Garage Sale Checklist - your guide to hassle-free sales

Garage sales should be fun and hassle-free, with your goal to make some good money and off-load your unwanted items – our garage sale checklist is your hassle-free, step-by-step organiser for achieving this.

2-3 weeks before the sale

-Start sorting through your household for unwanted items
have the mindset that almost anything will sell if it is a bargain

- Price your items
price items about 25-35% of what they cost new (clothes are exceptions - 5-15% here)

- Pick a date and time for your sale
weekends are the best; avoid public holidays or special events

- Write your ad
give the address and hours of the sale; mention items that are of particular interest

- Place your ad in local newspapers and using free garage sale adversting sites
put up flyers on local community boards; inform neighbours as they might want to have a joint sale

1 week before the sale

- Make sure items are cleaned and repaired
the better condition it is in, the higher price you will get

- Determine where signs will go
in and around your neighbourhood is best; one in front of your house is smart too

- Make your signs
use arrows, print the address, start and end times, use big letters (free printable signs)

1-2 days before the sale

- Set up your sale area
use tables to lay items out, display clothing hung up; you want to create an area so people can browse and shop in comfort

- Get checkout area ready
have plenty of change; spare bags; calculator; newspaper (to wrap fragile items); paper & pens

Night before the sale

- Put up signs

- Make some refreshments and have a radio ready to play some soft background music
music will create a pleasant atmosphere for buyers to shop (always works for me!)

Morning of sale

- Make sure your house is locked up and fully secure
don't want to give buyers the opportunity to snoop around

- Open the gates/door to your sale
greet all customers with a freindly smile and "hello!"; be prepared to bargain with buyers

Right after sale

- Take signs down
not only is this courteous to the environment, but you might incur a fine or penalty if you don't

- Count your money and rejoice!

Copyright George Grubetic. An avid garage sale enthusiast, he is the webmaster of http://www.egaragesales.com.au, a website offering tips, hints and resources on how to have successful garage sales, including free listings across Australia.