How to Have a Yard Sale

There are secrets to having a successful yard or garage sale. The best yard sales require lots of work, but it's worth it when you count your profits at the end of the day. Follow these few steps to create a yard sale that attracts people and leaves you with some cash.

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

1. Decide if you have enough items to hold a yard sale (the more the better).

2. Choose a date.

3. Move all of your yard sale items into one place, such as the garage or a storage area.

4. Put a price tag on everything, no matter how small.

5. Decide how you will set the sale up. Be sure all items will be openly displayed so that people don't have to dig through boxes to find things.

6. Call your local newspaper about a week before the yard sale, and buy an ad that will appear the day before and the day of the sale. The ad should contain your address, the date and hours of your sale, and a summary list of what you have to offer.

7. Arrange all items on tables or whatever you are going to display them on the day before the sale. Keep the table in the garage or storage area overnight.

8. Go to the bank and get $50 in $1s, $5s, and change.

9. Put the money in a cash box.

10. Place signs around your neighborhood on the morning of the sale advertising the sale and giving the address.

11. Open the garage door at the specified hour and move the tables out.

Tips & Warnings

• If you don't want people showing up at your door at the crack of dawn (and they will), specify "no early birds" in your ad and stick by your policy.
• You can include your phone number in your yard sale ad, but you might not want to be bothered by callers' questions about what you have for sale.
• If you have any question about the value of prospective yard sale items - especially antiques - have them appraised before you sell them.
• Feel free to dicker over prices if you want to, but be aware that people who go to yard sales will often offer a price that is insultingly low.
• Never leave your cash box unattended.
• Place especially valuable items close to where you will be sitting so that you can keep an eye on them.
• Some communities have an ordinance against yard or garage sales. Be sure you know the law in your neighborhood.

[ljbinkop]

on 5/25/2009 Good steps to having a sucessful yard sale.

[Alisiane]

on 10/10/2008 Awesome tips. Garage sales, yard sales, and ebay are all awesome places to unload something you no longer want but that someone SOMEWHERE will pay good money to have clutter up their own home. It's always amazing what people will pay good money for :-)

[LivnLovnNLernn]

on 8/29/2008 Beware, Some community ordineces disapprove of food being sold at sales. Be sure to check with the right athorities to see what you can do. It's true, though, - food and drinks do do wonders at yard sales.-------------GOOD LUCK---LivnLovnNLernn

[bmi57]

on 8/29/2008 Good advice. I wrote an article about having a yard sale that has some other tips in it.

[osuzyqzzz]

on 8/25/2008 Offer food too, busy yard sale buyers often don't take time to stop and eat. In the morning we have doughnuts and cookies for sale. We sell cold bottles of water and soda pop all day. One year we sold hot dogs, a bag of chips and a can of soda pop for 1.99 and made 200.00 off of those alone!