-catching items are kept to the bottom of the sale toward the street while tables and racks are arranged in a “U” pattern. This allows for your shoppers to flow easily and gives them full visibility of what you have to offer.
Clear and Attractive Signage
Before your sale, map out where you want to place your signs. The best places are on the corner of a busy street or intersection, on both ends of your own street and believe it or not, at the end of your yard.
On the of your sale, you’re going to want to place signs around the area to help people find you. I find it best to use plastic yard sale signs with a wooden stake like THESE. They are bright enough to catch attention and sturdy enough to be reused.
Print a few large arrows that will be added to your signs. Attach them to your signs so that they are pointing in the proper direction needed based on the spots you mapped out. The idea is that instead of placing an address that cars going by can’t read, you’re going to literally lead them to your sale with the arrows.
Early the morning of your sale, take the time to place your signs. It’s best if you have a friend or family member do this, but if you must do it yourself, do it before you set any items out for sale. If you set your things out, you may have early bird buyers without anyone being there to sell to them.
Advertise Your Sale
The days of only advertising your garage sale in the local paper are gone. Instead, you’ll want to list your sale on garage sale apps, Facebook Marketplace, local Facebook groups, Nextdoor and any other online sites you can think of.
Advertise your sale the week immediately before your sale to start. This will give others the chance to plan for it. Then, repeat your ad the day before as a quick reminder.
The morning of your sale, post one final time. This time, include photos of some of the “hot” items you’ve got. These photos are important as they help draw those folks who are looking for something specific in.
Expect Early Birds
Serious yard sale buyers have a habit of showing up before you’ve even finished your morning coffee and if you’re refusing them; you’re losing money. Instead, have your yard sale items ready to go an hour before whatever time you listed in your ads.
If you tell people you’re starting at 9 am, have your tables set up and be ready to go by 8 am. Doing it this way means you can cater to those early birds without scrambling to get things set up.
Have Change Ready
Yard sale shoppers are going to offer to pay in multiple different ways including cash. The day before your sale, head to the bank to get what you need. You’ll want to keep plenty of small bills and coins on hand starting with around $50.00 in small denominations. Nothing kills a sale faster than not having the right change.
You will also want to pick up a locking cash box to keep on hand. This will just add a layer of safety to your sale and make it easier to keep money from being lost or stolen.
Another money related item you’ll want to have is a yard sale tracker like THIS one. It’s especially important if you’re having a multi-family sale. Mark each sale and what the sale price was along with whose item it was to help you keep things neat and organized.
You may also want to consider accepting digital payments too. Options like CashApp (Get $5.00 free when you use THIS link and code), Paypal, Venmo and Square are all great ways to let people pay for their items without having to deal with cash.
Stay Neat and Organized
My last tip on how to have a successful garage sale is to keep your sale area looking near. Keep clothing folded and neat. Rearrange items to keep empty spots full. Keep items up off of the ground if possible.
I will absolutely not stop at a messy sale. I don’t want to have to dig through things. Your yard sale shoppers don’t either.
Discount Deeply and Negotiate
Negotiating at a yard sale is a given. Don’t refuse to do it. Now, I’m not saying to let people lowball you, but if you refuse to donate, you’re not going to sell anything. It’s as simple as that. Work with your “customer” to find a price you’re both content with.
On the last day of your sale, offer deep discounts. The whole idea of a yard sale is to get rid of things and bringing those things back inside should be an immediate no. By offering a deep discount on the items you have left, you give buyers another incentive to buy. You could discount by table or offer a bag sale. “Fill a bag for $3.00” or something of the sort tends to work very well.
When the sale is done, take any items you have left and donate them. Don’t bring them back inside. You will be defeating the entire purpose if you do.
