How to Yardsale like an Ebay Pro

These days, garage-sale season in the United States is almost a
year-round event. I spotted about ten after taking my kids to
school this past Friday, and boy did I want to stop!
In my video series, Trash to Cash, I show how $74 spent at
garage sales on a Saturday morning can turn into over $500 in
cyberspace. You can be successful at this, too, especially if you
follow a few proven techniques.

Get a newspaper and map your route the night before

The most important way to ensure your success at garage sales is
to be organized. Pick up your city's newspaper the night or day
before you intend to hit the sales (most garage sales are in the
paper at least one day before). Or print your city's newspaper's
online listings of sales. Sit down with this information and look
first for the sales that promise to have the most merchandise
(and the most potential treasures). Key words like the following
indicate large sales:

¦ Estate
¦ Moving
¦ Neighborhood
¦ Kiwanis or other organization
¦ Church sale or rummage

Also, look for sales that mention items that pique your interest
or that you specialize in, for example, toys, sports memorabilia,
clothing, glassware, and so on. Organize sales by starting
time. Choose which 7 a.m., 8 a.m., 9 a.m., and 10 a.m. sales you
think best. Plan and map a route around your starting times. By
doing this the night before, you save critical time and get to the
best sales ahead of the other garage salers!

Get there right on time

After you've mapped your route, getting to the most important
sales on time will be a breeze. Garage sale etiquette requires
that you do not start banging on doors early. As someone who
has held a lot of garage sales in her day, I can tell you that jumping
the gun is very rude. The majority of sales will not let you in
early anyway, so trying is generally a waste of time. However, if
the sale sounds amazing, try driving by it early to see if it has
started-you don't want to miss out on the big one. Charity sales
at churches and schools typically always start right on time, but
you want to get to these early to get a good place in line.

As you're looking through each sale, carry a mesh shopping
bag or box with you to scoop up bargains ahead of the next guy.

What to look for

In general, look for the following (since most of these are the
same as what you looked for in your own home, I am only including
new ones; refer back to pages 92-95 for the rest of the list):

¦ Good designer-brand clothing in gently used condition
¦ Items that are not priced too high (I never buy any item
for more than $5 unless I know something about it)
¦ Anything that reminds you of your childhood (if you look
at something and say, "Wow, remember these from when
we were little," buy it!)

How to bargain for the best deals

After you have your pile of treasures chosen, always try to get a
slightly better deal. You don't want to offend anyone, but it certainly
can't hurt to ask very politely. I usually add up my items
with the owner of the sale. Suppose I've picked out ten items,
and they added up to $17.55. I might ask, "Would you consider
$15 for everything?" Usually, they say "yes"!