• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Little House Living

  • Start Here
    • DIY
      • Simple Homemade Gifts
      • Easy Crafts
    • Recipes From Scratch
    • Simple Living
    • Frugal Living Tips
    • Homestead Living
      • A South Dakota Prairie Story
  • Make Your Own
  • Recipes
    • Appetizers and Snacks
    • Breads
    • Breakfasts
    • Canning and Preserving
    • Desserts and Treats
    • Garden Produce Recipes
    • Main Dishes
    • Make Ahead
    • Make Your Own
    • Mixes
  • Frugal Living
  • About
    • Contact
    • Send Me Your Best Tips
    • Coaching/Consulting
  • Podcast
  • Shop

How to Have a Yard Sale (Traditional and Online)

March 23, 2012 11 Comments

How to Have a Yard Sale

Rummage Sale, Garage Sale, Yard Sale. Whatever you want to call it, it’s just another word for being able to get rid of the things you no longer want and need. Want to make the most of your rummage sale? Here’s a guide!

Making Plans

When deciding on the plans for your sale first you need to pick a day. May and June are the most popular months to have a sale. You’ll also need to decide if you want your sale to be Saturday only or Friday and Saturday. (Personally I never go to a sale that was Friday and Saturday because I can only get out on Saturdays and if the sale was already started the day before, the good items probably aren’t there anymore.) Also think about your hours. Many people like to head to rummage sales very early in the morning so I would recommend being open at least by 7.

Cleaning Out

Hopefully by the time you decide to have a sale, you already have things cleaned out, boxed up and ready. If not you will have to make a clean sweep through the house finding what you will have for sale. Start in one room and work your way all through the house collecting boxes of items.

Setting Up

Ask to borrow friends and families folding tables and set up as many as you can. The better product displays you have the better your items will sell. If your customers have to dig through boxes to find items they will buy less or maybe not even buy at all.

Free Yard Sale

Pricing

Price your items with garage sale pricing in mind. Don’t over-value your products because you think they are super nice or you are attached to them. Price them to sell. The idea here is to get these things out of your house that you no longer need or have room for, not to show them off and then put them back. When I first get to a rummage sale a quick glace over the prices will tell me if this sale is worth stopping at or if I’m just going to pass by. Also make sure that ALL your products are marked. My biggest pet peeve when it comes to rummage sales is a sale that doesn’t have anything marked and you just have to ask for prices. I almost always pass those by.

Near the end of the day if you still have products left…it’s time to mark them down. In your advertisement you could say that after noon all items are $1, or maybe fill a bag for $3. Anything to get your items out the door.

Advertising Your Sale

Advertise, advertise, advertise. Tell your friends and family. Advertise in the paper and on local fee classifieds sites. Make sure you have large, easy to read signs that point the way to your sale. If people are going to buy from you, they want to know what you have and where you are!

Computer

Online Yard Sales

If a traditional rummage sale isn’t an option for you (no garage, live in an apartment, too far from town, ect) you might want to consider selling online. Search for Facebook groups in your area that are titled, Free Classifieds, or Online Garage Sale, or similar. Create an album and take snapshots of all the items you want to sell. Have people come pick up the items or create a drop area and meet everyone on a certain day. I’ve been really into this style of selling lately and it works out well for me to create a day and drop point to meet everyone since I don’t live in town. The extra bonus to selling this way is that you don’t have to wait for nice weather, you can sell any time of year!

Looking for tips on shopping at a rummage sale?

What tips do you have forย how to have a yard sale?

merissabio

Print Friendly, PDF & Email

Support Little House Living by Sharing This

395shares
  • Share213
  • Tweet
  • Pin182

Frugal Living Tips

Merissa

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Carmen Hays says

    March 23, 2012 at 9:12 am

    YES, I am so excited too ๐Ÿ™‚ ๐Ÿ™‚

    Reply
  2. Teri St Pierre says

    March 23, 2012 at 9:24 am

    I am so hoping to get out and about this year to rummage. Might stick with Hill City and Custer at first and our neck of the woods. Wish I could have one but we just don’t get the traffic – too far out!

    Reply
  3. Jennifer Brandt says

    March 23, 2012 at 9:27 am

    like to go to them but not host one

    Reply
  4. Diane Hite Weidenbenner says

    March 23, 2012 at 9:33 am

    Cannot wait!

    Reply
  5. Anne Chiarelli says

    March 23, 2012 at 9:41 am

    I do, to a point. Lots of people rave about the Pierre Street sale but I find it exasperating and often overpriced. I don’t get to go very often anymore because my schedule is all wrong for it.

    Reply
  6. Little House on the Prairie Living says

    March 23, 2012 at 9:50 am

    I’ve never heard of the Pierre Street sale. My favorite is the neighborhood sale in Wonderland Homes.

    Reply
  7. Helen Marie Turner Ford says

    March 23, 2012 at 11:49 am

    Oh yes, I love garage sales.

    Reply
  8. Heather :) :) :) says

    March 23, 2012 at 2:56 pm

    Thanks for the great tips. I actually have a lot of things that I want to sell…and I can’t decide between trying to sell on eBay/Craigslist and/ or doing a yard sale. I want a smartphone, which means having to sign a 2 year contract…and my goal is to save up enough money to cover the cost of the phone, plus insurance etc for that entire two years. That’s a doable goal…and so all I have to do is figure out how I’m going to sell my items. The secondary goal is to declutter ๐Ÿ™‚ ๐Ÿ™‚ ๐Ÿ™‚ Love and hugs from the ocean shores of California, Heather ๐Ÿ™‚

    Reply
  9. Beth H says

    May 11, 2012 at 12:05 am

    I found something today that I thought was great it’s called yardsellr.com. Online garage sales. Most of the stuff is new, but there are things that are old too.

    Reply
  10. Cindy says

    November 12, 2012 at 7:52 pm

    I live in South Eastern Ontario, Canada, and we have a multitude of community-based 24/7 Yardsale sites on Facebook! They’re great because you can buy and/or sell items locally any time of the day or night, 365 days of the year! ๐Ÿ™‚ The only thing that isn’t so great is that other people want to buy the same item as you, and only one wins LOL! Word of warning though! The sites can be addicting if you’re not careful! ๐Ÿ˜›

    Reply
  11. Hipockets says

    September 27, 2013 at 10:49 pm

    When I do my spring cleaning,I put all discards in a bag or box,when done,I price them and take to my Garage’ Yard sale time,everything is priced and ready to go’ Lots of people go to the 2nd day of a sale. I’ve found that some are repeat customers from the day before,as I always continue to put out new stuff.
    I always have new or like new items and sell them for $20-$25.Some cost up to $400 or more’ Just want the clutter gone’ Garage sales are the best way to get rid of stuff and make some extra vacation money,or in our hard times, a few
    bucks to survive’

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Primary Sidebar

Looking for Something?



Welcome to Little House Living! My name is Merissa and it’s nice to meet you! Here you can learnย how to make the most with what you have. Whether that’s learning how to cook from scratch, checking out creative ways to save money, and learn how to live simply. I’m glad you’ve found your way here. Make sure to keep in touch by contacting me with questions and signing up for our newsletters.

Be a Part of the Project!

Footer

Start Here
About
Shop
Contact
DIY
Recipes
Simple Living
Frugal Tips

  • Facebook
  • Facebook Group
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • YouTube
  • Pinterest

ยฉ 2019 Little House Living