You’ve cleaned the house. You’ve cleaned the yard. Now what do you do with all the items you have purged in your spring cleaning? How about hosting a garage sale!

Garage sales are a great way to eliminate junk and clutter from your home, while making a little money in the process. With the first whiff of spring weather in the air, people rise early on Saturday mornings and scour their neighbourhoods for local rummage sales. Here are a few things to consider when planning a garage sale;

How to Plan a Garage Sale

• Pick a date:

  Saturdays are typically the most popular day for garage sales, so choosing a Saturday will help to potentially maximize your traffic. Do some research to see if any nearby churches, community centres or businesses in your area are planning a sale on the same day. You might be able to capitalize on the wings of a bigger event (ex. Gathering on the Green in Wortley Village, Forest City Flea, or even a local town-wide sale).

• Pick a Rain Date:

  Into every life a little rain must fall. Unless you have an actual garage to keep all your precious junk dry in a deluge, you might want to consider adding a rain date to your plans. You’ll get more traffic on a dry day and won’t have to worry about soggy saleables bringing down the prices.

• Organize your Junk:

  Once you’ve picked a date, your next step should be organizing your merchandise. Gather gardening supplies together. Keep kitchen items clustered. Make a library of your unwanted books. Help your sale make sense for your customers, by organizing similar items together. That way people who are looking for specific items can easily go right to them and others who are just content to browse don’t miss a thing. Don’t forget to include items like plants you have divided, a lemonade stand run by your kids, or a barbeque with proceeds going to your favourite local charity. The more items to browse through, the longer your customers will stay, and hopefully the more they will spend!

• Price your Junk:

  
  Pricing items for a yard sale can sometimes be tricky. You might be tempted to price things higher, because of sentimental value, but be realistic. Ultimately the goal is to sell it ALL. If you wanted to give it away you could leave it in the yard with a FREE sign, but then why go to the effort? Get a general idea for prices by checking other garage sales in your area, looking at online sales sites, or reminding yourself of the original retail price you paid for the piece. Slap on some stickers, but leave wiggle room for the bargain hunters out there who can’t resist a deal and will try to haggle you down regardless.

• Display your Junk

  With the hour at hand, it’s time to display your items for sale. It’s best to do some of this in the days leading up to your sale, or at least the night before so you’re not scrambling that morning and potentially losing those early bird bargain hunters. While some items can be laid in the grass (like an old push mower or bicycle), other things benefit from a better view. Books are okay in boxes, but tables are better for trinkets. People want to pick up items, so space them out enough that they don’t knock over other things in the process of handling your old china. Get creative. Put a few nick nacks or cook books on the book shelf you’re trying to sell. Drape blankets over the edge of your old recliner. There’s a better chance you’ll sell an item if people can see it and understand what it’s used for.

• Sell your Junk

  Hang your garage sale posters up and down the road. Take out an ad in your local paper or online garage sale site. Put out a sandwich board at the corner to point people in the direction of your sale. Add a balloon to catch their eye. And when you are ready to open the garage door or take the tarp off your tables on sale day, get your game on. Greet people as they arrive to let them know who to turn to for questions or to make that sale. Make sure you have a float beforehand with small bills and plenty of change, so that transactions are quick and easy. If your math isn’t so good, have a calculator on hand.

• Call your Favourite Junk Removal Service Provider to cart the leftover Junk away

  Once the last customer has left, it’s time to count your money, but also to take stock of what’s left. Load of Rubbish will gladly pick up any items which don’t sell at the garage sale. Call 519-637-6928, or better yet, book a pickup with our easy booking page. Good luck with your sale!

With the largest commercial junk removal truck in London, Load of Rubbish can clear out the last of the clutter from your garage sale in a simple trip