Many of us have been there: slapping price tags on items and hand-making signs at the last minute; then the day of: sitting around for several hours, only to make less than $50. Hopefully, this has only happened to most of us once. If this sounds all too familiar, read on for tips on how to make your next yard sale a real success. Note: the following guide assumes you have several months or at least several weeks before you host your next yard sale.

Let’s start with the stuff. Try to designate a place in your home where you can start to accumulate and store your “sale” items. Perhaps that tall set of shelves in the basement is a perfect place, hmm? Place items that won’t fit on the shelves in boxes or plastic storage bins.

Determine when you’ll throw the sale. It’s wise to give yourself at least a couple of weeks to prepare. Prep work includes organizing the sale items. Clean each item. If you want top dollar for your stuff and/or better chances that it’ll actually get sold, it better look its best!

Put a price on every item. No one likes having to constantly ask the seller, “how much for this?” It gets tiring and you’ll chase people off if you put them in that position. Sure, it’s fine to have a table or box full of items with an obvious sign stating, “All items on this table $1.” This may be very wise and save you time, in fact.

Important:Be sure to price your items atyard sale prices. People come to yard sales for a bottom-barrel bargain. What does that mean? Considering that retailers RARELY discount their items more than 50-60% off the original price, you should price your items so that they’re more like 75-90% off what you think you’d pay for them new (depending on condition, etc.). If you want more than “yard sale price” for specific items, you may want to list those for sale online.

And remember, yard sale attendees are looking for the best deals. Not all, but some of these people are veteran yard sale shoppers and know how to “work it,” so be prepared to negotiate. You’ll likely be asked to make a deal. If you’re not serious about selling your items (even for a dollar or several less than your listed price) and insist on keep prices firm, a yard sale may not be the market for you.

This is non-negotiable: to make money from your sale, you have to draw customers! The best way to make this happen is by advertising. Placing ads onCraigslistandKijiji is quick, free, and many people tune in to these online listings. As far as your hand-made signs, use brightly coloured paper and write “YARD SALE.” Include: date, time frame, and address in large, legible letters and numbers. Put arrows on the signs to direct people to your home. Be sure to take down your signs once the sale is over.

Critical: have lots of change at your yard sale. Since you’re likely selling items as “cash only” you’re going to get some large bills. Have a lot of small bills and coins on hand.

And secure your cash! If you have to wear a money belt or fanny pack, do it. Your money should be on you or at your side at all times. It’s sad but true: there are people who come to yard sales just to rip them off. It’s wise to have a co-salesperson at your sale. A friend can help with money guarding and transactions, keeping a watch on people, even go in the house to fetch beverages and extra supplies. And having a co-pilot makes passing the time a lot nicer!

Grocery bags are also good to have for purchased items. Newspaper is another good idea for wrapping fragile items. These are common courtesy items to make your buyers’ experience more pleasant.
Yard sales, by their nature, are a lot of work. Depending on the extent of your yard sale, you’ll easily spend many hours preparing for it. Do yourself a favour and spread all these hours over several days and/or weeks. When the day arrives, you’ll also spend several hours selling. Hopefully these tips bring you the kind of success you envision

Do you have anymore tips?