Is there a better way to get rid of junk from that pre-move purge than a yard sale?! A yard sale not only generates a little revenue to cover moving expenses, but it also is a fast and easy way to get a lot of unnecessary items. With very little effort all your old things are out of your hair and have a new home with people that will actually make use of them!
Here's what you'll need:
Markers for pricing.
Duct tape and heavy paper or cardboard for signs.
Plastic and paper bags.
A change box with lots of quarters, $1 and $5 bills.
Plastic tarps, folding tables and boxes to display merchandise.
Friends to help out (bribe them with beer and pizza.)
And here's how to host a great yard sale:
Have a yard sale on a weekend or holiday. Saturdays are generally the best days for Yard Sales, especially when the weather is good. Whatever doesn't sell Saturday you can always haul back out on Sunday morning. Memorial Day weekend and other summer holidays are also popular.
Team up and have a neighborhood sale. Yard sales are enticing alone, but when a yard sale becomes more of a flea market, it’s hard to not stop.
There are two ways to do this. You can each have separate, neighboring sales. On the other hand you can consolidate the sale into one big sale. Designate one “checkout” table and mark all items with price tags color coded for each house. When a shopper buys an item, take the tag off and stick it to a piece of paper marked for the house selling the item. At the end of the day add up each house’s profits and distribute the cash accordingly.
Remember to advertise your yard sale. A couple days before the sale, go around the neighborhood and post signs and flyers on lampposts and at key intersections. By the way, masking tape doesn't stick very well to lampposts, so use duct tape to post signs.
Also write up a simple ad to let people know about the event. Local newspapers often have local event or classified ads that are free or cheap. In the limited space you should list the simple where and when. Online listing sites are also very popular. For online ads that allow more space, entice anyone looking for a yard sale by listing any popular garage items you have.
Start your yard sale early. If you're serious about selling as much as you can, place a classified ad in your local paper; most have a listing of weekend sales. There are yard sale pros who read these weekly, who will show up early to cart away the best bargains.
Offer refreshments to shoppers. Buy a few different cases of soda and bottled water and some pre-packaged snacks and sell them for a reasonable price. Browsing yard sales in the sun can accelerate and amplify the symptoms of dehydration causing grumpy shoppers and screaming children. Refresh them and they might just buy more while they have their wallets out.
Remember yard sales are for bargain hunters. Be prepared to accept a fraction of what you paid for things, especially clothing. Yard sale shoppers generally won't pay above the $1-$10 range for clothes, no matter how much you paid. If you have several high-ticket items to sell, consider bringing it to a consignment store where you'll get more than just a couple of bucks for each item. You can look for Consignment stores in your local Yellow Pages.
The same holds true for books. Expect to get $.25 to $1 for paperbacks and $2 to $5 for hardcover books.
To get a better feel for what sells and how to price, check out a couple of yard sales in your neighborhood ahead of time.
Clean up after the sale. List larger things you don't sell on an online classified ads site like Craigslist.org. If they still don't sell, try again with a lower price or even free. For smaller items, offer a curb alert online and let passersby pick the items they want. If you have a lot of children’s’ clothing or similar items, bag them and offer one "bulk" price.
You can also easily donate any unsold and unwanted items. Many thrift shops have convenient drop-off locations and some even come to pick up your charitable items, a great idea when the item is a large piece of furniture.
And after the big event, remember to remove and dispose of your signs and flyers. Don't leave the neighborhood in a trail of clutter.
Last but not least, have fun! Play some music and enjoy the sun with friends and family.
Copyright © by Move, Inc.
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