Spring and Summer are the perfect times of year to host yard sales. Yard sales are the perfect answer to the need to earn quick money, while also cleaning out your home. They can be quite lucrative, but sometimes can be overwhelming. Let’s discuss the logistics. From preparing the sale to closing, Volt Credit Union’s proven tips will help simplify the process and ensure you get the most out of your efforts.
Get Your Neighbors Involved
Garage sales advertised as “community garage vacancies”, “neighborhood garage sales” or “multifamily sales” tend to attract many potential customers, because they know their selection is likely to be more diverse. Ask around the neighborhood and see if anyone wants to be involved in the planning/execution of a garage, or yard sale. The more people involved, the more the workload can be dispersed.
Location, Location, Location
As the real estate adage goes, location is everything – and so is a profitable garage sale. However, what is a good location? A good location is a location that is easy to find, with plenty of parking, and enough room for all the items you want to sell. If you live in a rural area away from a mainroad, or in an area without street parking then consider requesting to borrow the garage of a suitable relative or friend.
When To Host a Yard, Or Garage Sale
Garage and yard sales are usually held on Saturday mornings, but true fanatics know that Friday is the best time to do a sale. Everyone is just getting off work and beginning to feel the itch of weekend exploration. Let them scratch it by doubling your leads (without doubling the work), and throwing sales on both Friday and Saturday.
What Should Go?
It’s tempting to throw anything you want to sell in your garage or driveway, but it doesn’t create a good experience for your buyer. As you browse your home to select items for sale, take the time to clean dirty items by wiping them with a damp cloth, especially if they’ve been stored. Take the time to make things usable, such as airing up old bicycle tires or fitting light bulbs into lights. Put batteries in electronic devices, so customers can make sure it works.
Taking the time to organize your work is well worth it. Children’s clothing, home decor, books, and the like should be stored together. This makes it easier for customers to find the items they want to buy.
Advertise Your Sale
Customers who take sales seriously plan the sales they want to make before getting into the car. They often do their research in advance by browsing sales advertised online. Write ads to attract buyers and publish your yard/garage sale sites like Craigslist, or community Facebook pages.
Don’t Forget To Make Change
Having change on hand, so larger bills can be broken is an excellent tactic. The place to start is getting five $10 bills, ten $5 bills, and twenty $1 bills, along with rolls of quarters, dimes, and nickels. Not all sales require change, but it’s an excellent back up to have incase you find an item you simply refuse to leave behind.
This being said, you can also consider using a credit card for sale providers that offer card processors. Credit card processors like Square are inexpensive and great for home use. They connect easily to cell phones, tablets, and laptops and backup all card swipes to the device itself.
Volt Credit Union On Garage/Yard Sales
We proudly support all of the innovative methods for earning and saving money our members come up with. If you are interested in learning more about yard/garage sales, or are looking to make change to get ready for one, come on into Volt Credit Union in Springfield, Missouri. We’ll make sure you are stocked and set up for success!
