so who's having one ???

[sabrelvssammy]

with spring cleaning comes garage sales.... who's having one....
what month....is this your first.....what's your all time best tip for a 'knockout' sale.....????

[Nikmom]

Well, I have been doing the super fling boogie, and finding out the sad fact that most of my flinging is garbage, just that. I thought about a garage sale, but i don't really have much that is worth doing it for. I am just keeping track of what i give away for taxes. 2009 will be the first year i've been organized enough to keep track.
Good luck with yours though. I have friends that make good money with them.

[Persimmon Lace]

I'm going to watch the weather and have one in March, I hate waiting until summer and I can't stand having them when it's hot!

[jamie79]

Yep I will be having one. Probably not until May or June because of the weather here. I picked up alot of stuff for it last weekend, curb side shopping down the street at a neighbor who died. He was 93 and his kids told me we could take anything we wanted that they set out. I had a couple last yr. One I made $260 at and the other I made only $130 at but I figure its money I didnt have.

[Brookity]

I'm having one....it will be my first. We will probably have it in May. Looking forward to getting some good tips from this thread.

[beks37]

I usually have one in May/June every year. This will be my 4th sale. We don't have enough stuff by ourselves to sell, so all my family has the opportunity to put in their stuff. As long as they mark it and tell me whether or not I can go down on some items. I usually have my sale on Thursday, Friday, Saturday. Thurs and Sat are the best days! Especially Thursday morning.

Hope this helps someone!

Good tips:
1. Make sure everything is labeled clearly-people won't ask about the price, if they don't see a tag, they won't buy it.
2. HBA items sell great! If I have any that I won't use (hairspray, lotion, shampoo, conditioner, etc) I will mark it as $1.00 and people snatch that stuff up fast. Even if it has been used, people will buy it.
3. I have never had good luck selling clothes. But last year I made a sign and said that all clothes were 50 cents each and the sold decently.
4. If you have a large item (table, desk, etc) and it is sold early on. Keep it in the sale with a sold sign. It draws more people in.
5. I find that putting stuff in the driveway gets sold faster than stuff in the garage.
6. Keep an extension cord plugged in so people can test out electronics easily. They are more likely to buy if they can test it out.
7. CD's/DVD's/VHS tapes-sell great, but I price mine at $1.00 each. I have loaded all my Cd's to my IPOD so I don't need my Cd's anymore.
8. Make signs in florescent paper and put on several street corners. We have around 4-5 signs. I don't advertise in the paper. It's not worth it and costs too much. Advertise on Craigslist for free!

[MoonMommy]

I live on a pretty busy street, and I seem to have the worst luck with garage sales. I don't make enough money for it to be worth it for me.

So, I just donate anything of value to either the homeless shelter, or to other organizations who help people locally.

[StartingOver]

I'm having one in May with the whole neighborhood, I've done this now for the past 8 years. I've always done very well. My best year was last year, when I made over $1,100. I don't expect to make that much this year, but anything is better than nothing.

My biggest draw is my dd's clothes, toys etc...I don't have any luck w/adult clothes or even my ds14 clothes.

1)When it comes to clothes I try to hang as much as possible.

2) Display all like things together. For example, all toys on one table, household items on another, holiday stuff on another.

3) I'm familiar enough w/my local thrift store, that I know how things are priced...I then price my item at 1/2 the cost. If I know they sell shirts for $3.00, I'll price mine at $1.00-$1.50.

4) I actually have people who will visit my sale first in the neighborhood as they know my clothes and toys are clean and in great condition and priced fair.

It is a lot of work, and every year I tell myself this is the last time.

Good luck.

[sabrelvssammy]

isn't that funny...every year...yup...THIS IS THE LAST TIME! ....

and here we go again.....

[Milly]

I have one both spring and fall every year. I usually do well enough to justify my time, but I will never get the hang of pricing stuff!!

Stuff that seems like pure junk gets snapped up and good things just sit there. Oh well.

[MomToTwoBoys]

I wish I could have one but I never have enough stuff to constitute setting one up. The clothes are usually saved for when YDS grows into them and everything else we have is pretty much necessary for our every day routine. We're pretty minimalist in at least that area.

[Luv2BeFrugal]

The first yard sales here are held mid-May... It's too cold and snowy out before that... Guess that's the peril of living in Alaska...short yard sale season!!!

Hope you all enjoy your sales!!

[frugal-fannie]

You could get together with a bunch of friends that only have a little. For a large garage sale.

[cmdarlin]

I would love to have one this spring once we get settled but there isn't anyone around me! Our house is at least a mile away from the closest neighbor.

Debbie

[Patty A]

Yes, there will be one at my house again. We don't have them yearly, but we do them more on a as needed type thing. I won't have one here with the weather the way it is until the last of may or first part of june.

This isn't my first one, we have done a couple and I find it pretty fun.

Make sure your signs are EASY to read.

Make sure you have bags to pack the things people buy.

Have plenty of small change on hand.

Don't pick a holiday weekend, many people are out of town.

Have a power cord plugged in so people can check what they want to buy.

Make sure your pets are locked up, no one wants to run in to the family dog.

Make sure everything is priced, no one wants to ask prices.

Make things look nice, and make sure they are easy to look at. A box of books that someone has to dig through to see is not a good way to sale the books. Make it easy, set them out so they can just look and see the titles.

Make things CLEAN, if they have been in storage make sure you wipe them off, no one wants something that is dirty.

Make a sign that says "as is" and "sales are final" and can keep you from having people try to return things.

Be sure to have cold soda pop on ice if its hot. I made almost as much money on pop last time as I did on things. It was very hot and people were very dry... post a sign with a price and it will sale like crazy.

We had a box of free stuff, and no one would even look in it. I finally added a price to the box of a nickle and it sold in just a couple hours.

Be aware, shop lifters hit yard sales. Its a hard call when you know and you have seen someone pocket items. I just let it slide and decide they must need it badly if they was willing to take it. I didn't say a word, but they knew I was on to them as I followed them the rest of the time they was at the sale.

If someone hands you a bigger bill like a 20 to buy something, leave it sitting out....count the change to them BEFORE adding the bill to your container. I had a woman hand me a 10, and swear that it was a 20. I showed her the money she had handed me, I hadn't put it away, it was sitting right in front of her. I think she knew what she was doing when she said it was a 20, and was hoping I wouldn't have know what she handed me!

If you want women to have an easier time getting their husbands involved with the yard sale run, be sure to add sporting goods, camping goods, and tools to your sale. That will get the guys wanting to go....and it makes things much easier for the women! (LOL)

You learn a lot of pointers as you do these sales, but they really are fun and a great way to make some money off things that you don't want.