The shoe is on the other foot now.

[cyberdan]

I am having my first garage sale.

I have just been accumulating to many yard sale buys and my realtor is sponsoring a community garage sale. I do not live in her community so she offered a free spot on her lawn. Her daughter will get the driveway.

Need some tips on how to handle buyers. I know how I am when I buy, I am cheap, most sellers do not know how to handle me

Also, how much change (bills) should I bring?

I have mostly costume jewelry and vintage.

Do most buyers do it to resell or are people just looking for things that catch their eye?

 

Amazon Forum Fav 👍

DR.ÖTEK Metal Detector, Waterproof Gold Detector, Pinpoint & Terrain Modes, Professional Metal Detector - Grab it through Amazon!

[Drmad7]

Depends on your location. If you have a large immigrant population...they are buying to wear AND sell. And will be as cheap as you (pile of 25 bracelets and they will offer you $5.00) and negotiate hard. The folks that only want it to wear will pay about $2-$3 an item for costume. If you have pictures of the jewelry in an ad and have nice pieces, it will bring in folks willing to pay a bit more. I will be having a sale this weekend(my first of the year) and I will be selling tons of jewelry and watches for about $1-$2 or less. When I did it last year, I sold all jewelry and watches for 25 cents! That had folks loading up ziplock sandwich bags(I supplied)bags and I would just charge then $5-$8.00. It was jewelry I had mostly picked through and wanted to dump. Did very well with that. I may lower my price...not sure yet.

 

[austin]

Main thing is to just relax and have fun. You will be making some money and gaining a wealth of experience for the future. Be flexible and realize that people shop for lots of reasons. Don't give your stuff away, but charge what you think is fair. Down here(San Antonio) it was pretty clear who the dealers were and who the wearers were. We had a large group of Latino women who bought. It was explained to me finally that some were just looking for something nice for their house and it maybe was the first time they ever had anything nice. I gave away some stuff to them, made it up on the dealers. You'll catch on pretty quick and know who is who. Just have fun. I did yard sales, flea markets and made a fairly good living untii I went back to teaching. Even partnered in an antique store and made really good money. Just have fun and good luck...

 

[ivan salis]

bring lots of $1's ...folks are cheap , some are stupid cheap , some are smart cheap .. but as a general rule their all cheap

 

[cyberdan]

Depends on your location. If you have a large immigrant population...they are buying to wear AND sell.

Oh, yea. This is SoCA. A magnet for the non-greencard type.

I will be selling tons of jewelry and watches for about $1-$2 or less...That had folks loading up ziplock sandwich bags
It was jewelry I had mostly picked through and wanted to dump.

I have over 200 lbs of costume, mostly broken. may go 50¢ to $1. A lot can be repaired or for crafting. Good idea about the sandwich bags. I have also picked through all that jewelry. Pulled out all the AU & AG.

 

[jerseyben]

Oh, yea. This is SoCA. A magnet for the non-greencard type.



I have over 200 lbs of costume, mostly broken. may go 50¢ to $1. A lot can be repaired or for crafting. Good idea about the sandwich bags. I have also picked through all that jewelry. Pulled out all the AU & AG.

Costume jewelry = 50 cents to $1 per piece/pair. It will sell at those prices. You have to be willing to give people a discount for buying in bulk, even if it is just 10 items. Everyone will expect a discount for buying multiple items.

Some people will surely be resellers/dealers so use that as an opportunity to sell those people some of the "good stuff" at a wholesale price. Bring some of it with you and leave it in your car just in case this opportunity occurs.

If people are being "stupid cheap" don't be afraid to decline. Be polite but firm and they will just go away. I have found that there is no negotiating with the "stupid cheap" people.

 

[jerseyben]

Also, be polite and friendly. Have fun. Some people will not be pleasant to deal with. Try not to take things personally and don't let the bad ones ruin your day.

 

[Molewacker]

I would have 25.00 in $1's 40.00 in $5's and a roll of quarters for my change. Bags/newspapers if selling breakables. If selling alot of smalls, a few small boxes for folks to carry around and fill (good for the first rush)

Check everything going out to make sure nothing got "Lost" inside. Sad to say, folks will silde stuff into spots - and never leave your cash box!

And Have fun!~!

 

[jochart]

the earlybirds are usually your biggest serious buyers, show them your some good stuff and they'll usually buy the whole lot
use large, brightly-colored signs that can be read at 50 mph

 

[cyberdan]

I would have 25.00 in $1's 40.00 in $5's and a roll of quarters for my change. Bags/newspapers if selling breakables. If selling alot of smalls, a few small boxes for folks to carry around and fill (good for the first rush)

Check everything going out to make sure nothing got "Lost" inside. Sad to say, folks will silde stuff into spots - and never leave your cash box!

And Have fun!~!

