Successful garage sales (also known as tag, yard, or barn sales) are usually held on weekends in clement weather. About a month before the sale, check with your municipal government offices: you may need a permit. Ask friends to participate. Assemble, clean, and repair salable items.
Run an ad in a local paper listing the sale date and hours, a rain date, and merchandise range. Post notices at supermarkets, bus stops, and social centers, and on trees and poles if permitted by local authorities.
If you have many valuable items, such as antiques, hire a professional sale manager. He knows the right prices and how to draw the right buyers. He may require a minimum guarantee against his commission. Pricing
Price goods with removable tags or tape. Use different colors or initials to indicate ownership. As a general rule, price merchandise from 10 to 50 percent of what it would cost new, depending on age and condition. For collectibles and antiques, consult experts. When in doubt, price lower.
Arrange the merchandise on card tables or a picnic table. Group items together: clothes on racks; odds and ends on tables; books on shelves or in boxes. Provide power for testing appliances. Have on hand plenty of wrapping materials (newspapers, bags, and twine) and $30 to $40 in small bills and change in your cash box. Be open to offers; reduce all prices during the final hours of the sale.
Donate sale leftovers to charity or set them aside for another sale next year. Remove the signs you posted.