Make the Most of A Yard Sale

John Folding
Sun Herald
Friday, March 02, 2007

Read from the Source

Now that you, hopefully, have gotten a handle on your spring cleaning and are beginning to amass things for a yard sale, how do you do it so you make the most cash possible? Because that's what it's all about. There are several sources for tips on the Web, but these come straight from personal observation from years of both attending and going to sales.

The very first thing you want to do is make sure you have enough stuff. If you don't, consider asking neighbors and friends to help flesh out the sale. A great way to increase profits is to have a neighborhood or multifamily sale. You've seen them in the paper: "Large multifamily sale, kids items, lots of furniture."

Who wouldn't want to go? This type of sale is also a great way to raise money for a church or school organization. Having everything in one place makes it easier for bargain hunters by not having to drive to multiple locations.

If you aren't using your sale for a charity, you'll have to devise a way to keep everyone's dimes and quarters separate. Back home, we'd have everyone assigned a color or a number. So when a buyer approached the checkout, the money could be separated immediately into color- or number-coded envelopes. I've also seen sellers with a tablet, and each time someone bought an item, the little sticker indicating price and seller was put on the tablet and money was divvied up at the end of the day.

So, you've got your system for identifying sellers, but how do you organize the sale so you're not up all night pricing things? Start by examining the items as you pull them out. If a piece of clothing is badly worn or stained, throw it away because no one will buy it. If a vase or knickknack has been broken and put back together in such a way it won't sell, throw it away. Once you've weeded, determine if you really want items to move - or if they sell, fine; if not, you'll find another home for them. If you want them to move, price to sell. It's amazing how dimes and quarters add up.

Books and clothes are a good example of this. Clothes sell the slowest, so consider selling them by the pound or putting them in boxes labeled "everything a $1." Books sell pretty well, but garage salers expect to find cheap books. A dollar for older hardbacks but no more than $5 for more recent hardcovers. Paperbacks should be sold for no more than a $1 as well. Consider that a secondhand bookstore sells paperbacks for half the cover price and hardbacks for far below sticker price.

Put a price on as many items as you can; otherwise, you'll be pestered all day with people asking for the price. Kick your sale off early. Most buyers are out the door by 7 a.m., and you don't want to miss out on those dollars. Sales wind down by 1 or 2 p.m., when it starts getting hot and people are running out of money.

At the end of the day, box up what you have left over for the DAV or the Salvation Army or your favorite charity. Nearly everything you donate will be tax deductible so there is more cash in your pocket come April 15.

Remember to start early, price to sell and wear your sunscreen.