I actually have over $500 that I am taking to thee bank in an hour breaking down to 100 ones and the rest as 5's & 10's

good idea about those hidden places that hold things.

don't worry about the cash box. I used to be a cop and i cringe when I see people throwing cash in an open box or glass jar. I once saw a nice metal box on a table that had yard sale items also on it. I picked it up to think about buying it and it felt heavy. I opened it up and quickly closed it and put it down. It was full of money. I let the owner know.

 

[flinthunter]

Keep an eye out for people with sticky fingers. They seem to love garage sales.

 

[bigcaddy64]

Oh, yea. This is SoCA. A magnet for the non-greencard type.



I have over 200 lbs of costume, mostly broken. may go 50¢ to $1. A lot can be repaired or for crafting. Good idea about the sandwich bags. I have also picked through all that jewelry. Pulled out all the AU & AG.

We don't live in that bad an area, Dan. It's the neighboring city to the west that you must be thinking of. I've held sales in the middle of that town and my dads office, just because I knew it would get lots of foot traffic.

People are going to want to hassle you over every price but as long as the sale isn't huge piles of baby clothes, it shouldn't be too bad. Just make sure you break down those dollars for quarters.

I learned to not get hung up on anything and just shoot prices from the hip. 1.00, 3.00 and 5.00 are your friends. My experience tells me that any posted price will be challenged or, better yet, removed and "re-negotiated" without your approval. Spontaneous prices are a bit more disarming, especially when they are low.

It's easier to walk away from an expensive item then a fair priced one, especially when that interested buyer has experienced "I Should of Bought That Remorse" before. Make it impossible for them to walk away! C'mon, it's only a few bucks!

Have fun and don't pull your hair out!

 

[Sterling]

Do not let the money till out of your sight please, and get some help to help for the the customers that forget to pay....good luck!

 

[Beachkid23]

I would have about $200 in change. Maybe even a crappy old fanny pack. You're going to get a lot of change if you have costume jewelry. I would advertise your yard sale on craigslist as tons of costume jewelry from grandmas horde of a collection. Just don't sell it all to one buyer. The .25- $1 will add up, you will make a lot of $$$ off it. Even if it is broken just don't sell it all to one buyer. You get ladies coming around, teenage girls, that stuff will supply you the whole entire day. Tell The bulk buyer to come back at the end of the day and they can have the rest. But if you have a lot of costume jewelry at a community sale and you advertise it you will make it absolutely killing on it!

Even if you searched it you will have fools like me who believe they can find something in it. In fact if you have stuff that's fake Sterling throw it in there too. It will sell. (you know the stuff that smart but not real, or looks sterling) I have done this in the past and have done well. Then had some gold in my pocket and sold it for two or three times spot. Not to the cash for gold guy.

 

[ivan salis]

some folks will buy ugly old costume jewelry thinking they hit "antique' vintage pay dirt ... ours will mistake 14 k EP stuff for --oh boy 14K... LOL --

 

[jerseyben]

some folks will buy ugly old costume jewelry thinking they hit "antique' vintage pay dirt ... ours will mistake 14 k EP stuff for --oh boy 14K... LOL --

Isn't that what most of the folks on this forum are doing now?

 

[cyberdan]

Do not let the money till out of your sight please, and get some help to help for the the customers that forget to pay....good luck!

My wife and daughter are both in Japan right now. I will be by myself on a front yard shared by two other families. (an old lady, probably my age, and her grand daughter) All $$ will be on me at all times or locked in my car which will be far enough away so I do not have to worry about those dumb buyers that do not know how to park.

 

[cyberdan]

Just don't sell it all to one buyer. The .25- $1 will add up, you will make a lot of $$$ off it.
Even if it is broken just don't sell it all to one buyer.
Tell The bulk buyer to come back at the end of the day and they can have the rest.
But if you have a lot of costume jewelry at a community sale and you advertise it you will make it absolutely killing on it!

Even if you searched it you will have fools like me who believe they can find something in it.
In fact if you have stuff that's fake Sterling throw it in there too.

All good advice. I do have several items stamped 14K Italy that I know are fake. I may "seed" my pile every now and then.
I will let them think they got a real neat deal.

 

[diggummup]

Fill us in later when it's over!

 

[cyberdan]

Fill us in later when it's over!

Well, I put off counting my $$$ for 24 hours. I knew I would be disapointed. As Peggy Lee sang, Is That all There Is...to a Yard Sale?

I didn't even make minimum wage. Total take in $61

There were over 50 homes selling in this community. But, the house I was at was buried in the middle of the complex. Unless someone had a map it was hard to find. I closed early at noon (supposed to close at 2) I drove around and did some buying. Other sellers said they got a lot of customers. I did buy a total of 10 cell phones for $3.50 One is an iPhone 4s 16gb that looks brand new. Could get over $100.

===================================================
update: I had a small box of rings on the table, probably 200 - 300 rings. Some lady picked up one and I knew it shouldn't have been in there. I would have had to sell it to her for $1 but she tossed it back in the box. I quickly picked it up and put it in my pocket. Just looked it up. goes for around $35 on feeBay. I am going to have to look at that box again.