It actually worked really well, because it almost completely got rid of that nickle-and-dime mentality that people bring with them to garage sales. A *few* people asked “can I get this for fifty cents instead?”, but really only on items that were really worth only fifty cents. Our previous garage sales were always plagued by “I’ll give ya a quarter for it.”

On hanging things: Men’s shirts, which tend to be about the same size and shape, really sell better when folded “store-style” and laid out neatly. The customer can see at a glance whether there are shirts in his preferred colors and styles, rather than take a few minutes standing and leafing through a hundred shirts on hangers. People will do that at stores, and even at Goodwill, but they never seem to want to take the time at my garage sale.

As suggested, we listed that we had multiple TV’s for sale in our ad in the paper (we had a black and white and a couple 19 inch TV’s from our college days). Unfortunately, we didn’t realize this made us a target for a night before burglary attempt. Luckily for us we interrupted the intruder’s visit and they chose to dash out the front door (leaving it wide open) as we came in the back.

Think about the pawn-ability of the big ticket items before you add them to the ad you put out. Or redouble your effort to make it look like you are home the night before.

A lot of people are looking specifically for certian things (college apartment items, baby items, tools), so mention these in the ad. If you are selling baby clothes, rather than having a big box that people have to sort through, have them hung up or laid out on a table according to size. Also divide up boys/girls clothes.

Also alert your neighbors. At the very least they will want to be aware of the extra traffic, at best, they will put out some itmes themselves, pay for part of the newspaper ad, and bring more business by having a “block sale.”

Kids selling lemonade, snacks, etc. is a great idea to keep them occupied and have them earn some money, especially for large neighborhood sales where customers are walking a long way.

When my grandmother went into a nursing home we held a huge garage sale to get rid of much of her stuff. We had a silver server set we didn’t want to go through the trouble of cleaning. The only person who even looked at the item decided not to purchase it because they didn’t know if it could be cleaned.

To those people who hod homes broken into, I’m sorry to hear that, but it doesn’t happen to everyone. I only had garage sale once every 5 years if that. I usually only have a few tables worth of stuff. I have at least two people watching the sale at any given time. See if your friends and neighbors are willing to help keep an eye on things so limit thefts.

Be careful–pirates are alive, well, and more numerous than you think.

@timgray Right on.

@deb Really good point on the restroom visit.

I am more leery of hosting one, since the last sale I had exposed me to a burglary that happened a week later. My sister who was helping me was chatted up by a guy who stayed way too long and kept setting aside stuff he never came back for. The rule about locking your doors and windows was right on. Also, no one gets into your house for a restroom visit either.

My stuff now cycles back and forth to the Goodwill. I buy what I need as I find it there and donate back what I am done with. It is amazing that 50% of what I own can be traced back to a GW. The cat looks nervous when she sees me packing a box for donation.

After the sale, I posted a “free” sign, which was very effective for about 24 hours. For me, it was a psychological relief to let go of some of that stuff, even if it went cheaply. I netted about $150.

Sometimes garage sales can be fun ways to meet/interact with neighbors. Here on our block, which is a dead end street, the neighbors get together and pool all their stuff into a yearly yard sale. It’s a good chance to get together, try to sell off some stuff, talk over coffee, the kids sell lemonade and brownies. The kids get a chance to sell their toys they don’t play with anymore. At the end of the day, whatever isn’t sold is donated to the Boy Scouts.

I agree that a yard sale isn’t always neccessary. But sometimes it’s fun, if you do it with the right people, and if you get to get rid of stuff and earn a little cash, so much the better.