9 Tips for hosting a successful yard sale!

9 Tips for hosting a successful yard sale!

This seems to be a yearly ritual in my house. After a full year (or two) of collecting “stuff”, and donating much of what we don’t need or use anymore, I often get the itch to have a yard sale. The past two summers I have hosted a sale at my house and a few friends also joined in and set up a table.

Last month our sale was extremely busy, and I was pretty much giving stuff away. Trying to clear out space to redo some of our rooms makes me just want to get rid of it all. I am thinking of doing another one in August as well. We have redone both boys rooms and there are boxes of items ready to sell!

Over the years, I have learned from having a yearly sale and will share some of my preparation and set up tips with you.

Here are some Tips for a successful yard sale!

Preparing

1. Plan ahead: this not only includes the weeks leading up to your sale. You should have a few boxes in a storage room ready for items. Throughout the year you can put items in the boxes for the summer yard sale. This way you will see how much is accumulating, and determine when you have enough for a sale. If you have a spare closet, that would be a great place to store items as well.
2. Labeling: Price as you sort or put items in boxes. I keep price stickers and a marker in my storage room with the boxes. If there are clothing or other items that you want the same price on, put them in a box with the price written on the box (ie. $1 per piece of clothing, or $2 per book)
3. Pricing:  mark your prices clearly! Remember, people are more apt to buy if they know how much you want for the item. If you have larger (higher priced) items, be prepared to negotiate. People who yardsale all the time will want to pay less than what you have marked….be ready to bundle and offer freebies or discounted prices. Remember, you do not NEED these items anymore. Don’t hold out for the next person to pay full sticker price (this applies to reasonable offers of course).
4. Gather your friends! Ask your friends if they have anything to sell. Maybe your neighbours want to have a sale. Let people know a few weeks ahead, so they can seel some items too.  If they only have a few items, let them join your yard sale!
5. Advertise: There are many ways to promote your yard sale these days. Post on social media and ask your local friends to share. Post it online through Kijiji or other community events listings. Posters are usually needed on the day of the sale (directing people to your house).

Set Up

1. Tables: if you do not have shelves or tables to put smaller items on, try to borrow some. You will sell more, faster if items are easier for buyers to look at and touch.
   If you have no tables, try to display items on top of boxes (flipped over boxes can raise items up a bit off the ground)
2. Bags: have plastic bags ready for buyers to put items in.
3. Money/Change: be sure to have lots of change available. Coins to make change for the lowest priced items you have.
4. Set Up Early: if you advertise your sale to start at 8 am, aim to be set up and ready by 7:30. Early birds WILL show up, and you don’t want to be flustered trying to set up and sell at the same time.