Originally posted by: kschaffner
Don't overcharge. People look for deals that they can't refuse. Like $4-$5 for a board game and like $5-$7 for clothes. I once got a glass chess set for $10. That is a good deal
lmao, I've purchased 3 or 4 glass chess sets... they're $9.99 at retail. (no kidding)
Lola, be prepared for a lot of people who'll say "will you take $2 for this?" - there are a LOT of people who want to make up their own prices. I tend to believe that you're just giving away money during the first 2 or 3 hours if you bargain like that; but later during the day, it's fine to do so.
Good lines when someone appears interested (item marked $5)
"Will you take $3 for this?"
"I'm sorry, that came from my mother's house and she said to just sell her stuff for the price that's listed."
or
"how's $4?"
Know what you're selling. Know the value of what you're selling. If you don't know what something is worth, try to look it up. Never guess at the value of something. Usually, you have some clue about the value of items you've purchased yourself. However, it's more difficult when something has been handed down to you. Example: cut glass. Put an ornate pressed glass pitcher next to an ornate cut glass pitcher. They might look identical, but only one is actually only worth 25 cents. The other is going to be in some antique dealer's gallery relisted at $30 or more. And, even if you had it listed at $5 instead of 25 cents, it's going to be snatched up by the first antique dealer to stop by.
Oh, and be prepared for early-birds. Even if you advertise "no early birds", there are people who are going to show up at least 1 hour before your advertised starting time. How to deal with these people is up to you - either put up with it and sell stuff to them. Or, let them look around, but tell them you're not making any sales until "8am" or whatever time you have listed. Or, (and I like this one), "early bird premium - prices double until 8am."
As a frequent garage-sale purchaser, I hate those early bird people who don't care how rude they are - they just want the best bargain (usually to re-sell on e-bay or in their antique stores).
If you have any friends who are knowledgeable about antiques and such, have them stop by and point out if you have any glaring errors.
And, lastly, I can't believe some people have nothing better to do than sit around weekend after weekend, continuing to try to get rid of their unwanted stuff. If it doesn't sell, it's not going to sell the next weekend (you don't seem the type to have 5 garage sales a summer though). You might make a decent amount of money, since it's your first garage sale. But, subsequent garage sales within a year or two would not be worth the time. (Also, decide whether the value of what you're trying to sell is worth the value of your time. I've seen many garage sales where they're dreaming if they think they're going to take in more than $50 over the span of 2 days... definitely not worth it in those cases.)
Decide whether you want to bother with donating anything that doesn't sell to Good Will or Salvation Army or something like that (get a receipt, particularly if you itemize on your taxes) Or, if it's not worth the bother (and you don't itemize), you might want to consider just putting a big sign that says "FREE" next to the curb and most of the items you want to get rid of. (at the conclusion of the garage sale)