Do's and Don'ts of Garage Sales

I am a Garage Sale junkie and have been for the past 20+ yrs. I have come across some doozies of a sale both in a good way and a bad way.

For some (like me) the Garage Sale season represent a treasure hunt each and every weekend. The excitement of not knowing what you will score is what keeps you going back week after week.

However, some make the experience a dull one, so here are some of my rules of thumb for those attending a sale and those having a Garage Sale.

Having a Sale:

We all have stuff we no longer need or want and what better way to get rid of it and earn a little extra cash than having a Garage sale?

1) Pricing your items at a reasonable price is KEY! If you don't you are only going to find yourself packing the items back up and storing them in your garage. We all think our stuff is worth more than it actually is. Look, it is a Garage Sale you are NOT a retail store, it is there for you to get rid of.

When asked by someone at your sale how much an item is - don't go into a long story about where you bought it and what you bought it for. Just say your price and be willing to negotiate, odds are that the person knows very well how much the item would have been new from the store. If you think your item is worth more than what it will fetch at a Garage Sale then list it on EBay or the like.

2) You have gathered your items and priced them right now it is time to advertise. Placing an add in your local paper is wise and I suggest you do but there are those of us that just go out and hunt Garage Sales down and it is your SIGNAGE that will get us there. BIG, BOLD signage is the best with CLEAR arrows pointing those to your sale. I can't emphasise this enough - a good sign with good arrows is truly appreciated by your shoppers. **Not everyone will have read your ad in the paper so if early birds arrive and you asked for no early birds in your ad, politely tell them your starting time - but, by sending them away just know that you probably will lose a sale.

Of course once your sale has concluded be respectful and remove all your signs. Many times I have seen a Garage Sale sign and gone to that address only to learn the sale was the previous weekend. VERY annoying to say the least and a waste of my time.

3) Display your items as neatly as possible. Although a lot of us don't mind sifting through boxes upon boxes it is much easier if things are out of the box and on tables, you will sell more items that way.

4) Whatever is left at the end of your sale can be donated to your local thrift shop. Or what we like to do with some bigger items is mark them free and put them on the curb. 9 times out of 10 they are gone by nightfall.

Going to a Sale:

1) Upon getting to a sale do a quick over view of the entire sale and see where you'd like to start. Does something catch your eye right away? - if so don't hesitate go grab it even if you don't know what the price is yet. You can always put it back if you don't like the price, but if you don't grab it right away someone else might and you'll be S.O.L (S*&t out of luck)

2) If you have many items you want ask for a box fill it with all you want then agree on a price for the lot. Doing this you may actually get your items for a lot less than if you did it individually. Have a tally in your mind when boxing it up and offer less, don't get offended though if they high ball you - if they do then you go price it piece by piece. Chances are you will get a good deal either way.

3) When negotiating you don't want to go too low in your offer. Generally speaking and for example if an item is $10.00 offer $7 or $8 and not $5. Too low of an offer can quickly offend the seller and then they may not even want you at their sale, and you'll know about it.

4) If you can't come to an agreed upon price you can use language like "I'd be happy to pay you X amount" or simply say "Okay thank you, I will leave it have a nice day" and go on your way to the next Sale.

Hope you enjoyed these Do's and Don'ts for Garage Sales.  Happy hunting.

I'd love to hear your tips and tricks as well as what your biggest score was. Please leave me a comment below.