How to Have a Successful Yard Sale

Yard sale season is coming fast upon us, and if you want to have a successful yard sale- here are some tips to follow. Get rid of all your stuff, and you can make quite a bit of money in the process!

Know what you have.

We all have "stuff." Some of it is valuable; a lot of it is not. Know what you have and it's estimated worth. Yard sales are great for getting rid of common, everyday things- but if you have valuable antiques, a yard sale is not the place to put them for sale. People like bargains- and you'll probably lose money if you put your valuable things out for sale at a yard sale! The same can go for furniture; you might have better luck on Craigslist or advertising in the paper.

Group items together when you set up. Put your children's games together, all the clothes together, and all the kitchen items together.... You get the idea! Hanging clothes is a great way for people to sift thru them without them winding up on the ground.

Where are you going to have it?

The location of your yard sale is important. Is it going to be at your house? Or if you live off the beaten path, enlist the help of a friend or family member that might life in or near the city. Most people will not travel too far out of the way to visit a yard sale. Make sure it's in a location that's easy to get to. Remember to advertise, advertise, and advertise! Get the most turn out that you can by promoting your sale! Hang out posters, tell friends and blow up balloons. Make sure your yard sale is well known!

Price correctly.

I'm sure you'd love to get the highest dollar for everything, but being realistic- there are a lot of bargain hunters that are hitting the yard sales. Be ready to negotiate, and price realistically. Mark prices on your items so that people don't have to ask. Some yard salers will not ask a price, so you might be missing out on a sale.

If someone wants to offer lower than you're willing to go, tell them to come back close to the end of your yard sale time, this will give you the opportunity to perhaps sell at a higher price to someone else, or you might consider going to a low price later in order not to bring your stuff back home. Let the person know you'll consider their offer if it doesn't sell.

Remember to have a lot of small bills with you, such as one and five dollar bills, to make change. Having a pocket full of quarters is also a great idea if you have some low end pricing on some of your items.

At the end of the day, hopefully you'll have had a successful yard sale and had cleaned out your basement at the same time. Consider donating anything that's left over, or take it back home for the next yard sale. Sometimes it takes a few sales for everything to sell... don't get discouraged!