Ten power tips for buying and selling at yard sales

With summer starting up, yard sales are all over the place.  Here are some ways to increase your purchasing power, as well as sell more for whatever good cause.

Last weekend was a big one in our area for yard sales.  Our county's YMCA had a yard sale event with about 25 different tables.  And not one, but two churches had yard sales to raise money for mission trips to Peru.  (This was two completely independent mission trips.)

Truth be told, we don't hit yard sales as much as we used to.  For me, seeing a yard sale used to be like a bell to one of Pavlov's dogs, and if we had other places to go I would get noticeably irritated if we didn't stop.  That, and we just were accumulating too much stuff; we're a bit pickier now.

But with two fairly big yard sales happening nearby this past weekend, it was a good time to check out a lot of items.

Tips for buyers

Here are some buyer tips that will make those deals even better:

1. Remember, a purchase at a yard sale is still a purchase.  If you have absolutely no need for the item, then it doesn't matter if you buy it for a nickel.  Or, if the item will take up half your garage, it doesn't matter that the owner sold it for a song.  Treat it like any other purchase: with care.
2. Check items carefully for damage, missing pieces, etc.  We bought a couple of word dice games from a retired English teacher.  I looked in the box to make sure that the correct number of dice were there by reading the instructions, which mentioned the contents of the box.
3. Factor in what the container is worth.  One of the first items I spotted was an unused latch-hook rug kit.  My wife and daughter are crafty ladies, but I actually had my eye on the carrying case that had all of the pre-cut pieces of yarn.  When the lady told me she was selling it for $2, I didn't even care what the rug would look like.  The carrying case without the yarn was easily worth $10.
4. Compile a list of look-for items beforehand.  My wife has been putting together seasonal wreaths for our front door.  Before we went to the first yard sale, she told my daughter and I to look for old, ugly wreaths built upon a solid ring.  She knew what she was looking for, and also knew what the item would cost new from a craft store.
5. Negotiate wisely.  Consider your audience and use common sense when working someone down on price.  If they are really looking to get rid of stuff — and say as much — then you can be more aggressive with your pricing.

Tips for sellers

Want to raise a bunch of money for a good cause, or for yourself?  Consider these:

6. Get the word out.  Obvious, right?  Tell people about it on Facebook, either on your timeline or on local Facebook groups.  Submit the sale to Craigslist.  If you're doing this on behalf of a non-profit organization, there may be other options, some of them free.
7. Take advantage of drive-by traffic.  Even if people hadn't heard about the sale beforehand, they may see it going on.  If you're on a road that's well-traveled, make sure that it's blatantly obvious that there's a sale going on!  If you're off the main drag, then post signs on the bigger roads (subject to local ordinance, of course) with clear directions, dates, and times.
8. Sell things that people want to buy.  People who frequent yard sales demonstrate that they are careful with their money.  They're unlikely to buy junk.  Though it's true that one person's trash is another's treasure, some trash takes a very special kind of person to treasure.  If most of what you're selling is that kind of trash, then … I wish you well. 🙂
9. Presentation matters.  Having some items on tables or at least off the ground saves people's backs.  Getting the items out of boxes encourages people to browse.  Information about larger-ticket items helps inform would-be buyers.
10. Make it clear how things run.  Who can answer questions about the items?  Who's collecting the money?  If people are confused, they may keep their wallets in their pockets.

What power tips do you have for buying at yard sales?  Or, how do you really kill it when you sell?