Preparing For A Successful Garage Sale

The East Hills third annual garage sale is this next Saturday, June 16th from 8 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Twenty-six households are participating this year.

Having a garage sale is a lot of work ...but EHHOA volunteers are helping by advertising the sale and placing and removing signs throughout the neighborhood to make sure that no one misses your sale. Later this week you will receive maps containing the location of each household participating as well as a sign on a stake to post on your lawn. A separate email with more details will be sent to all those who have signed up to participate.

If you'd like to participate in this year's East Hills garage sale, please sign up HERE.  If you have a problem with registration, you can contact Bill Reynolds at wreynolds10@gmail.com or 527-6588. You also may contact Bill with any questions you may have.

 
Below are some basic hints and tips for preparing for the sale.
You probably already know most of these things but this information can be used as a checklist as you prepare:

now


go through your basement, closets, kitchen drawers, bookshelves, tools and kids' toys for items to sell. Put them into boxes or an area set aside for this purpose until you're ready to price them. Go through clothing pockets.

start saving grocery bags (for your customers to take away their purchases) and newspaper (if needed to wrap fragile items)

find tables and/or clothing racks to display your items

set up boxes for items like CDs and books

find a friend or two to run the sale with you

wash or clean everything you're selling

get colored price stickers and tag every item with a price. Be realistic about how much you ask; remember that untagged items are less likely to sell.

get posterboard for items that are all priced the same (for example: paperbacks $1)

find a box or other container in which to keep the money organized (fanny packs are also an option)


a day or two before the sale


set up your tables and display your items attractively, if selling from the garage. Keep fragile items away from small hands' reach

if you're selling anything electrical, have an extension cord ready so buyers can test things

consider hanging old sheets from the garage walls to cover items you don't intend to display for sale

if you're selling something of higher value, consider taping an ad on the item showing its cost elsewhere

be prepared with plenty of change (you'll be amazed how many dollar bills and quarters you'll need, especially if selling lower-priced items)

decide who will be in charge of the money box; make sure they know to pull larger bills out and put that extra money inside the house every so often. A fanny pack is one way to keep close track of where the money is, and gives you more mobility.


the day of the sale


open the garage door on time, early if you wish...but not late

put some more attractive or interesting items in the driveway to draw lookers in

always greet those who come to the sale

consider having a pitcher of water and cups available (it's likely to be hot out)

don't take personal checks unless you're willing to take the risk of a bad check

decide if you want to offer a steep discount on certain items after, say 1 p.m.

keep the family pets indoors

perhaps this is obvious, but don't let strangers into your home