GARAGE SALES
Organization Counts!

With warm weather comes the great American pastime - Garage Sales!! Hold a garage sale to have fun and make money in your own yard.

You say it seems like a good idea when you start, but after clawing through belongings stashed in the attic and piled in the basement, all you have a big mess in the garage and a lot work?

A garage sale is work, but it is mostly manual labor and isn’t hard work. Any type of clutter disposal takes time, money and energy. Don’t focus on the work! Focus on the advantages of a garage sale, which include:

• You dispose of a lot of clutter at one time.

• You recycle things you no longer want or need.

• You make space for new things or home improvements.

• You decide the date and time people will come.

• They come all at once (no individual appointments).

• They take the stuff away.

• You make some quick cash.

• You have fun.

• You stay at home.

Organization counts. Yes, you can just fling your belongings onto the driveway, but you may end up still owning all the stuff at the end of the day. What a waste of time and energy. Who needs that?

I’ve held over 15 garage sales of my own and shop garage sales regularly. Make your garage sale fun and profitable with these tips from my booklet The Organized Garage Sale:

1. Never Had a Garage Sale?
   Make an educational trip to at least six garage sales. Observe what sells, how to display your stuff, what prices are charged and what causes you not to buy.

2. Designate a Sorting Place
   Comb your house from attic to basement -- leave no box, drawer, closet or cabinet unexamined. Put items to sell in one place, preferably the garage. Mark and organize them as you go along.

3. Date and Time

   • Time of the year. Where I live, garage sale season is April to Columbus Day weekend. The earlier you hold your sale, the better -- less competition among sellers and more excited buyers. Special event nearby? Piggy-back your sale on it.

   • Time of the week. I recommend Friday or Saturday only. Some sales are Saturday and Sunday, some Friday and Saturday. Why spend two days in your driveway?

   • Time of the day. Start early at 7 or 8 a.m. End no later than 1 p.m. Salvation Army and Goodwill Centers are open Saturday afternoon. Donate unsold items that day.
     
4. Early Birds
   “Early birds” are people who come hours before the advertized time. If you start at 9 a.m., expect people at 7 a.m. Don’t want early birds? Start your sale at 7 a.m. or specify “No early Birds” in your newspaper ad and put a sign in front of your driveway.
   
5. Publicity:
   
   • Newspaper ad. Read garage sale ads in your local newspaper to see what other sellers put in their ad to make their sales stand out.
   • Posters. Place posters at intersections leading to your sale. Write big with a black marker. Keep it short -- date, time, street address and an arrow.
     
6. Display.
   Department stores display like items together. Follow that model. Example? Clothes are together, but separated by men, women and children. Anything sells, so long as it is reasonably priced, clean and easy to find. Price items by category – books: hard cover $1, paperbacks 50¢. Put categories of items in boxes. Mark the box, not each item.
   
7. Day of the Sale:
   Lock your house. Have an electrical cord and a mirror for shoppers’ use. At the end of the sale, take your posters down on your way to the Salvation Army or Goodwill Center to donate your unsold stuff. Reward yourself. Buy take-out or convenience food on the way home or go out to eat. Count your money and relax. The rest of the weekend is yours to enjoy.

© Copyright 2003 Helen D. Volk All Rights Reserved

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